Accidental Jibes

[sgkuhner]

Whenever, we are sailing wing and wing down wind, I ALWAYS use a preventer. It is a four part bock and tackle rigged from the end of my boom to a pad eye just aft of the aft lower shrouds. Actually, I have two preventers rigged, on for each side so that when I want to jybe, I mearly jybe the sail then ease off on the then windward preventer as I take up on the new leward one. Thus the boom eases over from one side to the other. However; when I am sailing down wind in the trades etc for a longer period of time, say over 12 hrs, I will pole out two jibs, one on either side and then the windvane will steer the boat without me having to worrry at all about a jybe.

[sailingdog]

Jeff-

Just curious as to why you think a boom brake is useless in a high-wind accidental jibe.

Originally Posted by Jeff_H

Regarding Post 20 and some of the responses: I have to agree that a boombrake is of little use in a high wind accidental jibe. IMHO Preventers should be single-part, and stretchy line (nylon) run from the end of the boom to the bow and then back to the cockpit. The purpose of the stretchy line is to absorb shock and should be rigged to be quickly and easily eased from the cockpit to allow the boom to swing over comparatively gently.

Jeff

[chessysailor]

1. When sailing at night, my standing orders are that a preventer will be rigged when the wind is abaft the beam.

2. A couple of months of ago while sailing around the Spanish Virgin Islands in 20 kts of wind, the helmsman performed a less that perfect jibe - i.e. the sail had been pull in half way when the boom went over. The resulting force was enough to rip the mainsail nearly in two. Granted that the sail was junk, but it brought home how hard an accidental jibe is on the equipment.

[frisbee_ten]

My near miss came when I asked my wife to hold the boat into the wind so I could take the mainsail down on my 26 footer. Since she is sail challenged, I simply told her to point the boat at a certain landmark. Unfortunately, the wind changed direction and the boom swung sharply--luckily only grazed my cheek. I shudder to think what would have happened if the boom had been one inch closer.

[captainchetco]

jkliegman has a right Idea! Her's another one.
On my Gulfstar 41', I run a continous line with a snap shackle at each end from the end boom area to a cleat foreward and back to the end boom area on the other side. It merely runs through the base of the bow cleat, and is not made fast.
The snap shackle on the lee is attached to the end of the boom, and the upwind end of the line is made fast to a cleat at the cockpit. The line holds the end of the boom, not the middle and runs clear to the bow. To make a controlled gybe, unsnap the starting leward, pass the boom across under control, and snap on the new leward side; make fast the now upwind side. Its fast and done without leaving the helm. Keeps the boom from booming on your head.

By the way, used to have a chandlery in Brookings OR. Every year, at least one boat would come in with a buckled boom from using the vang as a preventer. Out on the real ocean, where winds are strong and seas kicking the stern around, you need to have an end boom preventer, or a big checkbook for boom replacement.