do you safety tether in when soloing?

[Stu Jackson]

Don't go over in the first place. A tether isn't gonna help you stay on board, unless you follow zeehag's advice.

Which you should.

And Bill's, too.

I know this may sound counter-intuitive, but you only have ONE chance.

On my boat, there is a HANDHOLD everywhere I go on the boat.

Like docking, it's practice, practice, practice.

If it's that bumpy, turn around and head home.

 

[higgs]

I have done quite a bit of solo sailing in quite a variety of conditions. If you are cruising or racing you are going to be on AP a lot and if your boat is travelling at 5 knots and you go over with a tether on, you are probably not getting back aboard. If you went forward to, say, free a fouled jib sheet, you will only be able to to work your back to the shrouds as the tether will stop you there. If you are on the low side, MAYBE you will manage to get aboard, but forget it if you are on the high side.

One option is to run two sets of jack lines and use two tethers. One set of jack lines run on deck and the other run along the side of the hull outboard of everything. You go over, use your second tether to hook on to the jack line along the side of the hull and cut the other tether - you do have a knife on you, right? Work your way back to the stern and hope you can somehow board from the ladder back there. Once again, if your moving at 5 knots, it will be unlikely.

If your tether is too short then you are too restricted to get the work done. Too long and you go over.

There is not a good answer.

 

[tsheie]

Then what's the procedure ?

Twisted: I do the jackline method myself, and the poly line trailing behind at least gives you a second chance, but it assumes a lot of things-- motor's not in gear, autopilot's not on, and that the boat will round up at some point, because it would be very difficult to pull yourself all the way up the line to the stern of a moving boat... at least jacklines (properly rigged) should ensure that you don't go beyond your toerails..

 

[inarathree]

I solo sail 90% of the time. Around here I am fortunate enough to have lots of sailing area where there is about a two miles between land and barrier islands. When sailing there I do not use a harness or PDF, once I pass that and head out into the gulf, then I harness and PDF (its a harness/pdf), day or night. I also have a loop secured to the toe rail, as i have no stern ladder or scoop. I want to make sure i can get back IN the boat if i ever fall out.

And as Zeehag said, jack lines should only be long enough to let you reach the toerail, and not beyond it.

 

[zeehag]

when i was leaving san diego apr 7, 2011, i saw a catahuntebenelina with proudly installed jacklines down each side of the boat--the owner stated proudly they were his safety lines and his tether was 6 ft long. on that boat,with a 3-3 1/2 ft freeboard, a 6 ft tether on those jacklines would drag someone rather than keep them safe. centerline on a 12 ft beam is good for 6 ft tethers. dragging overboard is not a good thing to have happen.
with essentially outboard lines, the falling into the sea is not the problem. managing to live thru being dragged at whatever speed your boat is travelling on autopilot IS a problem, as it doesnt matter what king of knife you have--you will not get freed. you will die.
those of you with lines along the toerail/bulwarks/gunwhale need to realize those are NOT safety lines but kill lines for keel hauling.

 

[DannyS]

I've done some solo racing and it is required to be clipped in when on deck or in the cockpit. If I'm soloing for enjoyment, it depends on conditions. If I have to go forward to change headsails, I'll for sure put the harness and tether on. Just casual sailing from the cockpit, probably not.
It's standard practice up here (via the Great Lakes Singlehanded Society, GLSS) to run an additional jackline around the hull, OUTSIDE of the lifelines just in case you do go over the lifeline and are tethered to the inboard jackline. This gives you a line to grab and hopefully get a foothold to climb back on board or clip onto while you cut your main tether which would then allow you to slide along the hull to the back of the boat where your boarding ladder is. I've never done it or tested that but I think it would be better than trying to work your way back to the boat from a line trailing behind the boat.

 

[Anonymous 121765]

Joe,

I'm a bit late getting in this thread, but would like to offer some advice on this.

My brother, fresh out of high school and directionless at the time crewed on a fishing trawler (WTF?). One nite on his watch, when all were asleep, he fell off the stern. The boat was long lining and traveling 4-5 KTS.

Luckilly, they had a drag line set with an anchor ball at the end, maybe 100 feet back. Luckily, my brother was able to reach & hold on to the ball screaming for the next 2 hours. Nobody heard him above the engine noise until a crewmember came up for his watch. What made this worse, was it was nighttime.

