SailNet Community banner
  • SailNet is a forum community dedicated to Sailing enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about sailing, modifications, classifieds, troubleshooting, repairs, reviews, maintenance, and more!

Single handing

42K views 140 replies 70 participants last post by  MikeWhy 
#1 ·
Prior to a 100 miler single handed race on L. Michigan, a number of us single handers were discussing the use of safety harnesses. One well respected, and experienced singlehander said he did not use one because, in his opinion, once you go over, forget it - your chances of reboarding are slim. Indeed he was supported by the death of a L. Michigan singlehander the year before who had been found dead, tethered overboard to his beached yacht.

In thinking this over, it would seem to me that the most likely time to go over is when on the fordeck. If one goes over and is tethered, one will only be able to progress sternward as far as the first lower. If you fall over on the high side, forget it - you will never get aboard. On the leeward side you might climb back aboard, but in any kind of wind you will be fighting a lot of bow wave etc.

If you have used a tether, you are undoubtedly aware of what a pain they are, and even sometimes they cause as many problems as they seem to solve. I know that I have often times gotten fouled up in my tether making my trip up on deck more difficult and longer lasting than needed and putting the boat in peril longer than necessary.

Going back to the guy found tethered and dead. He fell over during a mid September race. L Michigan water temp is usually fairly mild that time of year. He concievably could have survived 12 hours before hypothermea set in. Attached to his boat he may have got beat to death against the hull. Unattached he may have washed up on shore alive, as his boat did.

I confess that in calm conditions I will go up on deck unthethered. As things get rougher, I do use my tether, but I am not always sure it really helps, since it makes working on deck so much harder. For long distances I run a line outside of everything from stem to stern that hangs a foot or two below the rail on both sides. I use two tethers thinking (hoping) if I do go over on the fore deck, I can attach the 2nd tether to the stem/stern line and cut the other tether. I would, then, of course, still have a fight to get back aboard once I reached my stern boarding ladders. I feel a scuba divers knife on one''s leg provides a good method to cut a tether. One must have knife that can be accessed and used with one hand.
 
See less See more
#28 ·
Come here Otto

TrueBlue said:
Interesting concept.
Actually, B&G, Raymarine and a few others have remotes for their autopilots. I use a Raymarine Smart Controller, which acts as both an autopilot remote and an instrument repeater. Has a range of about 30 feet.
 
#29 ·
3 Rules

We have always had 3 basic rules for sailing (for ourselves and any guests):

Rule #1 - Stay on the boat
Rule #2 - Stay On The Boat
Rule # 3 - STAY ON THE &*%$# BOAT!!

Whatever it takes, do not break any of these rules!
 
#105 ·
We have always had 3 basic rules for sailing (for ourselves and any guests):

Rule #1 - Stay on the boat
Rule #2 - Stay On The Boat
Rule # 3 - STAY ON THE &*%$# BOAT!!

Whatever it takes, do not break any of these rules!
I love this. It focused the mind on the main objective. :)
 
#30 ·
sailingdog,
My Autohelm 6000 has a handheld remote, limited in range to a 30 ft. cable, but interchangable with both the aft & pilothouse helms. I do realize wireless remotes are common, but don't think they are submersible, with long range . . . yet.
 
#31 ·
Wireless remotes

TrueBlue said:
sailingdog,
My Autohelm 6000 has a handheld remote, limited in range to a 30 ft. cable, but interchangable with both the aft & pilothouse helms. I do realize wireless remotes are common, but don't think they are submersible, with long range . . . yet.
I believe the two wireless remotes I mentioned are IPX 7 spec... so they will survive a brief dunking to a meter or so deep. The range of most of them is only 30 feet or so... and I doubt that would help if you fell overboard... if the boat is making any kind of speed, it would pass out of the range quite quickly.
 
#32 ·
My new product

It is time for someone to devolop a waterprook remote with a range of a half mile. All you really need would be a way to disengage if you go over. If you always keep a little weather helm trimmed in, the boat will round up and you, attached by your tether, would have a half decent chance of getting back on board. Not fool proof, but what is?
 
#33 ·
A half-mile long tether?

Irwin32 said:
It is time for someone to devolop a waterprook remote with a range of a half mile. All you really need would be a way to disengage if you go over. If you always keep a little weather helm trimmed in, the boat will round up and you, attached by your tether, would have a half decent chance of getting back on board. Not fool proof, but what is?
Umm, if you are attached by your tether... why do you need a range of a half-mile on the remote... do you normally use a 2700' long tether? :eek: Mine in is only six feet long.
 
