{splash} !@#$%^ &*!!!

Jan 7, 2011
4,726
Oday 322 East Chicago, IN
I dropped my tack tick wind transmitter while coming down the stick...it helicoptered down, into the water, right next to the boat..in 15 feet of water.

My son, who was lowering me down asked if I had a mask and a swim suit on board...the water temp was in the 50’s.

He dove down 4 times (I had stirred up the muck trying to find the transmitter with a fishing net), but he came up with it on the 4th try.

When I got home and looked up what a replacement would have cost, I took him out for a good steak and scotch...he earned it.

But there are several phones in the drink with my In Case of Emergency info in the memory banks. Sunglasses. A winch handle. Screw drivers... and on and on.

Greg
 
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May 7, 2016
37
O'Day 222 Dubuque, IA
When I had my first boat - a Force 5 - it was getting towed to the boat ramp to put on a trailer with the mast off. The wind gusted at just the right angle to flip the whole boat over and dumped everything in the boat into the Big Muddy Mississippi including my boom vang, main sheet, and several other things. Tried fishing with a grappling hook to no avail...!
 
Nov 21, 2007
631
Beneteau Oceanis 34 Kingston, WA
Long time ago, canoeing on the Wisconsin River, my wife's favorite hat blew off in a gust of wind. Can't remember why we couldn't chase it down... current, wind, who knows. But, we decided that we couldn't get it back. About 45 minutes later, it floated right up next to her in the canoe. She said, "Welcome back, hat!" It was still around and used regularly, until I made her retire it when we started sailing "in public".

When we moved into our condo in Tacoma, relocating Escapade from Olympia to Foss Harbor Marina, the first time pulling into our slip, several new neighbors helping, introducing themselves, asking questions... docked perfectly. Getting off the boat, I reached to reconnect the lifelines to the stanchion with car key/remote for a reasonably new Audi in one hand... slow motion... clunk! clank! Ploop! Into about 30 feet of water at LOW tide. The second diver that I hired found it, so at least we didn't have to have the emergency key recut, but that's no longer the most expensive part to replace! $$$
 
Jul 13, 2010
1,097
Precision 23 Perry Hall,Baltimore County
My rudder, fortunately at the end of the ramp where the runaway boat on the trailer had just plunged into like an ocean liner sliding down out of the building dock. After we retrieved the trailer and boat again I walked down into the ramp , dirty water up to my chin, feeling with boat hook to retrieve it ( at 10:30 pm on a cool evening).
 
Jan 13, 2009
391
J Boat 92 78 Sandusky
Carrying stuff down the dock on blustery spring day. Gust of wind picked the two inflatable life jackets off the top of cart. Kerplop! right into the 45 degree water, 8 feet deep. Too cold to go in after them. Older type manual offshore version. Gone forever. Replaced with newer automatic offshore PFDs $300 later.
 
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May 25, 2012
4,333
john alden caravelle 42 sturgeon bay, wis
this very beautiful woman crew member dove off the deck of aeolus out in the middle of green bay for a swim and lost the bottoms of her bikini. we never did find them in the 100 plus deep waters
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,992
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
Jon.. your story as me suspecting your search for the bottoms was perhaps distracted by the concern for the condition of the crew member. I would hope your search for/of the crew member was more successful.
 
Dec 29, 2008
805
Treworgy 65' LOA Custom Steel Pilothouse Staysail Ketch St. Croix, Virgin Islands
I did lose a Blackberry once.
Ditto. Less than one month old. Had it in my shirt pocket. Big Mistake. Had just launched the boat, bent over to cleat a line on the dock - splash...
 
Dec 29, 2008
805
Treworgy 65' LOA Custom Steel Pilothouse Staysail Ketch St. Croix, Virgin Islands
Or, maybe this loss is so common that no one even mentions it anymore.
Seem to lose a lot of hotdogs off the Magma. Little suckers roll right off!

