T&T: Atlantic 30 LRC Steering Problems

[Glenn Williams]

Hello Al.
Most transom stern boats don't much like a following sea, and most
"trawlers" have transom sterns. This means that the following sea lifts the
stern and tends to push the bow down and the boat slows momentarily, so that
the fine bow "digs in" and the stern tends to be pushed to one side or the
other. Boats with a fine entry, that is to say a sharp bow, and relatively
flat aft sections will display this behaviour. In the extreme case the boat
will tend to keep turning till it is nearly beam on. That's called
broaching, and it's a real factor in a steep following sea. 
I have found the best remedy is to slow the boat so that the waves pass
under. Speeding up is not an option because in the extreme, the broach can
turn into a rollover in the right (or perhaps I should say wrong)
conditions.
Double enders (canoe sterns) do not suffer this nearly so badly for obvious
reasons.
A larger rudder may give you more control, but the forces acting on the
rudder are significant and you're right to be wary.
I hasten to add that I'm not familiar with the Atlantic 30, and I assume
that it is a displacement style hull?
Have you tried slowing? It works for me.
Cheers
Glenn Williams
"Stirling"
Raymond Island, Australia