#35 ·
I single hand now and then, and while I haven't fallen over yet, I've come close a few times when on the bow and caught off balance in a pitch. I was normally comfortable with just a tether, knowing I would always be attached to the boat. But, the story of the sailor being dragged to his death along with a personal experience where I had to reboard after a swim without a ladder, made it clear that while I never plan on falling overboard, I should have a plan if I do.

What I've done for the last couple of seasons, is if I have to go forward I kick the boarding ladder down and with my tether (which I attach to my lifejacket that had a built in harness) I also carry 40 feet of 'soft' line coiled and attached to my belt. My theory is that if I fall over, be it high or low, I can then take the 40 feet of line that has shackles on both ends, attach one end to my jacket as I hang in the water while attaching the other end to either the toerail or something else (my thought being, even on the high side, I'll be able to pull myself up enough to clip it to something; in the worst case, I'd attach it to my tether). Once the line is attached on both ends, I'd blow my thethers connection to me and play out my new 'tether' in such a fashion as to reach the boarding ladder.

While this may not be the most sensible solution, I think it gives me a lot of control of the situation. What I would never want to do is unattach myself from the boat and hope to catch a dragging line though I could envision, in really bad weather of towing a grab line along with the later being down.
 
#36 ·
If you're planning on inventing something to stop your boat if you go over the side, how about I give you all a thought that may make one of you rich! How about an electronic device that HAS to be WITHIN 20 metres of the boat to KEEP the autopilot working.
That way, if you go over the side, the moment you are 20 metres from the boat, the autopilot loses the signal that keeps it on course and rounds the boat up and keeps it head to wind.
When I singlehanded across the Indian Ocean, the last thing I wanted was to be snug in my weather gear with a great PFD and a flashing strobe and an EPIRB and watching my boat sailing off to the horizon. I often wondered if the strobe would still be flashing when I died. Forget about ropes over the back and all that stuff. Stay on the boat or you're dead. End of story. And out there, nobody is going to see your strobe and nobody is going to come and fetch you if they get an EPIRB signal and nobody is going to receive the VHF signal from a 5W handheld. You're on your own mate.
I had my boat netted from the top guard rail to the toe rail the entire length of the boat both sides. Whenever I moved around the boat in dodgy conditions, I did it on hands and knees and tethered my self when I got to where I wanted to be with a tether that prohibited me from going over the side. I concur with the three rules mentioned somewhere before "Stay on the boat" X 3.
Oh and the other thing, if you're planning on shackles for a line in whatever form it may take, use trip shackles (as for your spinnaker release), not snap shackles, you'll struggle your butt off to undo a loaded snap shackle.
Hope this all makes sense.
And finally, singlehanding rocks - don't be scared to give it a whack, it's very fulfilling.
 
#37 · (Edited)
Omatako said:
When I singlehanded across the Indian Ocean, the last thing I wanted was to be snug in my weather gear with a great PFD and a flashing strobe and an EPIRB and watching my boat sailing off to the horizon. I often wondered if the strobe would still be flashing when I died. Forget about ropes over the back and all that stuff. Stay on the boat or you're dead. End of story. And out there, nobody is going to see your strobe and nobody is going to come and fetch you if they get an EPIRB signal and nobody is going to receive the VHF signal from a 5W handheld. You're on your own mate.
I had my boat netted from the top guard rail to the toe rail the entire length of the boat both sides. Whenever I moved around the boat in dodgy conditions, I did it on hands and knees and tethered my self when I got to where I wanted to be with a tether that prohibited me from going over the side. I concur with the three rules mentioned somewhere before "Stay on the boat" X 3.
I agree wholeheartedly with STAY ON THE BOAT. Besides, the strobe will light up the insides of the shark that eats you quite nicely...but no one will see it there.

I'd also like to point out that the majority of fatalities in sailing have to do with falling off the boat. Even on a well-equipped boat, with a highly skilled crew, falling off the boat can easily result in fatalities-look at the Volvo Open 70 race, with ABN Amro One, where Hans Horrevoets died after falling off the boat. I doubt that most of us will be sailing with a crew as quailified as that of the ABN Amro One.

In the distant past, many sailors on the commercial sailing ships didn't even know how to swim-their job was to sail the boat, and if they fell of the boat, it would not return for them. Swimming after a boat is not generally an option-you won't catch it.

My favorite story about not swimming in the Ocean comes from Tania Aebi's book, I've Been Around. Tania was doing a boat delivery with the owner of a new boat and several other people. The owner decided to jump off the bow and swim to the stern of the boat. He found it so refreshing that he did it a second time. Seconds after he got out of the water a second time, a 17+ foot shark hit the hull of the boat where he had exited the water.

As many of my sailing friends say, "We're sailors, and if we're not on the boat, we food for fishies-shark-bait."
 
