a question of boat length

[trefor]

in the state of missouri, a sailboat under 12 feet does not have to be registered. hypothetically speaking, if you had a sailboat/dinghy with a hull length of 11'6" and it had a bowsprit that extended another two feet, what would the boat's length be considered? would it be eleven and a half feet or thirteen and half feet?

sorry of this is a dumb question. a quick search gave me nothing definitive.

-trevor

[Boatguy1972]

typically, a bowsprit is not considered in a vessels length for registration purposes.

[ILikeRust]

I would think the applicable law or agency regulation derived therefrom would define "boat length" or whatever term is used, or at least give some indication of how the boat's length should be measured. E.g., it could say "at the waterline" or something.

[paladin]

LOD is the unsparred length. The only folks that burn you for the bowsprit and boomkin are the marinas that will charge by the foot and every inch they can find.

[neoconocephalus]

In Missouri the length of the hull without appendages is measured. So, rudder, bow sprit, etc. do not count.

Once you have registered a home made boat in Missouri, you understand why Bisquit and Garvey has 11'11" LOD ...
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2755/4299006518_4c47f5e4b1.jpg

[trefor]

thanks, everyone!

i am giving some consideration to building a 16' wa'apa outrigger by gary dierking this fall/winter, but i'm kicking around a few other options under the registration length, as well. not sure i feel like messing with the state much just to get a boat on the water.

-trevor

[trefor]

and that garvey is a great look'n boat. i've stumbled across it a couple times on flickr.

[JimD]

Sandbaggers come to mind

http://www.schoonerman.com/sailingterms/6080ros4.jpg

[James McMullen]

If Deputy Dawg's got a quota to fill or somethin' he's gonna measure counting the bowsprit too. Just build the boat you really want and pay the fee rather than compromise having the best boat for your needs subordinated to petty pocket change bureaucracy.

C'mon now, we're not talking hundreds of dollars here. You'll waste that much money worth of epoxy drips building a typical 16' boat.

[trefor]

it's not the fees i'm afraid of, but the headache.

[GBVT]

Better to beg forgiveness than ask permission. Don't blame anyone one bit for working under states arbitrary limits.

[Thorne]

If you don't want it to be measured, make sure it is easily removable. They will probably measure anything 'fixed', but things like rudders, boomkins and sprits shouldn't count if you can easily pull then off the boat.

A lot of this sort of thing doesn't meet the letter of the law, but how it is enforced. In many states if you don't use an outboard on it and it is under 16', registration isn't likely to be enforced unless you get on the wrong side of the official...

[wizbang 13]

Does a spinaker pole increase beam ?

[James McMullen]

Technically, my boat doesn't need numbers because it's just a big rowboat, but in order to go back and forth across the Canadian border with zero hassle from small-minded officialdom, I just went ahead and got numbers for it.


Not as much of a hassle to get registered as you probably fear, I reckon. Pick the battles worth fighting, I say.