And would the ballast of the board, even the heavy iron board on the old M17's, make much of a difference in stability when heeled, and if so, would it make that difference when the board was up, or when it was down: It's contributing to a low center of gravity nonetheless, right? Someone theorized that it's actually safer to have the board up in wicked blow: That with the board up, unexpected gusts will cause the Monty to "skitter" sideways, rather than heel to a dangerous degree. ??? ----- Original Message ----- From: <htmills@bright.net> To: "'For and about Montgomery Sailboats'" <montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com> Sent: Saturday, November 22, 2003 7:44 PM Subject: Potter and Catalina Remember, there is "initial" stability and then there is the stability at the other end of the spectrum. Beam plays an important part in the initial stability but ballast is of small consequence. Ballast is important when the boat is heeling a bunch. Tod