Sailor lost on the Chesapeake - Page 2

Danny33 · #11 02-06-2011

Beautiful boat ...Sad day !

jaschrumpf · #12 02-07-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by sailguy40

Sad story. Who knows what could have happened, he could have had a heart attack, stroke, or anything else such as gotten dizzy (common with lack of sleep) and lost balance then fell overboard. That sure is a fine looking yacht and for the 29k, the pics and info I read, it sounded like a great deal. My sympathy goes to the family involved. I guess something like this can happen to anyone, its a chance we all take being out there. All we can do, is play it safe as possible and hope for the best. Then again, just about anything we do, there is a risk involved. I may sail around the world to only come back and get killed in a car accident driving home. This said, I am one lucky to be here after my solo coastal kayaking trip turned into a nightmare back in Oct of 2009. Through determination and strong survival skills I never even knew I had, I can thankfully live to tell my story. Some are not as fortunate as I have been to tell their stories. So this is where its hard to tell what really happened out there.

Oh, NOW you've gone and done it!

What's the story behind the nightmare coastal kayaking trip of 2009? Did you put this story on line somewhere else? Can we talk you into a brief summary?

(Apologies for attempted threadjacking)

boomvangdc · #13 02-07-2011

Story and photos here: Missing Aussie Sailor Off Virginia, Presumed Lost | Daily Sailing News from North American Sailor.

Definitely a cautionary tale. After sailing offshore legs and in Chicago waters (where hypothermia is a concern even in summer), I have always felt very safe sailing in the Chesapeake since it's so protected. But that's no excuse to not observe proper precautions, especially when sailing alone and at this time of year.

CapnBilll · #14 02-07-2011

There is a lot of gotcha's that can happen with a new boat. Like missing or non functional ground tackle, missing safety gear, etc... This may be a lesson for all of us. Hiring a crew the first few days until you are familiar with the boat might be good.

sailingdog · #15 02-07-2011

Good idea, but finding good, qualified crew can be tough, especially if you're not from the area.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CapnBilll

There is a lot of gotcha's that can happen with a new boat. Like missing or non functional ground tackle, missing safety gear, etc... This may be a lesson for all of us. Hiring a crew the first few days until you are familiar with the boat might be good.

JonEisberg · #16 02-07-2011

One aspect of this story has makes no sense to me whatsoever, I find it very hard to believe... Of course, it could simply be an example of the mainstream media getting a particular detail wrong, which they typically do in cases like this... But, the accounts I've seen are reporting that the pier he was asked to vacate was the Buckroe Beach pier, pictured below...

How the hell would you tie a 40' sailboat to a pier like that? Or, why would you even make the attempt, when one could easily drop the hook in less than 15-20 feet of water anywhere in that vicinity?

TakeFive · #17 02-07-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by CapnBilll

There is a lot of gotcha's that can happen with a new boat. Like missing or non functional ground tackle, missing safety gear, etc... This may be a lesson for all of us. Hiring a crew the first few days until you are familiar with the boat might be good.

Good advice in general, but in this case you should not assume that he did not do that. One of the articles said he had spent four weeks refitting and testing out the boat. If true, he was well beyond the first few days.

sailingdog · #18 02-07-2011

If that's the pier I think it is, I can't see any way of tying a smalll sailboat off on it safely...those legs are CONCRETE... and not very boat friendly.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JonEisberg

One aspect of this story has makes no sense to me whatsoever, I find it very hard to believe... Of course, it could simply be an example of the mainstream media getting a particular detail wrong, which they typically do in cases like this... But, the accounts I've seen are reporting that the pier he was asked to vacate was the Buckroe Beach pier, pictured below...

How the hell would you tie a 40' sailboat to a pier like that? Or, why would you even make the attempt, when one could easily drop the hook in less than 15-20 feet of water anywhere in that vicinity?

smackdaddy · #19 02-07-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by JonEisberg

One aspect of this story has makes no sense to me whatsoever, I find it very hard to believe... Of course, it could simply be an example of the mainstream media getting a particular detail wrong, which they typically do in cases like this... But, the accounts I've seen are reporting that the pier he was asked to vacate was the Buckroe Beach pier, pictured below...

How the hell would you tie a 40' sailboat to a pier like that? Or, why would you even make the attempt, when one could easily drop the hook in less than 15-20 feet of water anywhere in that vicinity?

There are lots of things that seem strange about this story. I agree that this is one of those details.

Other questions I have are little things like:

Why did he sail so hard for 24-36 hours if there were places along the way to stop and rest? What was his hurry? Where was he headed? Florida? Australia?

These news stories offer so little detail that it's maddening (or maybe I've just seen the right ones).

One thing, however, is for sure...crew sure makes a lot of sense.

PalmettoSailor · #20 02-07-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by smackdaddy

There are lots of things that seem strange about this story. I agree that this is one of those details.

Other questions I have are little things like:

Why did he sail so hard for 24-36 hours if there were places along the way to stop and rest? What was his hurry? Where was he headed? Florida? Australia?

These news stories offer so little detail that it's maddening (or maybe I've just seen the right ones).

One thing, however, is for sure...crew sure makes a lot of sense.

The 24-36 hour timeframe was conjecture on my part based on the earliest report I was aware of that reported he only bought the boat on Monday. It seems the fellow had actually completed the purchase a month earlier, so could have finished the windvane install at leisure and left anytime on Monday, which would have been a much easier trip to arrive at the point where the boat was found.

I wonder about the Buckroe Pier detail also. I had no idea what that looked like until the picture was posted. Hard to believe any experienced sailor would think that was a good place to get some rest, no matter how cold and tired he was.

Edited to add finding crew for this trip likely would have been an issue. It seems like an opportunity for prolonged misery to me. If the plan was to break the trip into legs that could be completed in a day and be docked every night with some heat, then there might have been some takers but sailing non stop or anchoring out with no heat? No Thank you!!