All aboard!

[Warren Milberg]

Not a long time ago, a friend of mine who. like me, often sailed solo, fell into the drink while under full sail. Fortunately, his boat rounded up and he was able to swim over to it. But once there, he had a helluva time getting back on board. So it's a good idea to give this subject some thought beforehand and rig your boat in such a way as to facilitate getting back into the cockpit if this should happen to you. Since every boat is different, there would not seem to be a universal formula to get back aboard. On my boat, for example, I always sail with the swim ladder up, but not locked. I trail a loop of line from the rungs of the ladder to just above the water line on the stern which I could grab to pull the ladder down if I had to.

How do you rig your boat to aid you in getting back aboard if you fell in?

 

[Stu Jackson]

One of the best responses to this recurring question I've ever read: (thanks to rwakefield):

Our philosophy is to treat the edge of the deck as a 500 foot cliff. Your chances of self rescue from either scenario are slim to none... [and I do wear a self rescue umbilical on my harness... and practice with it. If I were injured, however, it would be useless...]

Therefore, your time and effort is better spent concentrating on staying onboard instead of recovery. Always being attached to the boat in such a way you can't fall 'off the cliff' is what we practice. [Easier said than done, I know...]

It comes from this four page discussion which includes many good points, especially one from sailorchic who sails full time around here on an Islander 34: do your ladder for the harbor, but if you fall off when moving...you're dead.

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f2/single-handed-sailing-mob-self-rescue-145351.html

All of the "trailing lines in the water" nonsense is also covered.

 

[JK_Boston_Catalina310]

I am with Stu, stay on the boat!

I never solo without clipping in. Anytime we are doing anything more than an hour long sail to one of the close islands inside Boston Harbor we have the jacklines out and harnesses on.

I haven't look in a while but the statistics from offshore racing for crew that has gone overboard are pretty scary. Something like only 20% live. We did a medical course with the doctor for the Newport to Bermuda race and it was pretty eye opening. Bottom line for us was stay on the boat.

You also have the jacklines placed right and the tethers short enough. You can read plenty of stories of people being towed behind the boat and drowning due to going overboard with too long of a tether.

Good luck and fair winds,

Jesse

 

[Benny17441]

I agree with Stu, you need to stay in the boat. I have found that the best safety measure you can take is to stay alert and concentrated in what you are doing. One of the few times that I might utter the word "always" relating to boating is, Always One Hand for the Boat and One Hand for Yourself. A good advise is to move slowly, transfer weight slowly to give yourself time to correct any misstep. Maintain your sea legs by sailing frequently, it is amazing how sea legs help you to maintain balance on a moving platform. Make friends, if you have to sail solo all the time take up another hobby.

 

[Warren Milberg]

I don't know anyone who really would not have rather stayed in the boat. When my friend fell in, he was sailing in daylight, in perfect weather and smooth seas, and a few miles from shore. He got up to trim a genoa sheet and it slipped off the winch and into the drink he went. But stuff happens and usually when you least expect it. I don't know anyone who would sail in those conditions who would use a jackline and harness. I would never use a harness when solo sailing a relatively small boat (<30ft) as I think it would just mean taking a longer time to drown.

 

[JK_Boston_Catalina310]

I don't know anyone who would sail in those conditions who would use a jackline and harness. I would never use a harness when solo sailing a relatively small boat (<30ft) as I think it would just mean taking a longer time to drown.

That just seems dangerous and ill thought out. Size and setup your system appropriately and this isn't the major concern. Attach a rescue knife to your harness and it's not a concern at all.

 

[Johnb]

Whilst I know that it may be a long shot it is so cheap and easy to just hang a whistle on yourself - so why not do it. A whistle can be heard a whole lot further away than a voice.

 

[inarathree]

The best strategy is to stay on board. Always clipped in. But i do have a loop of line tied to the toe rail about 10 ft apart. that loops down about 2/3 to the w/l. from in the water, I can pull it down far enough to get a foot on it and stand up, and get on board. I have used it to get back on board when anchored out at a local island and forgot to put the ladder down. Having said that, I don't know how much use it would be getting back on a moving boat, or one that is bobbing around, in even 2-3 foot seas.

 

[Jackdaw]

At 4 knots your boat is traveling at 7 feet per second. Figure out how little time you have to grab ANYTHING. The entire length of a 30 footer is gone in 4 seconds.

But to answer your question as to how to get back on, we did this hidden on the transom.

 

[Brian D]

Staying on board goes without saying. I am flabbergasted that it was even mentioned. Of course one needs to stay on board. However...

In my particular case, I am fortunate to have a swim step and an outboard. Granted, I may get cut up by the prop, but it is better than watching the boat float away while blowing a whistle. In order for a whistle to work, one needs to have a pair of ears in the vicinity.

I have practiced boarding the boat in calm conditions. Yeah, I know it is not the same as in bad conditions, but practice is better than just thinking about it. Do it on a hot day so it will be fun. LOL

 

[chuckwayne]

we use a plastimo rescue ladder - sits in a pouch attached to the arch base and the release loop hangs down so you can reach it from the water. On the 356 it's almost impossible to deploy the swim ladder from the water - if the helm seat is folded down as a swim step it is impossible.
We always use inflatables with harnesses and jacklines offshore and in rough weather; anyone leaving the cockpit has flotation regardless of the weather, usually the inflatable waist belts

 

[IH82BL8]

I've actually been thinking a lot about this lately. I was thinking a long stern line would be a good start. But I was thinking that the stern ladder should not be secured with a cable to keep it up, but it should be secured with a loop of bungee cord about hallway up with the stern line attached to the ladder. When I go overboard I can grab the stern line and pull myself to the boat pulling the ladder down to where I can reach it.

The only challenge will be pulling myself hand-over-hand while the boat (on autohelm) is making 5-6 knots headway.

 

[JK_Boston_Catalina310]

I've actually been thinking a lot about this lately. I was thinking a long stern line would be a good start. But I was thinking that the stern ladder should not be secured with a cable to keep it up, but it should be secured with a loop of bungee cord about hallway up with the stern line attached to the ladder. When I go overboard I can grab the stern line and pull myself to the boat pulling the ladder down to where I can reach it.

The only challenge will be pulling myself hand-over-hand while the boat (on autohelm) is making 5-6 knots headway.

That's not a challenge. It's nearly impossible. Again, every cruising season there is at least one story of someone going overboard with a tether that is too long and no knife. They are dragged behind the boat until they drown.

Again, stay on the boat. Set up a good system where you are clipped in and the tether is long enough to do your work but short enough that you can't go past the life lines. In the cockpit, install some good, strong D rings to clip to when you are at the helm.

Besides, what happens to that trailing line when you start the engine? Talk about asking for trouble. Or it could get caught on the rudder.