I did drop a nice lamb chop once, as I was taking it off the grill with tongs. Was not able to retrieve it. I expect a barracuda had it for lunch. I've since learned to hold the plate right up over the edge of the grill while offloading the meat.
 
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Sep 25, 2018
258
Catalina Capri 22 Capri EXPO 14.2 1282 Stony Point
A Blackberry on the ramp launching. It glowed at me til I touched it for retrieval and then dead. The battery has a water indicator which snitched on why it didn't work.
 
Dec 25, 2000
5,702
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
I had a hat from a visit to Pinehurst.
My most favorite Whidbey Island sailing hat that I had for years, decided to look for a better life than on my head. Our little flotilla was sailing toward Annette Inlet in British Columbia one breezy afternoon. It was time to stow the sails and as I was flaking the main, a wind gust collected my prized possession and off she went sailing into the water. By the time I turned to find it, she was gone, gone, gone, down to Davey Jone's locker.

Aside from a fastener or two and my cousin's camera that slipped out of her pocket getting off the boat, that about does it. Could be worse, but losing an anchor and rode overboard because of an unsecured bitter end, well that about takes the cake.
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,992
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
My most favorite Whidbey Island sailing hat that I had for years, decided to look for a better life
There are several possibilities that come to mind about this unwarranted defection.
  1. The Hat was made in Canada. It always thought it was Canadian. It never accepted the Canadian US 1846 treaty. So given the chance it jumped ship.
  2. You thought it was the wind, but really it was a sirens song that enticed your hat to abandon your head and search for the alluring voice being carried on the wind. You are only lucky that the wax in your ears protected you. Otherwise you might have joined the hat.
  3. The hat never really accepted sitting on your head. Why we never know with hats. They sometimes just take flight at the least wisp of wind. Fickle they are.
This whole diabolical - you loosing your hat, Les damaging his rudder, the rock ledge at the entrance, the Canadian patrol buzzing and disturbing Mahalo while at anchor - makes me wonder about Annette Inlet being the “safe enjoyable harbor” so many talk about.
 
Dec 25, 2000
5,702
Hunter Passage 42 Shelter Bay, WA
This whole diabolical - you loosing your hat,
When I was about ten, my buddy and I used to like rummaging through our local garbage dump. Amazing some of the gems we would find once you got past the smell. One day I found a nice hat there, brought it home where it became my most favorite. May have even wore it to bed; a bowler type. Then one day when dad, brother and I were out deer hunting, dad asked where I found this hat that I wore all the time. After telling him, he got angry with the idea that I was scrounging around the garbage dump, and to get rid of it. Wha!! But a few minutes later I got this horrible headache; I never get headaches. So, no sooner had I tossed it away that my headache disappeared. Diabolical, for sure.
 
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Oct 19, 2017
7,732
O'Day 19 Littleton, NH
I suspect giant squid are secretly involved. Let's look at the evidence.
Exhibit A: A hat inexplicably "flies" of a head it had sat safely on for years and disappeared without trace to the murky depths at a rate no heart had ever been witnessed to descend before. There are many possible explanations, but none fits so well as a stealthy squid tentacle.
Exhibit B: a lamb chop goes missing from a rail hung grill. Lamb is well known to be a "rare" treat to giant squid. The rail hung grill is just asking for trouble, like having a honey and peanut butter sandwich on your breath when going for a walk in the woods.
Exhibit C: Damaged rudder? I don't think I need to spell that one out for you.
Exhibit D: Unmarked underwater rocks? Oh please! You hit a giant squid sleeping just below the surface. Submerged shipping containers? I think not.

-Will (Dragonfly)
 
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Aug 1, 2019
51
hunter 22 Colorado
Second time trailering new (to me) H22. Two hour trip to the lake ..

commenced to hoist the rig No boom!!

Giant PIA to replace it
 
May 23, 2016
1,024
Catalina 22 #12502 BSC
lost a Tilley (hat)....15 yrs on my noggin'......pricey, but they replaced it no charge regardless, highly recommend...
 
