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kedge

See anchor, hook.

kedge off

To pull a grounded boat into navigable water using an anchor.

keel

A fin under a sailboat's hull providing weight for stability and lateral resistance to leeway. It consists largely of ballast. Unlike centerboards, most keels are fixed in place and not retractable (the exception is the lifting keel). A keel boat is any boat with a keel. A keel-centerboarder is a keel boat that also has a centerboard. There are several types of keel:

A fin keel is small and not attached to the rudder.

A continuous (full-length) keel runs much of the length of the underbody and is attached to the rudder.

A winged (wing) keel has short horizontal fins that improve water flow.

A bulb keel has a large bulb at its bottom to place the ballast low.

Twin (bilge) keels come in a pair, with one short keel on either side of the boat's bottom.

A canting keel swings sideways as the boat heels so it remains vertical and provides best performance.

ketch

See rig.

kicker

A very small outboard motor. See troll.


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kicking strap, kicker

British words for boom vang.

kill switch, kill lanyard, deadman's switch

A device that automatically shuts off an engine if the steerer falls overboard.

kinetics

In sailboat racing, shifting the crew's weight to increase the boat's speed.

kite

Spinnaker. A shy kite is a small spinnaker set on a close reach.

knee

A triangular wooden or metal plate inside the hull that connects structural members, for example a deck beam with a frame.

knock

To be adversely affected by the wind or a wave. A knock is a header. A boat that is knocked down or knocked flat or suffers a knockdown is suddenly heeled dangerously far.

knockabout

A sailboat without a bowsprit.

knot

1) Turns in a line that form a loop or secure the line to another line or object. Technically there are three types of knot: the loop knot, which makes loops; the bend, which ties lines together; and the hitch, which secures a line to an anchor, bitt, or other object. These terms are used inconsistently, however, and knot generally refers to all three. 2) Speed of 1 nautical mile (6,076 feet, or 1.15 statute miles) per hour. A 10-knot wind is blowing 11.5 statute miles per hour. A knotmeter is a boat's speedometer. 3) It is unusual, but technically not wrong, to say "a 10-knot-per-hour wind." This is because under an old definition, a knot is a nautical mile.