I took The Brawler out in rougher waters last weekend. Unusually cold temps, high winds and rain greeted The Brawler last Saturday. I have no problem navigating the boat in rough water. Lake Ontario is a Great Lake and subject to rough water conditions. I note that one of my passengers was a little concerned but I knew we were safe. The boat is made to withstand rough waters. We were never in danger. I might be used to the conditions due to my naval days when we plied the ocean. Boats float and it takes a lot to sink them. It was just a little rough sea conditions. The water was barely spraying over the bow. My only concern is parking the boat in windy conditions. On this day with the sheltered marina I had no problems. I won't go out in lightening but some wind and waves are not an issue in the open water. Most of the passengers enjoyed the open water. I am rarely more than 500 meters from shoreline with all the safety equipment allowed.
I am sensitive to people feeling concerned, or a little sea sick and I took the boat into the calmer inner harbour. My sense of what constitutes rough water is likely different from people without sea legs. I have only had one person get sea sick on The Brawler.
The weather this upcoming weekend looks a lot better with only 5km winds rather than 20km. The roughest water I have encountered in Lake Ontario was when I had my parents on the boat last summer. We tried to take it out into the open water but it was simply too rough so we turned back. On at least one other occasion I cancelled a trip due to rough water conditions. We stayed in the harbour and fired up the BBQ. It's not fun if the water is too rough. I would say that ocean going cruisers would find these conditions moderate. This in not the Perfect Storm. I have sailed in those conditions as a young man on the ocean during a hurricane.
I pay attention to small craft advisories on the radio. Those conditions for the lake Ontario are winds of 25kts or nearly twice what we encountered.
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