Hotspur Survives Winter Storage Damage

Hotspur is 1970 Hallberg Mistral #61, build by the yards of Harry Hallberg in Ellos, Sweden,

and owned by Jahnn and Dave Gibson.

More information about the Mistral can be found at Classic-HRs of the World on the Mistral page.

Hotspur, motoring by the Mayfield Yacht Club.

What Happened

Normally, the keel is supported by two blocks under the keel, which then rest on large boards, as shown in this photo from the spring of 1999.

In 2003/2004, the yard placed the boat on one block, which was then placed on rotten boards. The boat was also in a very wet and soggy spot in the yard.

The 5,000 pound keel sunk in the mud a few inches, placing tremendous pressure on the jack stands and the hull.

This diagram (below) was kindly done for me by an internet friend who is an architect. This shows graphically what I suspect happened to the boat. The downward force of the keel put enormous pressure on the jack stands, especially those chained under the keel. The sides of the hull were forced inward (photo below). Viewed from the side, the middle of the boat bent downward.

Visible Damage discovered May of 2004

More Damage discovered by a marine surveyor in June of 2004

This area is the underside of the cockpit seats, in the quarterberth.

The photo above shows a piece of the balsa coring from the quarter berth area. As you can see, there is no water damage nor rot. The delamination was caused by the upper surface being in compression, and the bottom surface in tension.

I painted the cabin top in the spring of 2002. The old gray paint was a bit faded. All that was needed was priming and painting, and otherwise it was in good shape. The two photos below are the mast step and the area at the aft end of the cabin top by the sea hood. It show signs of stress and cracking.

Both sides of the hull show deformation, consistent with the most pressure being applied in this area by the keel. This is also the area of the interior bulkhead. The cabin roof pulled up and away from the bulkhead, again consistent with the architect's diagram.

The pressure of the weight of the boat on the aft jack stands sunk them in the mud enough to cause diesel to overflow out the tank vent.

The sketch below was taken from a survey I commissioned. The deck, which showed no moisture readings in a 1998 purchase survey, now shows high or alarming levels of moisture. The deck is cored with divinycell foam (a type of closed cell foam) and is very stiff, but if stressed enough, it can fracture and delaminate, allowing water to seep in. Besides being very strong, divinycell has the added advantage of being rot proof.

This deck core sample is still sitting on my desk, and is from the bow area of my Mistral when I installed an electric windlass in 2002. It is 1.5" thick, and as you can see, it shows no signs of cracking or delamination. This area now reads "high" on the surveyor's moisture meter.

Now What?

9/22/04- To date, I have heard nothing from the yard's insurance company. Hotspur has been hauled to Scarano Boatbuilding in Albany, New York. They are a respected area boat builder, and if anyone can straighten this boat out and make it seaworthy again, I believe they can do it.

The yard that stored my Mistral has denied that any of the damage was caused by improper blocking, but feels that it is due to the boat's age. I am of a different opinion, since none of these problems existed when the boat was purchased, and none were detected by myself or the yard in the six years I've owned it. There were no bulkhead separation issues when the boat was put to bed in the fall.

I have asked Scarano's, when and if possible, to inform me if they find the problems with the boat were due to improper blocking, the age of the boat, or some other cause.

03/18/05- Work on Hotspur is proceeding nicely. Amazingly, the divinycell cored deck did not delaminate. However, the cockpit sole was found to be totally delaminated and had to be cut out and replaced, and of course the balsa under the port cockpit seat repaired as well (divinycell was used here rather than the original balsa). The cracks in the cabin top fiberglass were cosmetic and repaired and painted. The deck has been repainted, and the mast step replaced. Scarano's is now 99% finished, and the cockpit restoration is due to begin soon.

I was in the process of having Hotspur's cockpit replaced when the damage was discovered. I had a difficult time getting the fellow doing the work to start, and then I had to tell him to stop when the damage was found. Since the boat was now at Scrarano's, and the person who was hired to do the work was now on other jobs, I decided to have Scarano complete the restoration.

07/17/05- After many long months, and many large checks, Hotspur is finally finished. Besides the cockpit restoration, I also had the mahogany toerails replaced, deck drains installed, and some other minor work done. Hotspur was now beautiful again, and as strong as she once was.

But the day of reckoning was here. What of the damage? Was it old age? Water intrusion? Bad luck? Bob Gilston, manager at Scarano's, reported that only some very minor water intrusion was found in the area of the pedestal. No other signs of "old age" were found. He could not make a determination as to cause.

Before beginning this project I had contacted renowned yacht designer Robert Perry about reviewing the circumstances and facts of this case, and he agreed to review the case and render an opinion. I sent him all the information, including the surveyor reports and Scarano's findings.

After a couple of weeks, Bob called me. It was his opinion, and that of his engineer, that improper blocking caused undue stress on the hull, and resulted in the damage, no question. He followed this up with a letter which I sent to my insurance company, along with itemized bills, in mid-August. As much as I wanted to call the adjuster and insist on a quick settlement, I did not. I had already waited a year and a half, so what's a few more days, or weeks?

10/18/05- I finally had a call from the insurance adjuster a few days ago, and with the evidence I had presented to substantiate my case, the adjuster agreed to pay my claim. They agreed to pay for the hauling to and from Scarano's, half the winter storage, all the repair bills, my surveyor's fee, and Perry's fee. He also agreed to reimburse me my $550 deductible if and when the insurance company collects from the marina.

So, the ordeal is now over. Although I was sailboatless for a year and a half, Hotspur is better than ever, and I've recouped all the expenses related to the damage. My advice to anyone reading this is to never give up when dealing with insurance companies. Get your facts in order, back it up with expert opinions, and present it firmly, but politely, and businesslike.

Hotspur was trucked to Scarano's for storage this winter, as it will every winter until Jahnn and I finally head south.

It's good to be sailing again!

Links to related blocking damage sites:

Endeavor Owners' Group- "The yard stored my E40 with a block in the center of the keel. This spring I found a 3 foot crack, lead to lead in the keel."

Boats.com- "Storing larger boats requires specialized equipment. The hull of each boat must be supported evenly to prevent distortion. Improper blocking during winter storage can cause permanent damage to the fiberglass. Fortunately, this seldom happens because marinas are familiar with the variety of equipment available."

North Carolina Office of State Personnel - "Errors in the blocking configuration of the vessel could cause structural damage to the vessel".

Hunter Warranty- "Problems caused by improper maintenance, storage, cradling, blocking" are not covered.

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