#38 ·
I am presently in the middle of a single handed port hopping trip up the west shore of Lake Mich. Got a little dicey today - storm came thru. I did use my tether and jack lines, but moving at 6.5 - 7 knots all day it seemed unlikely to get back up if I fell over with auto on. Omatako has a great idea. The technology is there so why not? Remember the 3 rules of single handers as given by Omatako: Stay on the boat stay on the boat stay on the boat.
 
#39 ·
I single handed my Hunter 37 Cutter Rig thousands of miles in open ocean and on the Chesapeake Bay. I typically used a tether with jacklines. I definitely always carry a knife. On one occasion, I was half way to Bermuda when I was nearly swept overboard in an effort to retrieve my fouled Spinnaker. If I had not been wearing a tether, I would not be here today. I have since sold that boat and recently purchased a Seawolf 41 Ketch which I fully intend to single hand.
Singlehanded sailing is in my opinion an incredible and rewarding experience.
Tom.
 
#40 ·
Here is what we do:

1. tether to windward
2. use schackle that will "quick release" under full load on thether
3. We use Mustang Type 5 with the intedgrated harness
4. have whistle and strobe tied inside vest
5. trail 150 ft or so of buoyant line off stern

The next step would involve a small handheld VHF and small EPIRB

Harry
 
#41 ·
SoOkay said:
Here is what we do:

1. tether to windward
2. use schackle that will "quick release" under full load on thether
3. We use Mustang Type 5 with the intedgrated harness
4. have whistle and strobe tied inside vest
5. trail 150 ft or so of buoyant line off stern

The next step would involve a small handheld VHF and small EPIRB

Harry
I hope you're using a release-proof snap hook on the boat side, and a snap shackle on the body side of the tether.

I also hope you have knots or something in the line you're trailing. A bare rope is very difficult to hold onto at any speed.

You should also have a knife on every vest or harness as a precaution.
 
#44 ·
gabachojefe

Your unfamiliarity with the topic may lead you to make a bad choice. Simpleset way to tether is to run a line from your stern cleat to bow ones on both sides of your boat. Then you snap a tether from that line to yourself. Most tethers are elastic, with quick release schackles at the user end designed to be released with one hand easily, even under a full load. Many lifejackets have built in harnesses that the tethers will clip into.

Although I may not want to be tied to a small boat inside a bay, I would say it is standard practice to do this in heavy seas, or if alone in cockpit out in the ocean (especially during night watches). It is the best way "to make sure to stay on the *(#%$ boat..."

Harry
 
#45 ·
Harry, as another neophyte on this issue....

Harry, as you sound quite knowledgeable on this issue, and I'm not (have lake sailed alot, but new to coastal cruising), could one achieve a reasonable solution by running a line from bow to stern cleat, and tieing another line around one's waist with a shackle to attach to the bow/stern line?
Reason for my question is that my wife and I will be "fair weather" sailors for the most part for the next few years, doing only coastal cruising (BC Gulf Islands, some Strait of Georgia), and don't expect to be in rough ocean conditions; however, if we should get caught out in that, we do have automatically inflatable life vests, and I am contemplating the simple system mentioned above as added security, unless it's a bad idea for some reason.
Thanks for any comments/advice from you, or any others.
Frank.
 
#46 ·
Frank,

I can only speak from my own experience, but I see one problem with your proposed solution. If you need to detach in a hurry you will not be able to. It is possible that if you go overboard the force of the current around the hull will force you underwater, a would be rescuer may or may not have the strength to pull you out against the current. With a quick release snap, you can detach yourself and save your life.

Here is a link to the type we use:
http://www.landfallnavigation.com/swt09.html

You'd attach the "yellow" end to the boats jackline, and the quick release end to yourself. BTW, tie to the windward side as a rule of thumb.

Some boats have specific points designed to attach jacklines, ours doesn't so we tie jacklines from bow cleat to stern cleat, one down either side of the boat. The disadvantage that gives us is the jackline runs a bit farther aft than I would recomend as an ideal solution.

One last point. there are specific lines manufactured for use as jacklines. Although not necessary, their practical advantage is since they are flat, it is easier to walk on them and not trip., these are the ones I've seen:

http://www.landfallnavigation.com/wichardjack.html

I hope this reply makes sense.

Harry
 
#49 ·
I know your supposed to have an emergency release on your tether, but I just can't imagine ever pulling the release. I think I would be like the guy from the original post, still attached and the boat on the beach. (Me dead of course)
 
#50 ·
Comfort mostly. If you wear a normal PFD that has sufficient buoyancy and will turn you upright it will most likely be so uncomfortable that you will take it off and never wear it again. It is also so bulky that you cannot get anything done while wearing it. An inflatable gives you the best of both worlds. The ability to be comfortable and have the agility to work on the foredeck while having the safety of always wearing your PFD.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top