Am I just being sensitive?

[flyingwelshman]

Originally Posted by davidpm

After re-reading this I'm curious as to what happened.

If you passed port to port and you did not change course and Nonsuch did not change course then why did you have to do extra tacks and where did you do them.

I'm thinking you may have tacked in front of them and passed starboard to starboard then tacked back to the bouy.

We passed port to port - the Nonsuch held its course.

I couldn't point high enough to get around the marker so, once the nonsuch had passed I tacked to port from a point to the bottom right of the marker (before the shoal); then tacked to starboard once far enough out to clear the marker and resume my course.

Please bear in mind that I was travelling at about 3 - 4 knots and there was plenty of room to my starboard and plenty of room to the nonsuch's port that at no time was anyone in any danger.

You know how you set these little goals for yourself - things like: "It's going to be tight, but if I stay on this tack I can clear the marker." This was all this was. Nobody did anything incorrectly.

I agree with Valiente's comments about prefering people to follow the rules than be nice - at least then you know what to expect.

The Nonsuch came down and turned a few degrees to port as she passed the marker. This is what caused me to bear off to a heading that made it impossible to point up high enough to pass the marker. I am sure they did this without realizing the effect that it had on me - they certainly did not drive me onto the shoal. As I said we passed amicably but I did have to add a couple of tacks. Not that tacking is a hardship, but you know you set these little challenges for yourself?

Thanks for all of the interesting points on the subject. While I will continue to abide by the 'rules' I think I will always attempt to give the other guy a break if it can be done in such a way as to avoid disaster.

The radio would be a good idea - however the area in which I sail is very busy with a lot of sail and powerboat traffic. The constant noise coming over the VHF is very distracting (the same boats hailing their buddies; kids playing on the sets; people sitting on their switches; regular securité hails from local tour boats announcing passages through channels that are miles away etc. etc. etc.) and takes away from my enjoyment on the water. Most often I leave the VHF off now.

[flyingwelshman]

Originally Posted by davidpm

This thread is about a very similar situation
http://www.sailnet.com/forums/seaman...ld-you-do.html

My God! Are we twins seperated at birth? I didn't see your thread, but it's very similar to mine - right down to the diagram.

That's scary!

[patrickrea]

I go through this everytime I leave and return Toronto harbour by the Eastern Gap. Sailboats, tour boats, regular power boats, freighters, jetskis and windsurfers come through a relatively narrow, but very deep channel. Wind direction changes every 10' if it's out the east or west.

Hoping that the other guy will give way assumes too many things.
A) Might not see you - unlikely as stated earlier the boom on a Nonsuch is quite high.
B) Has shoals of his own that he is dealing with - we are talking Southern Georgian Bay after all. It's a wonderful rockgarden as all the prop repair people will tell you. You said he has lots of water, but what you consider lots and what he considers lots are totally different.
C) He has other difficulties happening. Screaming wife/ child, rigging issues, his towed dinghy just flipped over. Trolling line out too far.
D) He's polite and alert. Which is way too much to hope for these days.

The best you can hope for is that he holds his course. You deal with the rest.

[scottchop]

Ok, just to qualify, I am completely new to sailing, but does this rule apply here?

" A boat running free before the wind must give way to a boat working to windward."

Or because the Nunsuch was on a broad reach is it different?

Thanks,

Scott

[US27inKS]

Scott, that rule applies only if both boats are on the same tack. Since welsh was on a port tack, he gives way to the starboard boat.

[Valiente]

A personal rule not found in the Rules is that "prior to the Rules coming into effect, perform the least stressful movements that will avoid having to consult the Rules at all."

Yeah, I'm the guy who looks like he's asleep at the tiller...but I'm just plotting to see if I need to move more than five degrees.