Knock Downs

[Hm2michaud]

It was a hot, hazy summer August afternoon in 1996, with thunderstorms predicted that the 126 ft S/V Adventure, an Essex built 1926 schooner, left Newburyport. Ma bound for Gloucester. A squall came up off of Rockport and she suffered a knockdown. The fear was that the gaff rig would break free and tumble to the deck, the reality was the port rail was forced to the water as the main sail burster apart, as the crew was unable to free the 2 inch main sheet. A knock down happens in a instant, with unimaginable force and with little time to respond. As you run to safe harbor, sometimes the devil grabs you, but after the storm, tranquility and peace surrounds you. This was my experience in a powerful knock down situation.

[Trebek]

I was sailing in a Cal 20 with to much sail up for the conditions 25 knot winds, when a 40 -50 knt gust knocked the boat flat, with mast hitting water etc... I was on the leeward side and got swept out of the boat due to fast water coming over the side. Fortunately I grabbed the ladder and my sailing partner knew enough to release the sails. The boat quicky popped back up (thank god for those Cals). But being keel-hauled behind a fast moving boat was quite the experience!

We were fine but I learned a valuable lesson the hard way. Nowdays I slow down, reef early, and use a lifeline.

[Giulietta]

Well...since we're talking about serious life endangering experiences...

in 1931, I was returning from my 3rd coastal circunavigation in my Optimist, I had all 12 sails up..I don't want to exagerate...but I had at least 12.000 Sq. feet of sail up, when suddenly....a meteor fell 100 yards in front of me....

It built a wave that was more, much more taller than a Tsunami...it was in fact the only registered (so far), Tsunimamy...a Tsunami to the square...the king of waves...

The night before I had noticed that when I left port, 345 days before, I had forgoten to attach the rudder, and my keel was bitten by a vicious Killer Whale 23 days before, after I ran into the Orca at 300 knots boat speed, my average cruising speed...so there I was alone, in my 7 foot yacht, all that sail up, sailing at around 67 knots, in 123 knots winds....when....well the metoer hit the water..."Plop"....man you think Forest Gump was in deep S**T when he was piloting Apollo 13....this was much worse....this was the Larry the Cable guy goes to war seas.....

The impact was so violent I dropped my nail clipper overboard...I knew all my hopes of cuting the lines and ditch the mast were gone...no nail clipper....I knew I was doomed...I had ran out of butter, too....

The first wave hit me head on, I automatically went into an uncontrolable knockUp...yes...the vicious knockup...this is no mast in the water thing, no Sir.......this is when the wave is so big, it turns your sails upsidedown in the mast...its confusing....the clew becomes the tack, the head becomes the clew...and worse...the ropes get turned inside out...you are now sailing holding on to the ropes's core...and that hurts your hands....well hand..since I had broken the week before one arm, a leg, 13 ribs and twisted my ancle while grilling a steak in 300 foot waves...

It was scary..but I was not affraid...I followed SD's advice and had a whole bunch of paper plates to tell the Coast guard where I was....

Oh well...gotta go now....but to cut a long story short....in my knockup, the boat flipped longitudinally 23 times before it came to a stop, bow down...yes...my stern was mooning the moon, (can you do that??)...I was under water holding my breath for 45 minutes, when sudenly....the boat righted it self....I was lucky....my TV didn't get wet, and my extensive of alreadt filled SUDOKU puzzles was also dry....that day I crossed the Horn once more, and landed in the Azores, where I had a deliciuous Dolphin steak....

[sailortjk1]

WOW!
That must have been one hell of a wave.
Did you wear a harness, were you tethered to the Opti?
Did you make sure to close all of your hatches, wait, does an Opti even have hatches? How did you catch the Dolphin Fish?
Where did you stow your fish hooks? What kind of Anchor did you set?
How much scope? That is not enough scope, you need more. Did you drink the sea water?

[Wannafish]

Originally Posted by sailortjk1

WOW!
That must have been one hell of a wave.
Did you wear a harness, were you tethered to the Opti?
Did you make sure to close all of your hatches, wait, does an Opti even have hatches? How did you catch the Dolphin Fish?
Where did you stow your fish hooks? What kind of Anchor did you set?
How much scope? That is not enough scope, you need more. Did you drink the sea water?

If the singular of "Hatch" is, well...Hatch; then why isn't the plural form "Hatch-i"?
I guess if it was, a certain Stainless Steel Grill fanatic would confuse it with his "Hatachi" Grill - or is that his Hibachi grill?

And now, back to your regularly scheduled program: "Captain Mo-Ron"

[max-on]

Originally Posted by Wannafish

If the singular of "Hatch" is, well...Hatch; then why isn't the plural form "Hatch-i"?
I guess if it was, a certain Stainless Steel Grill fanatic would confuse it with his "Hatachi" Grill - or is that his Hibachi grill?

And now, back to your regularly scheduled program: "Captain Mo-Ron"

Professor, where are you?

[CharlieCobra]

Alex got confused and thought this was the other thread.

[sgkuhner]

In 1974 my wife, Kitty, and I were sailing from St Thomas to New York in July. We were completing a three year circumnavigation in our 30 foot Allied Seawind Ketch. Half way between Hatteras and Bermuda, we got hit by a hurricane and at 0200 July 14, while lying ahull in 85 kts of wind, a huge wave came and we fell off the top of it. When we hit the water it seemed as though the whole boat exploded. Actually the main hatch was blown off, as were the teak grab rails on the cabin top, the spray dodger, the wind-vane self-steering device and the stanchions on the lee side were flattened against the cabin top. When we righted, the water was up to the level of the bunks. Luckily we had the most efficient bilge pump in the world, ...a frightened woman with a bucket! While Kitty got us bailed dry, I bolted a piece of plywood over the companionway hatch opening. There was no time to even think about how much peril we were in. We just did what we had to and by 1100 the next day the wind was down to a mere 35 kts.

[CharlieCobra]

Dude! That's not a knockdown, that's a body slam.

[theartfuldodger]

Sgkuhner, was wondering if you might tell more of how you finished up after the storm, were you able to sail on to a safe harbour and make repairs.