The attached link will take you to a picture series of a dramatic incident at the Golden Gate Bridge. Opening the first picture should initiate a slide show. I found that low resolution fit on my screen the best.
Dramatic Sailing Incident at the Golden Gate
- Thread starter Bob Camarena
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Skipper brain fade
Heavy duty pictures of a very unwise skipper. Locals know never to sail under the south tower. Now you know why.
Heavy duty pictures of a very unwise skipper. Locals know never to sail under the south tower. Now you know why.
What should he have done different?
besides not being there in the first place. It seems to me that some day if you sail long enough you will get pooped by a wave. I saw that he had no hatch boards in place and the the sliding hatch was wide open. But, he was wearing a life vest.
besides not being there in the first place. It seems to me that some day if you sail long enough you will get pooped by a wave. I saw that he had no hatch boards in place and the the sliding hatch was wide open. But, he was wearing a life vest.
Wow! Very Intense...
Well, I'm curious to see what others think (not ever having sailed on SF Bay). What should he have done? Hmmm...possibly turned to face the wave? Wondering what some of the Bay sailors have to say...
Well, I'm curious to see what others think (not ever having sailed on SF Bay). What should he have done? Hmmm...possibly turned to face the wave? Wondering what some of the Bay sailors have to say...
Bay Sailor replies
Tim The question isn't what he should have done with the wave, the issue is why he was there in the first place. There were heavy swells in the ocean, and the area under the south tower of the GG Bridge is notorious for these swells. That's exactly WHY the surfers were there, dude! WAVES!!! Just 30 yards North of where he was is the main span of the GG Bridge. It's gotta be at least a half a mile wide. That's where he should have been. Even with swells in the ocean, it's plenty deep. Where was is rocky and not too deep. Hence the Breaks. If the question is what do you do with that kind of wave, that's a different story, but in reply to your question, he just shouldn't have been there at all. Local knowledge is now more distributed to the sailing fraternity, unfortunately the hard way. Stay north of the South Tower. Read Kimball Livingston's excellent book "Sailing the Bay." Stu
Tim The question isn't what he should have done with the wave, the issue is why he was there in the first place. There were heavy swells in the ocean, and the area under the south tower of the GG Bridge is notorious for these swells. That's exactly WHY the surfers were there, dude! WAVES!!! Just 30 yards North of where he was is the main span of the GG Bridge. It's gotta be at least a half a mile wide. That's where he should have been. Even with swells in the ocean, it's plenty deep. Where was is rocky and not too deep. Hence the Breaks. If the question is what do you do with that kind of wave, that's a different story, but in reply to your question, he just shouldn't have been there at all. Local knowledge is now more distributed to the sailing fraternity, unfortunately the hard way. Stay north of the South Tower. Read Kimball Livingston's excellent book "Sailing the Bay." Stu
Incredible!!!!
Thats was amazing footage!! Their was nothing he could have done to keep from broaching, accept to know not to be there! I did not notice an outboard, as that could have been knocked off once he went over; however, he would never had time nor probably the power to turn around fast enough. I have to wonder now if the boat was saved, smashed into the rocks, or picked up as salvage. Life preservers do work! It was a documented lesson to all of us. Thanks for posting it. Bob Catalina 30
Thats was amazing footage!! Their was nothing he could have done to keep from broaching, accept to know not to be there! I did not notice an outboard, as that could have been knocked off once he went over; however, he would never had time nor probably the power to turn around fast enough. I have to wonder now if the boat was saved, smashed into the rocks, or picked up as salvage. Life preservers do work! It was a documented lesson to all of us. Thanks for posting it. Bob Catalina 30
Another Bay Sailer
I have been sailing in SF Bay since 1976. Yeah, I am an old fart. There is one place on the Bay I have never been and that is between the south tower and the SF shore. Now you know why. Stu is right, those sailors shouldn't have been in there. I have 2 basic rules - 1) never sail where surfers are and 2) never sail where the birds are standing in the water.
