: Al,

: Beautiful boat – perfect blend of art and function. I’ve coveted a Mariner
: Elan for the last year or so but it’s just not in the budget. I am however
: building a stitch and glue boat and want to install several Mariner
: inspired custom features. To that end a couple of questions about your
: boat: How do the forward bungies attach? Do they simply lead through holes
: in the deck and tie off or is there a more elegant secret?

Cam Broze made it no secret to me, but there is a slight trick to it. The deck bungee is 3/16" diameter and the holes are drilled slightly smaller in a glass deck. I used a 3/16" drill on mine but epoxy coated the insides twice, so the holes are smaller than the cord. By pushing the outer jacket back on a fresh cut on the bungee, cut 1/4" off the rubber core. Then carefully melt the jacket into a small, elongated glob after it has been pulled back over the core. This glob is fed through each hole in succesion, with stopper knots on each end. I've had a lot of water over the deck, and not any sign of a leak so far.

: How does the aft deck layout work with paddle float rescues? The Mariner web
: site describes the process but I must admit I don’t entirely understand
: the description.

I followed their description and it works fine for me. You need to have your deck lines arranged like theirs, with the hooks on the outer bungees. I do an outside to inside twist in the aft crossing bungee for each of the spare paddle shaft ends. I have 38" between this bungee and the forward bungee, which fits my paddle length, so that could be a problem if you had a different spacing. The blade ends of the paddle are fit under the diagonal dacron lines, with the outer bungee lines hooked over.

: The integral rudder is an interesting feature of the Mariner boats. Given you
: experience so far, do you think it would be practical to try installing
: something similar on a hard-chained boat?

The simple answer is no. The integral rudder is somewhat of a misnomer. It's the combination of flare and hard chine that gives the effect of a rudder in carving turns when leaning. Also, I find that I intuitively rock at the middle of my stroke if I want to turn a few degrees. This lifts the skeg enough for the aft end to slip around without having to vary my stroke. This is most effective when crossing waves, but you do have to time your stroke to the wave.

: I have about a zillion more detailed questions but don't want to take
: advantage of your generousity. Thanks very much for sharing your boat and
: experience with us.

Hey, half the fun of doing something like this is sharing it with others. I'm just happy you ask the questions. I hope my answers have made some sense.

Al