How Do I Stop The Boat

[Don Guillette]

Yesterday, I was talking to a Aussie friend from Sydney. He was telling me about a discussion he had with a YC/dock neighbor friend and decided to try the question on me. Sailors spend a lot of time/effort on getting the most out of their sails and sailing forward. The question his dock neighbor asked was "how do you stop the darn boat either slowly or quickly?'

The closest I've come to that question over the years is "my boat is in irons and I'm sailing backwards so what do I do?". I tried to change the subject and buy some time while I thought about the question by asking how his wife was doing but he persisted.

I had to think back to my days sailing to a mooring in a Beetle Cat on Narragansett Bay, RI, where we knew the wind direction and sailed head to wind to stop next to the mooring can. We were young folks sailing by the seat of our pants with not much of an idea as to what we were doing but we got the job done.

Dennis Conner once said the most important thing a sailor can do is "have complete control of his boat at all time" -- which includes stopping it under sail. Along with sailing "head to wind" there are about 5 other ways to stop the forward progress of a sail boat.

What ways do you mates use?? Additionally, how do you "get out of irons"?

 

[jssailem]

On small light boats with only sails, it is pretty easy to manhandle the Main in a moderate breeze.
To stop, I would head up into the wind. Back wind the main, usually by holding the boom, and the boat would come to a stop. You can back wind the jib and the main if clever and needed. Usually we would let the jib fly free. To be really cleaver (show off) we would backwind the Main and steer the boat backwards in front of the docks while all the newbie sailors would watch in disbelief.
Getting out of irons, back wind the jib and release the main. Boat pivots and you haul in the main on the lee side, steer away from the wind. Draw in the jib on the same tack as the main. If you are being forced backwards, throw the tiller over to one side, back the jib and you'll come right out of irons. Let the boat fall off the wind, tighten the sails on the lee side and let the boat accelerate. Trim accordingly.

Big boats, same techniques can be applied or just start the engine.

 

[justsomeguy]

there are about 5 other ways to stop the forward progress of a sail boat.

Make it about 6. I found that the seaweed I sailed through a couple of days ago is another way.
Heaving to is another easy one.
Run her aground. (7! )
Slacken the sheets.
When in irons and sailing backwards, I simply throw the tiller over in the direction I want to go. The boat does the rest.

 

[JohnVTX]

Heave to under sail.

 

[JamesG161]

Heave to under sail.

When I returned to sailing and with a big boat, that was the first safety maneuver we practiced. If done right, you can brake the boat in <2x boat lengths.

Big boats, same techniques can be applied or just start the engine.

I don't believe we have been in the irons in 3 years.
Jim...

 

[Don Guillette]

Run her aground. (7! )

That darn near happened to me many years ago, when I first got stuck "in Irons". It was a foggy day in LA harbor, with power boats zooming by and tug boats, that I couldn't see, blowing their horns at me. I had no idea how close I was to the Terminal Island breakwater because I couldn't see it. All I knew was that the boat was moving backwards and then my wife told me the rocks are about 50' away!! I don't know how I got out of irons that day but the next day I learned and practiced the drill so if it ever happened again I'd be prepared.

 

[David in Sandusky]

I have stopped a boat coming into a dock by backwinding the main more than once (a 30 footer and our 27.)

Heaving to stops a boat pretty quickly by backwinding the jib.

 

[justsomeguy]

Toss out a stout bucket on a stout line on a stout cleat.

Keyword:

 

[justsomeguy]

Run her aground. (7! )

That darn near happened to me many years ago, when I first got stuck "in Irons". It was a foggy day in LA harbor, with power boats zooming by and tug boats, that I couldn't see, blowing their horns at me. I had no idea how close I was to the Terminal Island breakwater because I couldn't see it. All I knew was that the boat was moving backwards and then my wife told me the rocks are about 50' away!! I don't know how I got out of irons that day but the next day I learned and practiced the drill so if it ever happened again I'd be prepared.

Yah, don't run aground backwards. Hard on the rudder. And don't go to LA.

 

[RussC]

Toss out a stout bucket on a stout line on a stout cleat.

Keyword:

ha ha. reminds me of "the old days" when I had a ski boat. my buddies and I would go to the lake early and toss a 5 gal bucket or two, on a rope, out the back of the boat so we could slow it down to trolling speed. we had our trout limit in a couple hours and by then it was warm enough to pull the buckets in and throw a skier out. Awww to be young and dumb again.

 

[Jackdaw]

This (stopping) is a two part question. And no simple answer.

You have to 1) stop generating way, and you need to 2) bleed off existing momentum.

Way can be created by lift and/or windage. The bleed is created by water resistance, windage, sailplan, or the dock!

How you do either part is a function of boat size, sail plan, and conditions, combined with where and when you need to stop. These are all tools in the toolbox. Use the right ones for the current job.

 

[SailingCal21]

All good methods for boat control... except for running into immovable objects and the like. Heaving to gets you stopped pretty quickly in open water (its kind of like a blown tack that you do on purpose), however you will have 1 to 1.5 knts of way once the sails fill. Good for a lunch break, or a quick dash to the head.

Best to get out on the water and get comfortable with each method before you need it though.

 

[NotCook]

This (stopping) is a two part question. And no simple answer.

You have to 1) stop generating way, and you need to 2) bleed off existing momentum.
Way can be created by lift and/or windage. The bleed is created by water resistance, windage, sailplan, or the dock!

At 40 tons, try to avoid using the dock itself to slow us down or bleeding off momentum! My rule of thumb in approaching a dock is to go no faster than I am willing to hit something. I approach the dock assuming that if/when I need too shift into reverse, one of the following will happen: 1) the engine will die, 2) the shaft will break, or 3) the prop will fall off. Therefore, I plan the approach, letting the momentum bleed off into the wind, without relying on reverse engine to slow us down.

Had a "shaft/drive saver" fail (performed it's function) once, when a hired captain shifted straight from forward into reverse to turn into a marine we were just passing, without pausing momentarily in neutral to allow the prop to stop spinning, while motoring through Buffalo. Broke the shaft saver, and now we were without any kind of power (other than sails). Dropped the anchor while we worked out what we needed to do.

Here is one possible outcome that results from approaching a dock and expecting the engine to stop you:

 

[jssailem]

Brian. That sounds very safe and conservative. Where's the fun in that. When in doubt I like to ask. What would Captain Ron do?

 

[CaptnEddie]

In open water, try heaving to out of the standard figure eight. Then use a little reverse engine to stop the forward motion. We used that to pick up a hard-to-spot hat in the potato patch outside of Golden Gate. We were still being set by the wind but directly to beam and we could maneuver forward or back.

 

[NotCook]

Brian. That sounds very safe and conservative. Where's the fun in that. When in doubt I like to ask. What would Captain Ron do?

Well, we consider Captain Ron our crew training film, and required viewing by all crew members, of course. I would be the last to dispute it's position of authority on maritime matters. In fact, we take it so seriously, that we have a backup copy of the DVD just in case the first one should be rendered inoperable! We are not mere amateurs!

 

[Allan12210]

Does anyone swing the rudder hard over to port and then starboard? Continuing to repeat as needed. The boat still travels in a straight path (on average), but it burns off speed quickly.

 

[Daveinet]

Owning a Hobie 14, getting out of irons in light wind was common practice. Just let the boat back up, and turn the rudder the opposite direction of normal. I've since had to do it on my previous monohull. Still the same principle. The biggest thing to make sure of is that you let the boat back up far enough that it really gets turned in the direction you want it to go. There is always the temptation to start sailing forward too soon, which will get you caught again. I don't think I've ever missed a turn in my current boat.