Slippery Cockpit/Footwell

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I have a new Sunfish (2010 Worlds boat) and the floor of the cockpit/footwell is so slipery when wet that I have trouble doing roll tacks. I currently wear Keen sandles while sailing, which should have a fairly good grip.

Is this normal and something I have to live with, or is there something that people do to the floor of the cockpit/footwell to get a better grip with their feet?
 
Is this normal and something I have to live with?


That is not normal. Keen sandles may not have good traction on wet hard surfaces. Try bare feet or one of the brands of sailing boots, like zhik, Ronstan, etc. Harken and Sperry sailing shoes have siped soles also which have good traction. BB
 
The Keen sandles have siped souls that have good traction on other boat surfaces. They are actually made for boating.
 
What does the surface of your cockpit look like? It should be the same as the area where you sit on the deck.

 
The cockpit floor does have the same pattern pressed into the fiberglass as the gunwales where you sit, which are also more slippery than my friend's 2003 Sunfish that I had been sailing.
 
I realize that it an almost brand new boat , and it obviously shouldn't be slippery like that.
Maybe the seller made it even shinier ( and mega-slippy ) by cleaning it with a silicone based polish or wax before you purchased it ?
 
Personally I'd just wash those areas with soapy water , then rinse and repeat several times.
It worked for me after bought an older Sunfish that the seller had sprayed all over with silicone based furniture polish.
Getting it onto my truck was like having a fight with a giant slippery eel !
After a few soapy wash and rinse cycles it was much better.
 
It seems like it must have been waxed or someone sprayed it with silicone or something. Eitehr that or those sandals you are wearing just aren't cutting it. Try going barefoot and see if you get better traction - if so, then the problem is the sandals.

If you just can't solve the problem, try putting in some of those textured traction stickers people use in their bathtubs - assuming the cockpit is not so slippery those won't stick.

BB
 

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