Don’t Cleat the Centerboard Down

It’s generally not a good idea to cleat a centerboard in the down position (the green line) on an American 18. Think of the board as a retractable fin that helps with stability and pointing ability. Cleating it down makes it rigid and vulnerable.

Depending on the tide in Sarasota Bay you will sometimes find yourself sailing in shallow waters and if you run aground or hit an underwater object, a fixed, down centerboard can be easily damaged.

The force of the impact can break the board, damage the pivot mechanism, or even cause damage to the hull where the centerboard trunk is located. Damage to the pivot mechanism is one of the main reasons that some of our American 18s take on a lot of water, necessitating early repair.

Allowing the centerboard to swing upwards on impact reduces the frequency of this kind of damage and acts as a safety mechanism.

From the American 18 Rigging Guide:

One of the reasons the boat was designed with a rope to pull the board down was in the event the board gets jammed in the trunk with mud or weeds, the down rope provides a means for the board to be pulled out of the trunk. When sailing we recommend that the board be pulled down to its full down position but not be cleated unless you are sailing in choppy water or with waves such that the boat bow is pitching up and down, in which case locking the board down would be helpful to prevent it from swinging back and forth. If the board is not cleated down and you hit a sandbar or under water obstruction it will kick back up into the trunk. Once over the obstruction the toe weight will make the board come back down.