Ericson 25, Centerboard, Deployed and Stowed


An Ericson 25 in the Slings, with Centerboard Deployed
If you've read the brief article on the original centerboard diagrams for the Ericson 25, you'll remember that the diagrams show the centerboard deployed in the fashion depicted below. In this fully-deployed position, the angle of the board relative to the waterline is approximately 45 degrees.

Below we see an Ericson 25 owner using an unconventional method for the launching or hauling-out of his boat. For some reason or another he has deployed his board rather than winching it up and stowing it in the centerboard trunk. Regardless of his intentions, we can see that the board stands at approximately a 45 degree angle.
Likewise, we see in the photograph below that the centerboard on this Ericson 25 is also deployed at what appears to be a 45 degree angle.
 This boat, sitting on jackstands on the hard, also has its centerboard deployed at a similar angle.
This person is obviously making sure that his board is just as clean as his hull just after haul-out. Again, we see the centerboard deployed at a 45.
Same goes for this boat.
When the centerboard of the Ericson 25 is in the fully-stowed position, it is protected by the centerboard trunk and the boat is capable of resting on blocks, as is this boat, sitting in its cradle for the winter.
It's easy to see the centerboard in the picture below. Likewise, it's easy to see that the boat has no problem resting much of its weight directly on top of the centerboard trunk.
This boat sits on blocks and jackstands in what appears to be a winter-storage facility. Note that the owner has opted not to block the centerboard trunk. At the same time, he has opted to partially deploy the board. Perhaps he did this out of concern that the board might swell while in storage and thus become stuck within the trunk. Perhaps, though, his board was well-cared for, and he did this simply to provide some ventilation in this area during the months the boat was in storage.
This concludes this brief article on the deployment and the stowing of the centerboard on the Ericson 25.

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