I say this because I do solo from time to time in the gulf (sometimes overnite 25-50 miles out). After talking to my brother back then, I listened to every difficulty he had while holding on. Here's what I got from him & as a result, what I made.

I bought 100 feet of 1/2" anchor line. I used this as it is stiffer & has better gripping properties. I attached an anchor ball in a large loop at the end. Then every 5 feet I made bowline loops with an additional larger knot added to the top of each bowline. The finished line was about 50 feet long.

Figure you're going @ 5KTS, that's pretty tough pulling yourself back to the boat. The loops can act as foot rests allowing you time to recover & hopefully get back onboard. The larger knots give a better hand hold. Add seas to this, and it can be quite a challenge. My Gulf can get ugly at the worst times.

It may sound a little hokey, but I feel what I use gives me a better chance. By the way, when alone, your stern ladder should always down.

CR

 

[Scott T-Bird]

Situational awareness ...

of this thread is really lacking. It is impossible to be more than 2,000 feet from a shoreline on Lake Wallenpaupack. A boat travelling 5 mph will run into shore in less than 5 minutes if left unattended, unless it threads a needle down the length of the lake or begins traveling in circles, or stops and drifts. Any thought that autopilot can be of use on this lake is a joke.

Rough water only occurs from the wake of a powerboat ... a small one at that.

Joe, if you are afraid that you can't swim less than half a mile or if treading water for more than 15 minutes wears you out, wear a PFD. Installing a jackline and tether on Lake Wallenpaupack will set yourself up as a laughing stock among the sailors on the lake.

If your boat capsizes and throws you in the lake, hopefully it has positive flotation and won't sink. Otherwise, don't fall off it because there really isn't any excuse for your sorry azz if you do.

I know that all of you seasoned sailors on large bodies of water are full of good intentions, but if you looked at a map of Lake Wallenpaupack, you would realize how funny some of these responses sound.

 

[zeehag]

sailing a lake is a lil different than sailing an ocean--you may have a chance of finding shore in a lake--sail an ocean with an external jackline and ye wont hit land in time to save your dragged carcass.

 

[Anonymous 121765]

Scott,

The only thing LACKING in this thread were your comments. I'm sorry you sail in a small bathtub, but others reading this may not.

I felt the main issue here was safety while soloing issues/comments. The replies were good. You only looked at it from a lake view.

Folks from all walks of sailing read these threads. Many ask/seek answers, insights & solutions. Many others get ideas to ponder.

However, until you run & think like the big dogs, you really don't have much reason to bark.

CR

 

[anchorclanker]

Scott,


I felt the main issue here was safety while soloing issues/comments. The replies were good. You only looked at it from a lake view.

Folks from all walks of sailing read these threads. Many ask/seek answers, insights & solutions. Many others get ideas to ponder.

CR

Thank you. As basically a noob, I am reading all I can to stay safe and have fun. Tether, dont tether, I can see the differences. A little lake can kill just as easy as a large one. Complacency is the mother.

 

[Scott T-Bird]

You're right, Capn' ...

I am thinking about it from Joe's perspective. Why am I having visions of Bill Murray in "What About Bob?"

 

[RonRelyea]

Solo and Overboard? How about this???

I think I saw this posted before, but will point to it again>>>>

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uxz4a4CG0sg&feature=related

If you're going to drag a line, might as well have some fun while you're at it!

 

[SeaTR]

Thanks y'all

..for the very interesting conversations in this thread…’bog dog’ sailing or ‘pond rag bag’ sailing. Safety should be foremost on our minds. I sail solo nearly all the time, and I've never REALLY given this jackline / no jackline subject serious consideration. In my 22 years of sailing on Long Is Sound /Fishers Is Sound I’ve never used more than my PFD for my personal safety. I have a jackline and harness available, which I have yet to use, as I do not sail over night or in “nasty” weather conditions. They are available nonetheless and can be installed if the need is projected (hasn’t so far); I just keep a weather eye out and listen to NOAA weather radio for updates.

While land and other boaters are not too far away on the Sound, I carry a waterproof handheld VHF and not less than 3 pocket aerial flares on my PFD, if I should go overboard and lose easy access back to the boat. My main concern is getting swept out into Block Is Sound under the large periodic tidal currents in the Race.

All ‘n all you guys have made me think twice about not ALWAYS rigging the jackline and wearing the harness when I’m out…Lord knows I’m not getting any younger .. or stronger, and extra insurance could be a good idea.

