Turns out she wuz a '66 Constellation 65' with "double mahogany planked hull on oak frames"; but as Inspector Clouseau would say, "Not anymore". Victim of wasted fastners? Submerged object strike??
Surveyors familiar with Connies looked for stern issues. Still, the bow and more specifically the bow quarter receives the most stress while running in a head sea. You have pounding and worst of all you have twisting. If the fastners are weak, it is possible for a plank to be sprung or "pop-out" of position opening up the adjacent butts and seams to the sea. Rarely do planks get "spit out" completely, leaving a void where wood should be. Those Chris Crafts and most production built wood yachts do not have full-width structural bulkheads in the bow. That's where the strength of any boat is and if the weak fastners allowed everything to move more than normal, problems soon emerged. Slowing down could have saved these guys alot of trouble. DO NOT underestimate the Lake Michigan waves: You may have 2 minutes of consistent waves, and suddenly be greeted by "rogue" waves or "walls of water".
NOTE: The following graphs show the mid-lake buoy info. The boat sank on the 22nd. Keep in mind the waves have a sharper chop near shore.
PS- Watch out for debris now washing up over 40 miles away:
http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?s=8733349
Charter boat/Pizzazz Charters, LLC in Haslett, Michigan (that "that offers a one-of-a-kind cruising experience on the Great Lakes") and was for sale at the time/see listing:
http://www.boatline.com/boatdetail21357.htm
