Scary thought for all solo sailors!

[Scott T-Bird]

Sailor Swims 17km In Shark-Infested Waters In Pitch Black After Falling Off Boat

An Australian sailor swam 17km in shark inhabited waters after falling overboard in Panama while attempting to sail around the world in 2019.

www.ladbible.com

The bit about the sharks was click-bait ... but still ...

 

[kloudie1]

OOOFTA! That is a lucky dude.. I remember a few (many) years back at the skipper indoctrination at CSY (old charter group, Caribbean Sailing Yachts) the guy said "Don't swim at night, mon, that is when the big fish come up to eat."

 

[Tedd]

As if the sharks in Oz aren't bad enough, now they're chasing Ozzies around the world!

 

[rgranger]

There is a lot you can (re)learn from that story.

 

[jssailem]

It can happen so quick.. One minute your enjoying your boat,
the next the boat is off on it's own leaving you behind in the water.

 

[kloudie1]

Those three old rules: people in the boat.
water out of the boat, boat off the rocks,

 

[dLj]

Those three old rules: people in the boat.
water out of the boat, boat off the rocks,

Always thought it was 5.
1) People on the boat
2) Water out of the boat
3) Mast up
4) Keel down
5) Rudder on

dj

 

[Will Gilmore]

#6) When the autopilot is on, so is the harness and tether.

The strangest thing happened. When I was about 13 years old, we were living on a 56' schooner in Clearwater. All alone on the boat at the dock, I was down below when the boat suddenly heeled over at about 10 degrees or so. It was a nice day, the weather was calm. Later, the people said it was like watching dominoes as the whole dock of boats leaned over in turn. It came out of nowhere and no one had an explanation for it. No follow up phenomenon either. Imagine something like that happening when sitting on the edge of the gunnels with a fishing pole. In you go.

-Will

 

[dLj]

#6) When the autopilot is on, so is the harness and tether.

The strangest thing happened. When I was about 13 years old, we were living on a 56' schooner in Clearwater. All alone on the boat at the dock, I was down below when the boat suddenly heeled over at about 10 degrees or so. It was a nice day, the weather was calm. Later, the people said it was like watching dominoes as the whole dock of boats leaned over in turn. It came out of nowhere and no one had an explanation for it. No follow up phenomenon either. Imagine something like that happening when sitting on the edge of the gunnels with a fishing pole. In you go.

-Will

Isn't your number 6 part of my number 1?

Years ago, I'd just put a new to me sailboat on a mooring in front of Isla Santa Clara in San Sebastian Spain. It was a beautiful summer day. We brought my boat out of the muelle and to the mooring in the bay behind the island, came back to shore and were standing on my friends balcony looking out at the boat when a Galerna hit (local meteorological phenomena) . We stood there and watched how the wind actually put my mast in the water! As they say Sh!t happens!

dj

 

[shemandr]

"I'd rather be on a boat with a drink on the rocks, then be in the drink with a boat on the rocks."

 

[Scott T-Bird]

"I'd rather be on a boat with a drink on the rocks, then be in the drink with a boat on the rocks."

Long ago, SBO would post a picture and challenge us to write the caption. My favorite was a picture of a trawler sitting high above the water on a huge rock during low tide (huge tidal swing, obviously). The caption read ... "I said I'll have a rum and coke on the rocks, not run the boat up on the rocks!"

 

[rgranger]

#6) When the autopilot is on, so is the harness and tether.

The strangest thing happened. When I was about 13 years old, we were living on a 56' schooner in Clearwater. All alone on the boat at the dock, I was down below when the boat suddenly heeled over at about 10 degrees or so. It was a nice day, the weather was calm. Later, the people said it was like watching dominoes as the whole dock of boats leaned over in turn. It came out of nowhere and no one had an explanation for it. No follow up phenomenon either. Imagine something like that happening when sitting on the edge of the gunnels with a fishing pole. In you go.

-Will

Rogue wave????? Random Swell???? PWC wake...

 

[Will Gilmore]

Rogue wave????? Random Swell???? PWC wake...

It was weird, because our dock was the only one in the marina that was effected. The event just went right down the row of slips. It was like Jaws was swimming out of the harbor, knocked each boat's keel in turn with its dorsal fin. Only, if it had happened from below, it was moving into the harbor, but tilting boats as if moving out. We didn't rise and fall on a wave either.

Back then, most of the boats were sailboats with weighted keels. I heard no wind. The boat just suddenly listed to starboard and came right back up. I seemed to be the only one who was astounded by it. Everyone else just shrugged. Wind.

-Will