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RussC

.
Sep 11, 2015
1,578
Merit 22- Oregon lakes
10 days or so ago the wife and I spent 4 days on the lake. wile there I had my drone to get some new aerial photos, but the only practical way I've found to launch and retrieve it safely is by using a floating dock out in the middle of the lake. it works well. the last day we were there I launched the drone and had taken a dozen or so photos when I briefly lost sight of it. it has a "return to home" feature for such circumstances, so after a couple minutes I hear it coming home on its own accord:clap:. for a moment I was happy, until I realised it was rapidly loosing altitude in order to land at "home" again. normally this would be a good thing, except these are floating docks on a 275' anchor line which means they drift around a bit. when the drone "landed", home wasn't where it was when it took off anymore. before it registered what was happening, and I could take back manual control, it was headed for Nemos tomb :what:
Drone are fun.......... until they aren't :yikes: :banghead:
 
Jan 7, 2011
4,726
Oday 322 East Chicago, IN
I went out in some nasty conditions today...30 knot gusts on the south end of Lake Michigan.

Mom and sister out. Put them in life jackets just in case. Things were a bit gnarly for sure.

Had to jibe at one point, thought I controlled it very well, but still ripped the main from the reef crinkle to the rope bolt ;-(.

Heck of a sail, but bummed about the sail. But I think it is the original 30-year old sail....so time to pony up some cash for a new one.

Going to try to tape it up tomorrow and see if we can finish the season on it.

Greg

 
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Dec 2, 1997
8,708
- - LIttle Rock
Every few years an opportunity presents itself to republish one of best stories ever posted to this site. This thread offers that opportunity so I re-post "The Wild Magnet" by Peter Roach for your viewing pleasure (It's a bit long, so you might want to open a cold one and make yourself comfortable):

The wild magnet
Submitted by Peter Roach of Atlanta
I bought a 150 lb magnet (that is the lifting ability not the weight of the magnet). My slip is in about 45’ of water and over time I have dropped an assortment of wrenches, car keys, bolts, nuts, multiple pairs of sunglasses, irreplaceable parts to my roller furling, etc. I could just picture sending this magnet down on the end of a line and retrieving all sorts of treasures from the bottom. I even thought I might become the ‘man of the hour’ by helping my lesser-equipped dock mates retrieve their lost treasures. In essence this magnet was going to make me look really cool.

The first lesson I learned with the magnet is one should never stand too close to a car with a powerful magnet in a thin plastic bag. According to modern physics, if a magnet is designed to lift 150 pounds, it takes 150 pounds of pulling power to get it off of the fender of a 1993 Mazda Miata. Also we discovered, Mazda paint jobs will not hold up against a sharp metal object being pressed against it with 150 pounds of pressure. One piece of advice, if you decide to test this theory, make sure the young attractive girl that owns the Miata (and you have been trying to get a date with her for months) is not in the proximity of the test area – oh well.

The second lesson I learned is one should never place a very powerful magnet near an electronic component. Usually electronic components and magnets are natural enemies and the magnet is highest on the food chain. Like the lion and the zebra – the magnet wins. This includes the compass on your boat (actually it was one of my crew members that attached it to the rail around the compass).

All of these problems seemed to be worth the effort in order for me to strut down the dock with my new purchase, tie it to a 50’ line, and pull untold treasures from the deep and impress my friends on the dock.
As I calmly walked toward my slip, with my magnet sticking to my car keys thorough the thin plastic bag and my shorts, I beckoned to my dock mates to witness the miracle of reclaiming the abandoned and formerly lost treasures from the deep. Apparently, the confidence in my voice and the promise of untold treasures from the deep, caused a larger than normal crowd to gather on the dock.

Without even stopping to unlock my boat, I retrieved an old anchor line from the dock box. While I straightened out the dock line, a friend of mine (powerboater – this distinction will become important in a minute) used all of his skills to tie the 150 pound magnet to the end of the dock line.