Thanks again,

 

[joes new addiction]

Intresting comments.
Sorta like on the motorcycle forums I'm in, and ask a oil or tire question.
With less than 100 hours of total sailing time, I need info, no matter how "weird" it may seem for a "tub" sailor to ask.
My plans are not to stay in this tub, (actually I about ready to put "Fever" back on a trailer and head to different waters, but have to realize, like in racing, this is "practice" and it needs to be done if I'm ever to head for the bigger tubs (Lake Ontario), and the Hudson River.
These are my goals for this year. However I need alot more "time on the tiller" and I now that.
I'm already looking at my next project, (now how to break it to my wife), a 25' Oday that has been neglected and needs a good home. (like motorcycles one can never have enough, and for me, the "project" is just as much fun as using it after I'm done!
So, it may seem funny for some to ask why a solo sailor who can easily see what lure the guy on the dock is using if you tether, sheet happens, (it did for me last weekend), just as bad as the "big dawgs" . thankfully it was a "warning" of what can happen in a split second!
I figure get the bugs worked out now, practice jack lines, tethering, climbing back in NOW in little waters, get all the hardware, so later it's 1 less thing to worry about, (remember the first time you headed out into the BIG unknown, suddenly you were a rookie again)
Joe
What seperates the men from the boys? The size of the streak in their shorts when the sheet hits the fan!

 

[sailaway78]

Tethers

I solo a lot, and offshore. I hate wearing a PFD, and even moreso a tether. BUT, when the stuff hits the fan, only an idiot would not do both. I have a rig set up, that keeps me behind the wheel. A inflatable PFD, with a short line to a cleat on either side. It doesn't allow going forward, but I don't wanna do that anyway. This arrangement keeps me behind the wheel, and in the cockpit.
Others are correct. Unless you are a Charles Atlas, if your in the water on a tether, you ain't getting back in the boat. I went in the water a couple years ago, water temp in the high 50's. Boat tied to the dock. Not moving. No help around. Almost didn't get back in the boat, and if not for a towed dinghy would not have made it.
Don't go in the water.

 

[thinwater]

of this thread is really lacking. It is impossible to be more than 2,000 feet from a shoreline on Lake Wallenpaupack. A boat travelling 5 mph will run into shore in less than 5 minutes if left unattended, unless it threads a needle down the length of the lake or begins traveling in circles, or stops and drifts. Any thought that autopilot can be of use on this lake is a joke.

Rough water only occurs from the wake of a powerboat ... a small one at that.

Joe, if you are afraid that you can't swim less than half a mile or if treading water for more than 15 minutes wears you out, wear a PFD. Installing a jackline and tether on Lake Wallenpaupack will set yourself up as a laughing stock among the sailors on the lake.

If your boat capsizes and throws you in the lake, hopefully it has positive flotation and won't sink. Otherwise, don't fall off it because there really isn't any excuse for your sorry azz if you do.

I know that all of you seasoned sailors on large bodies of water are full of good intentions, but if you looked at a map of Lake Wallenpaupack, you would realize how funny some of these responses sound.

Obviously. A lot of thread drift. I doubt anyone wears a tether while docking or in the confines of a small bay or harbor. In the circumstances described, dingy sailing safety rules apply: dress for the water temperature (very important in the cool season), wear a PFD according to conditions and personality, and avoid getting tangled in the rigging. On a small boat on a small lake a tether is more of a safety hindrence than benifit, for the reasons stated by many.

I've sailed in both circumstances, use a tether lots, but I would not feel it was better on such a lake.

 

[Forever Wild]

When alone which is often I trail 50' of floating rope tied to the tiller - just in case . In rougher weather I'd where a harness.

 

[higgs]

I would like to hear from solo sailors who went overboard and survived.

 

[Bill Roosa]

I think higgs hit upon a basic flaw in our thread.
We all have theory and the guys that have the facts are either few and far between or dead.
That would indicate that either
folks don't go overboard much but when they do they don't live to tell the tale
or
folks go overboard all the time and most don't live to tell the tale.

I'm thinking it is the former as I don't hear about lots of folks going overboard and ending up dead.

In either case going overboard is not the issue it is the lack of a solution that gets you back on the boat or on shore. An oz of prevention would seem to be in order (aka harness in) vs the pound of cure (trailing ropes, remote AP controls... for when you do enter the water)