A bit of following seas...

[CharlieCobra]

Gorgeous 12m Yawl off the German coast.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKusg6Jyc9Y

It looked as he needed a bit more canvas up as light as the wind appeared so he could keep positioned on those swells. The motion of the boat looks real familiar and the helmsman looked a bit behind the waves timing wise. While I don't know how this was filmed, I read they made it in safely.

[deepblueme]

Made me quesy just in that short time!!!!

Reminded me of a crossing of the Gulf Stream once...

[nolatom]

Well he's yawing a lot, but how can you help it? The point is to keep the bow downwind, and the boat underneath the mast. Maybe a small storm tri would help, but when he gets headed up, he really wants all his sail area forward, and when yawing too far down, he wants a sail that can accidentally "jibe" without causing rig or handling problems. Looks like that's what he has, along with a narrow counter stern that's almost like a bow and takes the following seas pretty well.

They made it in safely according to the youtube comments. I wouldn't second-guess the master on this one.

[CharlieCobra]

Yeah, no telling how long they'd been out there fighting this stuff before the vid was shot either. Running on a broad reach in that stuff makes ya tired and sometimes you're a bit late with the helm. When a big wave runs under my stern it'll push around if ya don't counter just right. It'll also pull the bow the other way as it passes, if ya don't catch it just right. Sometimes it doesn't matter what ya do, ya still end up wallowing around with some waves. With a boat like that one and mine, it's better to take the waves at an angle rather then DDW. More control at an angle.

[starboardyacht]

wow.... he seems a bit underpowered, a little more boat speed may make it easier to steer off those waves (maybe not so much over correction), these conditions wear a crew out fast, anyone know when and where this took place? scares the crap out a me, fun for a little while then "minutes turn to hours"

[CharlieCobra]

Off Helgoland Germany? In 2002. I guess the Yawl had her mast in the water shortly before the video started, with no damage.

[nolatom]

"Beauty is as beauty does". He made it in safely. I think those of us who are at comfortable computer stations get to comment, but not to judge.

[CharlieCobra]

I reckon so. I did notice a broken spreader on the mizzen after looking at the vid a couple of times. Could be why he wasn't running jib and jigger.

[nolatom]

Your eye may be better than mine on this one, maybe the port spreader's gone on the mizzenmast, I can't tell. But if he's trying to get downwind, then he may not want the jigger anyway, it would only make him round up when he didn't want to.

In any event, they made it, and what a pretty "old school" boat...

[Rockter]

He's a bit roly-poly.