Life-Slings and what I didn't know...

[SVAuspicious]

Originally Posted by sailingdog

However, IIRC, the major reason for the longer line was not the agility of the boat, but the speed. In six knots of wind, a good multihull can generally be doing 5-6 knots... without much trouble or effort. If the line isn't long enough, by the time you get the line over to the COB, the Lifesling will already have passed out of their reach. A longer line reduces the chance of this happening.

The LifeSling is intended to be deployed by a boat circling the COB. Speed isn't particularly relevant. In fact, towing someone through the water is hard on the tow-ee. Above a two or three knots it becomes difficult to keep ones head out of the water.

Thanks for the links to the US Sailing articles on Lifesling. I'll read them carefully. You might want to look at this earlier case study ( http://www.vicmaui.org/2000/resource..._hist ory.htm ). My take aways from it are: 1. don't waste time messing with sails - just go back toward the COB (in accordance with Quick Stop, that also sets you up nicely to circle the COB with Lifesling deployed) and 2. don't put the engine in gear.

You might note that if you try hard enough you can get a Lifesling III. It's the same foam float but comes in a hard case that I find easier to get into. Besides, it looks nicer. There's room in the case to attach a water-activated strobe, a diver's inflatable pole, a whistle, and a small horn to the float.

In my practice I don't use tackle to recover COB -- I tie a bowline-in-the-bight on the recovery line and host it on the spinnaker halyard (I have a spare jib halyard as well if the COB happened with the chute up). I can run the halyard tail to the anchor windlass if needed for a particularly heavy COB.

[sailingdog]

SVAuspicious—

What I generally recommend for the person using the LifeSling is to get into it and then turn around... that way they're being towed through the water backwards, and the water splashing them hits the back of their head, and doesn't end up going up their nose.

[tommyt]

Two thoughts.

First, you do see most of the Life Sling bags on the outside. My belief is that it is just more convenient than having the bag inside the cockpit. On many boats there is just no place to mount it inside the rail that makes sense. That being said, and mine hanging outside the stern rail on the starboard side, they can be a problem. A charterer last year decided to come in a little too close to a post, and ripped the tabs on the life sling bag right off. I have never had the problem myself, but it can happen. My home slip is port tie so never a problem there.

Second, Life Sling does offer the hoisting tackle seperately, but I went a different way. Bought a rope vang with 6:1 purchase and also use it as a preventer. In that way I actually use the equipment and know where it is. In most cases the bag with the hoisting tackle is buried so deep in a lazerette that the MOB will drown or freeze to death before you can find it.

[sailaway21]

While considering this issue, I think it should be apparent to all that the simple marlinspike seamanship possessed by many is going to be insufficient for some of the purposes of recovery. Things like knowing how to tie a bowline on a bight and how to rig a handy-billy are not acquired during the emergency, nor is the gear. A good supply of snatch blocks and the knowledge of how to rig a multiple purchase tackle also seem required.

If you've got the handy-billy, which is a 2:1 purchase, or some other tackle you can use, you'd best also have the gear to rig it to your halyard, topping lift, or other point, and then be able to fairlead it to your winch. Bearing in mind that one available set-up might not be suitable for all conditions. Extra snatch blocks and shackles as well as short lengths of old halyard (can make a servicable "shackle" in a pinch) would come in handy.

TommyT's thoughts on stowage makes eminent sense. Lifesaving gear as well as deck seamanship gear needs to readily available, not just for MOB.

[Valiente]

Originally Posted by sailingdog

Artbyjody-

I don't know where you got the idea that most multihulls are more agile than monohulls... This is not true of most cruising catamarans under sail. While they may be a lot more maneuverable under power, since most have two engines and props and can effectively spin in place, under sail, the higher windage and twin hulls of most cats makes them significantly less agile.

It's an unusual day when you admit a slight deficiency in catamarans, SD!

But it's true that a cat has to take a fairly broad turn, because it is in effect a squarish boat as far as the water forces are concerned. One of the concerns I had going to a full keeler was losing the sort of "turn 180 degrees in a boat length" I had with a fin keeler. I found that having a transom hung rudder of a fair size helped in this regard, as did the someone counter-intuitive action of throwing the engine in reverse.

The most shearly responsive sailboats I've seen are 2.4m keelboats. I've never seen centerboard dinghies whip around quite so quickly as this class does. We have the greatest concentration of this class in North America at my club, and while it started as a Paralympian class (we have a couple of Paralympian sailors at the club), the boats proved so popular that a lot of our cruisers bought them as "fun boats".

[sailingdog]

Valiente-

Not really, since I own a Trimaran... So I pick on the catamarans as well.

Originally Posted by Valiente

It's an unusual day when you admit a slight deficiency in catamarans, SD!

But it's true that a cat has to take a fairly broad turn, because it is in effect a squarish boat as far as the water forces are concerned. One of the concerns I had going to a full keeler was losing the sort of "turn 180 degrees in a boat length" I had with a fin keeler. I found that having a transom hung rudder of a fair size helped in this regard, as did the someone counter-intuitive action of throwing the engine in reverse.

The most shearly responsive sailboats I've seen are 2.4m keelboats. I've never seen centerboard dinghies whip around quite so quickly as this class does. We have the greatest concentration of this class in North America at my club, and while it started as a Paralympian class (we have a couple of Paralympian sailors at the club), the boats proved so popular that a lot of our cruisers bought them as "fun boats".