My husband and I were sailing in our FP
Belize, off the coast of TX in about 6 meters of
water,
wind blowing around 15 knots with 4-6 foot seas when our
rudder "cable" snapped. We were attempting to tack for the 3rd time. The first 2 we were using the auto tack and we kept stalling. My husband is new to sailing so I was determined to move the
boat with just the
wind so we could practice rather than turn on an
engine. The 3rd time I turned the
wheel by hand and it just kept turning. Realizing the cable had snapped I fired up the engines only to turn in circles. We had no idea where the
emergency rudder was on the
boat (we bought her in May) so we tied the rudder bar from each
engine compartment to the stern
cleats. It took us a couple of tries before we got the rudders straight. I was then able to
motor us back through the jetty to the marina and into our slip. Once there, we contacted the previous owner to see if he knew where the
emergency rudder was. He described it and my husband then knew where it was hidden in the
anchor locker. When we tried to open the access plates the were corroded closed. My husband pulled the
storage compartment that gives access to the
steering "cable" to find that it wasn't a cable at all but a piece of
rope the size of my pinky! It was so worn in other spots that when you ran your fingers over it it would shed dust. I'm surprised it hadn't snapped before. We tried to contact FP to see if they had a replacement cable and never received a reply. We went to the
hardware store and bought some
stainless steel cable and replaced it. I would suggest if you own a Fountain Pajot you check to make sure your rudder cable is actually a cable and not a thin piece of
rope. MeckDC
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