As I slowly eased the magnet over the edge of the dock I learned my third magnet lesson. Floating docks have a great deal of metal below the waterline. Since the water is rather opaque, I had not noticed the brace 10’ below the waterline that ran between the ends of the finger piers to keep them from floating apart. Having no eyes and an unnatural attraction to large quantities of metal, my magnet did not suffer from the same handicap and firmly stuck to the brace.

The fourth lesson I learned is to never let a power boater tie a knot on something that is going anywhere near the water.

The fifth lesson (well ok I should not count this as a new lesson because I learned it with the Miata) is it TAKES 150 pounds of pulling to get the damn magnet off of a big piece of metal. YES – this was a new lesson because I was 10’ below the water, under my boat, holding my breath and pulling really hard.

My sixth lesson was learned shortly after pulling the magnet free. One should never hold onto a heavy object underwater without some immediate means of support. Luckily I was able to reattach the magnet to the metal beam as I accelerated toward the bottom. Actually I think the magnet had more to do with this than I did.

The seventh lesson I learned is one minute is a really long time to hold ones breath.

The eighth lesson I learned is always look up when you are coming up under a boat.
The ninth lesson I learned is you really run out of air fast when you are holding your head, seeing stars, and trying to find the surface.
The tenth lesson I learned is never invite a large crowd of people to watch you try out any new piece of gear.

The eleventh lesson I learned is never leave your cooler full of cold beer on the dock with ‘friends’ on a hot day while you dive underwater (hey they were laughing at me and drinking my beer!!). I don’t care what they say, one minute is way too short of time to declare someone dead and divide up their belongings.

Now that I had the crowd warmed up, I decided to take my three-strand nylon anchor line and run it through the eyebolt of the magnet and back up to the surface. This way I would not have to risk a sudden trip to the bottom and I would not have to tie a knot underwater. Considering the day I was having this went amazingly well. It also gave those clowns on the dock a chance to get another round of drinks from my cooler

Thinking ahead, for the first time that day, I realized that the support member was attached to the dock by a vertical piece of metal. Not wanting that evil magnet to reattach itself several times to the support member while it was on the way to the surface, I climbed onto the deck of my boat. When I pulled on the line I learned my twelfth lesson of the day (second physics lesson). A three-strand nylon line has roughly the stretching ability of a rubber band and while water has a natural resistance, it is not enough to keep a magnet from hitting the bottom of your boat on the way to the surface. I also learned that a magnet can scratch gelcoat as fast as it will scratch a Miata.

In the end I finally got the magnet correctly tied to the line and on the bottom of the lake. After about an hour, with no beer remaining in my cooler and with only a small audience, I finally gave up on recapturing any treasure. The only thing the magnet was able to find was a great deal of rust shavings. I know the bottom of the lake under my boat is littered with all type of hardware, tools, coins, etc so I was amazed when the magnet failed to bring up even one small item. Maybe the fish are calmly swimming around with sunglasses, or they have constructed their own secret city out of all of the spare parts.

All was not lost with the magnet. My fellow boaters now play ‘hand me the wrench’ with the magnet. This is a game they devised using the magnet, a metal wrench and a dockbox with a thin top. They first take the magnet and put it on the underside of the lid to the dockbox. They then attach a wrench to the top of the dockbox and close it so everything looks normal. They then pretend to be working on their boat. When the unsuspecting target of this game walks by, they ask him to hand them the wrench. It works every time and it is amazing how hilarious my dock mates find it when a new person joins the game. They seem to get particular joy in this game when they can think of new things to stick to the dock box or when they can catch someone more than once by using different bait. They even had someone hide in the dockbox to pull the magnet away when his partner showed the victim that the wrench did not weigh 150 pounds.

The magnet also seems to be good for playing ‘throw the metal object over the magnet’, ‘the worlds largest refrigerator magnet’ (WARNING – apparently the magnet will scratch a Kenmore refrigerator as easily as it will a 1993 Mazda Miata), ‘find the car keys in your wife’s purse’, and a whole lot of other games. Hey we might not be too smart but we are easily entertained.

In the end – I guess the magnet was worth the price.


--Peggie