Isabel - NE & Mid-Atl. Sailors what's your plan?

[Rob]

Sassafrass River

Went down last night...started prep.Removed all canvas, wraped line around main and roller furling, removed dingy from davits and lashed down on shore, may bring home tonight,.removed all valuables from down below,,,going back tonight,closing all thru hulls,doubling all lines adding bumpers,,,,,have a long list of to do items,,,,weather report said Thursday night winds up to 135 MPH.....thats a little nerve wracking...marina said boat would be better in water than on land with the possibility of being blown off cradle...keeping my fingers crossed and praying....Rob

 

[Rob]

Checked insurance policy

Did you know there is a rider available from Boat US that will pay 50% to remove your boat from the water in case of a Hurricane???It costs $25.00 per year....I called yesterday and said ok Ill take it..They said uhm..we cant there is allready a huricane coming...oh well maybe next year.good luck everyone!

 

[John K Kudera]

Tied down

I just tied extra spring lines and doubled the dock lines, removed the dodger, tied the mainsail in the cover with an extra jib sheet then dropped the boom to the deck and tied that to the toe rail. We are 5 miles from the ocean and in a very protected area, so I am hoping for the best. However, if someone nearby does not tie properly, they could come to you! Good luck everyone!

 

[Tom S.]

Weakening - Max winds are only 104mph

at this time. Hopefully it'll weaken even more by the time it reaches land.Take a look at the wind speed charts and info from website below.Also pic give present projected windspeed

 

[Peter J. Brennan]

Keeping a wary eye

We are sheltered behind a batter and pier and land all around. Our biggest problem would be a storm surge high enough to lift the slips off the pilings, in which case there is little to be done. Also looks like storm will make landfall far to the south of us. Nonetheless, I have removed dodger and all loose stuff on deck, will double lash the main and jib, remove dinghy from davits and sink it alongside, double up on all lines with chafing gear. We should be OK.

 

[frank arndorfer]

ONLY 104mph.??????

ONLY 104mph.?????I applaud you folks for your courage and wish you all the best. But also, knowing Mother Nature quite well (27yrs as a pilot)I know all you can do is prepare. We used to always say:"You NEVER beat Mother Nature. She merely 'lets you off' until the next time."Makes my concerns about an arriving cold front and 30kt winds on Lake Michigan seem rather insignificant. Good luck to all. can't wait to hear the "aftermath" stories. Hopefully they'll all be minumal.

 

[Phil Herring]

Our hopes and thoughts are with you all, too

We're keeping our fingers crossed out here!

 

[Tom S.]

Frank..its all relative. Much better than Andrew

The winds there were much higher in Florida that year. The hope is that with prudent and proper care this might be manageable with a little luck.When you get a category 3-4 or (god forbid) a category 5 hurricane then no matter what you do, most likely your boat, property and everything else is going to seriously damaged...theres no avoiding it.

 

[John Dawson]

Thanks

My marina made extra sets of stands available, and is working nonstop pulling everyone out that asks. They are not charging for land storage for October, since so many will stay out. The season was so rainy and short this year, nobody wants to come out a month early, but half are going to. Expecting a significant storm surge in the Bay, especially up the Potomac. Parts of DC and Alexandria will be under water. Lots of areas including National Airport & Haines Point are reclaimed land from Potomack swamplands.West Marine and BoatUS stores are sold out of line, fenders, batteries, etc. They actually sent an extra delivery truck today just for docklines and fenders. People are buying inverters to run their basement sump pumps, or rigging up bilge pumps. We may only get 30-40kn in DC/Balto/Ann area, a second reefpoint scenario if we are lucky.

 

[cole]

Here in NC

We were required to vacate the Sheraton marina in anything less than a cat 3. So last weekend, thats what we did. However with everyone bugging out at the same time,there were few places to haul out. Most went to duck creek untill they ran out of stands. No thanks to Tillman at Bridge Point.JERK! I really like the way most of the boating community pulls together to help every one. The crew at DCM worked their butts off on the W/E and pulled about 45 boats. I didnt want to be pulled so, I took one of the empty slips. DCM is up a small creek up the Neuse River in Bridgton NC. There isnt much water in the creek during the summer, but, If the wind blows the right way, I can sail my 5'3" draft up it. I called a friend in NB for an update, He said the water is up 4.5' at 10 am. I hope I tied the lines well. Take a look at the towndock.net webcam for Oriental harbor if they are still on line.cole

 

[Ken Cobb]

Further thoughts

If the water level rises several feet above normal at your docks, your boat is in danger of floating over a piling and then coming down on it, holing the hull. On the other hand, if you moor too tightly to the pilings, the lines might break or the pilings have even been known to pull out. Not sure I would trust a slip during a 100-mile wind.We don't have hurricanes in the Midwest, but we do have 100 mile per hour tornadoes. One of those struck a marina this past summer and really screwed up the boats in their slips.www.Sailnet.com has a number of good articles about getting a boat ready for a hurricane. One author says that he places three anchors, rather than two, and unsteps the mast to reduce windage. Food for thought.

 

[Bill]

What we did....

After fretting all week reading the posts here and elsewhere, I called the Marina Wed AM and asked to add my name to the hauling list...spoke to the yard managment, and found that none of them were moving their boats...We went down and doubled up her docklines, used plastic bags and duct tape to seal up her saloon and v-berth cushions, added fenders, removed all the canvas, and essentially left her pretty tight.While not directly in the mouth of the tiger, we hope she'll be ready to see it through.Fair winds, Bill