OSTAR Flotsam

[petertribo]

This story raises the age old question of whether sailing races are run responsibly. Do sailors have a duty to ensure the garbage they leave behind is not a danger or concern to others? The container ship must also be considerably out of pocket rescuing this fellow::

"Earlier this week, Tyler Henneberry landed his biggest catch ever – a 30-footer.

The 23-year-old fisherman and his crew left Sambro two weeks ago in search of tuna and swordfish, but gave up on fishing when they found an empty racing yacht.

"We knew that it had been abandoned, or that someone was hurt inside," Mr. Henneberry said.

Turns out the four fishermen had stumbled upon the Citta di Salerno.

Its Italian skipper, Gianfranco Tortolani, had been competing in a United Kingdom-to-Rhode Island race, when the yacht capsized and its mast snapped.

Mr. Tortolani was rescued by a passing container ship on June 21 just a few hours after the boat flipped."

Salvaged yacht was competing in race - Nova Scotia News - TheChronicleHerald.ca

This story also seems to indicate that the age old maxim "Stay with the boat." is valid.

I also wonder what the eventual payout may be in this case.

I will be going out today off Nova Scotia to search for profitable Flotsam left behind by the Yachting Community. The Halifax-Marblehead race went by this week. I did once salvage an inflatable which I reported to authorities who were totally disinterested. I sold it for $150. Keep a good lookout.

Peter, Elan 7.7, Nova Scotia

[Valiente]

My strong impression is that it is the duty of a skipper doing the abandoning to open the seacocks or to cut the thruhull hoses of the abandoned yacht to avoid creating a "nautical hazard". If for some reason this can't be done, authorities should be given the last known lat/lon. to alert vessels in the area or salvors.

I don't know what the radar profile of an OSTAR 30 footer is, but it can't be very strong. And yet you'd feel it if you hit one doing eight knots.

I agree with your implied premise: This is irresponsible, as well as expensive and premature. I guess Yves Parlier and Derek Hatfield, both of whom rigged (and in Parlier's case, fabricated) jury masts to get their boats to port, are the exception rather than the rule.