I have been sailing in SF Bay since 1976. Yeah, I am an old fart. There is one place on the Bay I have never been and that is between the south tower and the SF shore. Now you know why. Stu is right, those sailors shouldn't have been in there. I have 2 basic rules - 1) never sail where surfers are and 2) never sail where the birds are standing in the water.
What to do...
Regardless of whether he should have been there or not, the best thing he could have done was be aware of wave patterns behind him while in a following sea. About 3 boat lengths to port & the waves didn't break. He could have easily positioned himself there if he was being more observant. I noticed he was in a following sea on a run...it's easy to think that he'd want to stay on a run because it keeps the boat flat on it's feet & not heeling. In reality, when on a run a lot of downward force is on the bow, making it likely to pitch-pole, as this boat did. Perhaps if he rounded up to port to put himself on a reach he'd be in a better position to handle the crashing wave AND put himself in a direction toward flatter seas & deeper water. It's easy for me to say. I'm not saying that I'm above making the same mistake. The lesson here is to be observant of the continuously changing conditions around you & know where you need to go to improve your conditions. At least he had his life preserver on & nobody got hurt. He probably could have saved the boat if it weren't for the surfers whose weight finally sunk it. Just my 2 cents... Allen Schweitzer s/v Falstaff C-30 Hull# 632
Regardless of whether he should have been there or not, the best thing he could have done was be aware of wave patterns behind him while in a following sea. About 3 boat lengths to port & the waves didn't break. He could have easily positioned himself there if he was being more observant. I noticed he was in a following sea on a run...it's easy to think that he'd want to stay on a run because it keeps the boat flat on it's feet & not heeling. In reality, when on a run a lot of downward force is on the bow, making it likely to pitch-pole, as this boat did. Perhaps if he rounded up to port to put himself on a reach he'd be in a better position to handle the crashing wave AND put himself in a direction toward flatter seas & deeper water. It's easy for me to say. I'm not saying that I'm above making the same mistake. The lesson here is to be observant of the continuously changing conditions around you & know where you need to go to improve your conditions. At least he had his life preserver on & nobody got hurt. He probably could have saved the boat if it weren't for the surfers whose weight finally sunk it. Just my 2 cents... Allen Schweitzer s/v Falstaff C-30 Hull# 632
South Tower Race
Bob Camarena and I are members of the Stockton Sailing Club, a club in (where else?) Stockton, about 70 miles inside the Golden Gate. The South Tower Race goes 70 miles upwind (you probably tack several hundred times!) along the San Joaquin River to the Bridge, where the only markyou round is. Then a 70 mile spin run back. Nonstop. This annual race has been going on for something like 30 years. You typically reach the Bridge sometime between midnight and sunrise, after a sleepless night. At that time, the winds are typically (but not always) fairly light yielding waves smaller than those seen in the sequence here, but your judgement is clouded by no sleep. (In one of the early years the guy who won the race overall sailed singlehanded; can you imagine!) The first several years the race was held, the mark to round was actually the South Tower. After several "near misses" and horror stories, the mark was changed to a buoy about a mile from the Bridge, inside the Gate, for exactly this reason. Oldtimers in Stockton have some interesting stories to tell about the South Tower of the GG Bridge.
Bob Camarena and I are members of the Stockton Sailing Club, a club in (where else?) Stockton, about 70 miles inside the Golden Gate. The South Tower Race goes 70 miles upwind (you probably tack several hundred times!) along the San Joaquin River to the Bridge, where the only markyou round is. Then a 70 mile spin run back. Nonstop. This annual race has been going on for something like 30 years. You typically reach the Bridge sometime between midnight and sunrise, after a sleepless night. At that time, the winds are typically (but not always) fairly light yielding waves smaller than those seen in the sequence here, but your judgement is clouded by no sleep. (In one of the early years the guy who won the race overall sailed singlehanded; can you imagine!) The first several years the race was held, the mark to round was actually the South Tower. After several "near misses" and horror stories, the mark was changed to a buoy about a mile from the Bridge, inside the Gate, for exactly this reason. Oldtimers in Stockton have some interesting stories to tell about the South Tower of the GG Bridge.
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