My new Boat: cont

Let’s take an in depth look at what makes this set up so effective. We know that the hull has been around forever but a modern heavy duty build adds a bit of weight and allows for a bit more power. In rough conditions outside, the boat performs out of all proportion to its size. This boat is really small but it does have a couple of things going for it – it is wide at 2.06 m and quite heavy with a heap of glass in the lay-up. Boating fads might have changed in the last thirty years but the ocean hasn’t and the hull design still works like a scalpel in dodgy conditions. This boat is lively, responsive and predictable and I love driving it through stuff that would probably challenge some bigger boats. When you are outside in this boat you have to keep reminding yourself that you are actually driving around in a matchbox and not a 25 Bertram. The little Formula performs so well offshore I suspect that overconfidence might be my biggest problem – the Titanic is a good reminder that you can sink anything if you get cocky on the ocean. Whatever boat you are driving there is no substitute for building your ocean awareness and skill levels over a period of time before you take on rough water.
 
Okay, I expected the hull to work well offshore because that is what it was designed to do with its flared bow, reverse chines and fairly deep vee. I was prepared to cop some pain when fishing for bream, flatties and trout in shallow calm conditions. I really expected the hull to flop around all over the place at rest and I was prepared to put up with that in an all-rounder type boat. You are just going to have to go with me a bit here because what I am going to tell you next has a definite ring of bullshit to it! At rest this boat does something weird – it just sits down in the water and the reverse chines add some sort of floatation like the outriggers do on a Polynesian canoe. I almost hate to say this but this crazy little boat is really stable at rest. For me this is an absolute bonus because I now sight fish for bream and cast flies for trout by standing easily on the seat in front of my console. I drive my electric motor with the wrist watch control from up there and I can see for bloody miles! This aspect of the boat is a fluke but I will take it with open arms. This is a lot more than a compromise boat in an estuary situation.

The boat still has a deep vee so it doesn’t have the shallow water ability of say, a flats boat that will float in inches of water, but the reality is I can still fish shallow enough to keep me happy. I really haven’t noticed much difference between the little Formula and my big Skeeter in the shallow water stakes.

The performance of this boat on impoundment chop is top class – the deep vee really does the job here and having three heavy duty batteries down under the console adds even more clout to the heavy lay-up. The way this boat parts the chop makes Moses effort at the red sea look average!

The little Formula is a deep boat with high sides and it just has to pick up more wind than lower profile bass style boats. I seem to have found a fairly easy way around this problem by using the auto pilot function on my Minn Kota. I just set the boat into the wind on the auto pilot and then vary the speed until the boat drifts slowly down bum first. Windy conditions are fairly easy to handle this way and the outfit is still pretty deadly on a windy day.

I almost forgot to mention how dry the little beast is. Yes you can get wet if you try hard enough, because it is a centre console and there is nothing between you and the water, but most of the time I just can’t believe how dry the boat is. When I bought the boat I just assumed it would be wet and I intended to add some spray dodgers and wear a wet coat – after using it in all sorts of conditions for a couple of months I am not going to bother with the dodgers and even the wet coat hasn’t had much of a run.

I suppose the last thing to mention about the hull might be the least important, but it still counts  with me – the hull just looks hot – it might be small, and  the design might be old, but the lines are classic and this boat has attitude – it sits quietly on the trailer but it just looks as though it means business. I kind of like that.   

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