What's your biggest bonehead move sailing?

[Willis]

Although there were many, this is the last bonehead story I will post about the Hobie. Once I had had the boat for a while, I started to feel pretty salty. I was adjusting the rake on the mast for various wind conditions to get more speed and so forth. I invited a friend from school to go sailing with me in the ICW, launching off of Bellaire causeway near Clearwater, FL.

There was quite a bit of wind, and after we had sailed for an hour or so I decided I needed to adjust the mast rake. (A showoff move, totally un-necessary and ill advised). I adjusted the leeward shroud and tacked the boat over so I could adjust the other side. Once on the new tack I instructed my non-sailor buddy to just "hold us on this course" while I unpinned the shroud. Of course he had no idea what to do, or how the tiller worked. As soon as I removed the pin I felt the boat tacking back. Things went south pretty quick after that. I couldn't get the pin lined back up in time and the whole rig came down. Luckily nobody was hurt. The only damage ended being a cracked base on the mast which was easily replaced.

There were a couple lessons for me there, but a big one was not to ask somebody to do something they are not qualified to do. I've re-learned this one a couple times over since then.

[tkawika]

I took my maiden voyage, very short 45 mins, on Sunday with my family. On our way back, I notice the engine was running hot. I passed off the wheel to my cousin and went to check it out. The reservoir is spitting out steam and the gauge says 200. I basically put it to idle and limp back to the slip. Then checked the temp and it had gone down to 180. I had to cleanup and leave quickly, cause I was late to an engagement.

I came back today and went thru the engine. I found that the raw water intake wasn’t opened all the way. I opened it all the way and tested the engine, underload, in the slip for about 20mins and the temp never broke 120. I am happy (this will change soon) and cleaned up the boat and found that my waste tank is full. After some thought, I decided to take it to the dump spot and empty the tank.

Now, I am not a seasoned sails man, but I have about 15 plus years on powerboats from 17ft jon boats to a 56ft Motor Yacht, but no real experience with a 30+ foot sailboats. Ive talked myself into one manning my boat to the dump spot. I start to backup from the slip and head out into the main marina channel. I just get the bow past the cement pole and the engine doesn't seem right. I think to myself, I need to abort this and figure out why the engine isn't right, so I put into reverse to get it back into the slip. Hmmm, No reverse, the wind has me now in the middle of the 100ft channel, expensive boats everywhere and I have engine issues. Going reverse is not working, so I decided I will try to motor forward and find a spot to do a very slow 180 and then get the boat back into the slip. What do they say about plans? haha. I motoring forward and I am running out room, so I try to perform this maneuver. I come down the starboard initiate the turn, increased forward throttle to push the aft around, and the boat isn't responding the way I think it should, so I am now pointing down another row of slips, and I try again to reverse to slow down and backout. By this time, I am catching the attention of some liveaboards and for whatever reason they know I am in trouble. haha. One comes out and ask if I need some help. I calming informed them that I am having some engine issues and if i come close to grab the bow lines. But as I am speaking, the reverse is working now. Very slowing, but working. I begin to backup and thanked them for coming out to help, after a 2 point u-turn I calmly start heading back to my slip. Then another spectator informs me that I am not peeing any water, Now I in the middle again, trying to figure out if I can even look, but decided to just get back to the slip.

Have I mentioned I am brand new in this Marina? I’m looking at the row I need to go down, I make a very wide turn and was going to use the wind to get me into end slip, when I notice I have passed my channel.... So, I straighten out the boat and while praying I put in reverse. This time there is no luck, its not working. I see a guy on the starboard side in his slip just sitting on his boat and I ask him if he could grab my bow and told him I was having some engine issues. He looks at me, and says "What am I going to do with it?" I am still trying to think, what else go wrong. Stupid question... The bow get a slight starboard gust and is now on direct course to very nice sailboat port side, I quickly run to the bow basically was going to sacrifice arms and limbs to save both vessels. I make it time and protect both boats, now they are five more boats to protect. Now, the guy I asked for help, yells over and says "Don't hit my boat, I just had it fixed" lol.. I am now in the middle sideways being pushed by the wind towards about 5 boats. I stayed on the bow became the manual buffer zone between the boats. For whatever reason, I didn't hit any boats, but I did hit a bungy on BBQ lid, but no contact or damage. Im almost even to the last slip, I just have to clear the pole. From the bow, I have decided I have enough clearance to clear the concrete pole, so I head back to the cockpit and grab the wheel, engine is still idling, I cross everything and push the throttle and the boat moves forward past the pole. Im back in the marina channel, under power and heading towards my slip..

I point the bow to the starboard side of my slip, hit the throttle to get some forward progress and then cut the engine. And like I have down this a 1000 times the bow eases in the slip, I jump off grab the aft line secure it and the secured the rest of the lines. Yahoooo.. No damage and only slight injury. Only an hour before this debacle of a trip, I was at my Ortho getting xrays and diagnosed with issues to my 5-6 vertebrae and I am not supposed to doing any physical activity, like pushing off boats

Many lessons learned.....
1. Don’t believe the previous owners startup sheet (He never mentioned the raw water red ballvalve behind 2 red hoses.
2. A 37ft motoring sailboat is nothing like a 56ft Motor Yacht with thrusters or a 17ft river Jon boat that can turn on a dime.
3. Call a engine mechanic to come walk through you boat. Called before I left the dock.
4. many more.....

[sailingdog]

He may have left the ball valve off the list because he leaves the valve open the whole season... and only closes it at the end of the season...which I wouldn't recommend.

Originally Posted by tkawika

Many lessons learned.....
1. Don’t believe the previous owners startup sheet (He never mentioned the raw water red ballvalve behind 2 red hoses.
2. A 37ft motoring sailboat is nothing like a 56ft Motor Yacht with thrusters or a 17ft river Jon boat that can turn on a dime.
3. Call a engine mechanic to come walk through you boat. Called before I left the dock.
4. many more.....

[tkawika]

Originally Posted by sailingdog

He may have left the ball valve off the list because he leaves the valve open the whole season... and only closes it at the end of the season...which I wouldn't recommend.

Yep, I learned that lesson a while back on a 25ft jet river boat. On a river in Alaska and fifty miles from the nearest town. Docked in evening boat is sitting fine, 5am the aft sitting low, low, low, low.

[Bene505]

Soloing out in Block Island sound a couple weeks ago, I put the winch handle into the jib sheet winch, in preparation for tacking. Good wind that day made for some significant force on the lines. Usually I put the wraps around the winch but then tighten the sheet by hand first -- pulling while the jib is tacking -- and then put the winch handle in for the final tightening.

Somewhere in the activities of tacking the boat, the winch handle flew off the winch. I searched the cockpit but it was gone. It floats, but there was no chance of finding it in those conditions. (And if I recall correctly it was night at that point.)

That evening while securing the boat, I saw the winch handle in the scupper. It was too large to be washed down the transom. It's now back in it's little pocket.

Regards,
Brad

[soyuz]

2 years ago i bought a 25 footer with a friend,we had no experience in sailing. after two days of trying the boat and figuring how a sailboat work we decided that on the third day we where going to go a bit further down the coast to the next town, about 15 kilo away.the previous days the weather was nice and all.so there we go, again nice weather sunny and all the good stuff.we halfway to our destination when we saw a huge black cloud it was looking like a cone coming down to sea level.so i asked my friend what we should do, he replied that it was probly nothing and it would probly miss us. 15 minutes after we got hit by sudden winds (35-40 knots) with all sail out .... you guys can guess what happened. We where going 7.5 knots with bear poles for 5 minutes and it all died down.After we just resume our trip.

well my third day sailing gave me lots of experience i can say.
we got lucky we dident brake anything or even worst.
oh yes, i still remember my buddy screaming RELEASE ZEE HALYARDS !!!

[sww914]

I just bought a Leaky Teaky...

[EJO]

I don't call that a bone-head move, just an ambitious one, and good for you there's nothing wrong with a woody (that's what she said too)


Skipper E-J
S/V “SAILMATES” 1973 IRWIN 32 CLASSIC

[Sabreman]

This isn't my biggest boneheaded move by far (see my other posts in this thread), but it really irritates me...

It was a beautiful day yesterday and I was prepping the boat for winter hauling. I winterized the freshwater systems, pulled off the mainsail, pulled all the linens and cushions. The last thing that I wanted to do was to pull most of the running rigging and run tracers (we clean our running rigging each fall). I duct tape the 1/8 tracer to the permanent line and pull them through. Done it a 100 times and only lost a line once (using masking tape). I ran the Spin Topping Lift line but noticed that each end of the tracer looked slightly different. I shrugged and secured the lines.

After tidying up the boat and loading the car, I was locking the hatch and noticed a clump of tracer line on the deck. I went forward to investigate and found that the Spin Pole tracer no longer exited the mast up high and was laying on the deck. When I pulled the line from where it exited the base of the mast, it had some wet duct tape on it. Then it dawned to me that in the spring, I temporarily joined the two ends together because the line wasn't long enough, and forgot to separate them. That'd why they looked different - two different pieces of 1/8 line were taped together.

So now I have to thread a Topping Lift line from 30' up the mast. Not a big deal, but I knew better.

Moral #1: If it doesn't seem right (why did each end of the tracer look slightly different), it isn't.

Moral #2: Never run tracers that aren't long enough, making temporary joints. Use a line that's long enough. This lesson will cost me about 2 hours to rethread the line instead of 5 minutes to pull the tracer.

[JoeAntz]

Well first I just was getting over from open heart surgury so I shouldn't have been diving jacketless off my friends Thistle to help our boys who just capsided my Chrysler Buccaneer. Then after we couldn't right the boat in building wind and waves it wasn't a good idea to untie the main sheet and halyard. We lost the boom too.... and the rudder. In ten minutes I lost more than the value of the boat in replacement costs.