Is this YOUR WTF story, or the crab's?
The WTF Thread
- Thread starter ontherocks83
- Start date
Today, beating to windward and against current to make our destination, we’re passed by an open console powerboat about 100 yards away. He stops about an 8th mile ahead of my course line and deploys fishing lines! WTF!
So after starting this thread a week ago I figured/hoped my fun stories would end there and I would just get to read other people's miseries. Oh, but no! The bad luck boat deities have bestowed me with more fun under way.
Now neither of these three events are trip ruiners, but they add a WTF moment to the occasion. So this past Saturday was our first big trip out on our new to us boat. We had a guest and sailed in light winds from Greenwich bay to under the Newport Bridge in RI. Not an amazing feat, but for us being new to the ocean and me always dreaming of being one of those boats I saw when driving over the bridge it was an awesome day!!! We turn around and the wind completely dies. After 2 hours of going 2-3 knots we wind in the head sail and motor back to Greenwich Bay. When rolling in the head sail I notice that there is a thumping noise with every rotation of the furler. I furl it back out and realize that the last section of the track that the head sail goes up in by the mast head, has become separated from the track below it and is cocked off to the side jamming the furler. It some how separated from the rest of the track and now I can't lower the head sail even if I wanted to. We furled it back in and kept on our way. I am sure this repair is going to cost me dearly once I can call the rigging company in the morning.
So, putting my sorrows aside, we drop off our guest and motor to Goddard beach 1.5 miles away to spend our first night on anchor 200 yards off the shore and let the kids swim and watch fireworks. It was an amazing night with the kids playing with sparklers while watching 16 different fireworks displays from all around the far side of the cove. Honestly it felt like a country song of happy kids, happy wife, and peace.
Now to the second and third WTF moments of our weekend.
We wake up rather unexpectedly and rudely at 6:00 AM!!!! to blaring and I mean like bringing extra large stand alone speakers BLARING from people on the beach playing Hispanic rap music. It was so loud we could hear all the words and beats extremely clearly. My 5 and 7 year old's were jousted out of bed and our day began. After a while we cleaned everything up and were ready to pull anchor and motor back to our slip...….here comes part number 3
I flip on the glow plugs and turn the key and then...…..nothing. No click, no power, no anything. After a short while I realize there is no power getting to the engine panel in the cockpit. I unscrew the cockpit panel and after 5 or 10 minutes realize that the 1984 wiring connector is faulty. Back then they used car style trailer connector plugs to join harnesses together and if I wiggled it back and forth I would get power back. (been meaning to cut it out and fix it but figured I had time
). Anyways I get the engine fired and we go back without incident. Now I have to go back tomorrow and fix the wiring and call the rigging company to hopefully see if they can fix my furler before next weekend. I'm praying the furler issue doesn't cost too much.........….but it's probably going to be a show.
Now neither of these three events are trip ruiners, but they add a WTF moment to the occasion. So this past Saturday was our first big trip out on our new to us boat. We had a guest and sailed in light winds from Greenwich bay to under the Newport Bridge in RI. Not an amazing feat, but for us being new to the ocean and me always dreaming of being one of those boats I saw when driving over the bridge it was an awesome day!!! We turn around and the wind completely dies. After 2 hours of going 2-3 knots we wind in the head sail and motor back to Greenwich Bay. When rolling in the head sail I notice that there is a thumping noise with every rotation of the furler. I furl it back out and realize that the last section of the track that the head sail goes up in by the mast head, has become separated from the track below it and is cocked off to the side jamming the furler. It some how separated from the rest of the track and now I can't lower the head sail even if I wanted to. We furled it back in and kept on our way. I am sure this repair is going to cost me dearly once I can call the rigging company in the morning.
So, putting my sorrows aside, we drop off our guest and motor to Goddard beach 1.5 miles away to spend our first night on anchor 200 yards off the shore and let the kids swim and watch fireworks. It was an amazing night with the kids playing with sparklers while watching 16 different fireworks displays from all around the far side of the cove. Honestly it felt like a country song of happy kids, happy wife, and peace.
Now to the second and third WTF moments of our weekend.
We wake up rather unexpectedly and rudely at 6:00 AM!!!! to blaring and I mean like bringing extra large stand alone speakers BLARING from people on the beach playing Hispanic rap music. It was so loud we could hear all the words and beats extremely clearly. My 5 and 7 year old's were jousted out of bed and our day began. After a while we cleaned everything up and were ready to pull anchor and motor back to our slip...….here comes part number 3
I flip on the glow plugs and turn the key and then...…..nothing. No click, no power, no anything. After a short while I realize there is no power getting to the engine panel in the cockpit. I unscrew the cockpit panel and after 5 or 10 minutes realize that the 1984 wiring connector is faulty. Back then they used car style trailer connector plugs to join harnesses together and if I wiggled it back and forth I would get power back. (been meaning to cut it out and fix it but figured I had time
). Anyways I get the engine fired and we go back without incident. Now I have to go back tomorrow and fix the wiring and call the rigging company to hopefully see if they can fix my furler before next weekend. I'm praying the furler issue doesn't cost too much.........….but it's probably going to be a show.
@ontherocks83, what brand is the furler? I have a couple of foils and a connector for a Harken system, that I've been trying to get rid of for a couple of years. It's a long shot, and I'm on the wrong coast, but if it's a match...
Well, I've mentioned this before. But the second time I took my JUST launched 35 foot trimaran out coming back in, with a ripping tide running I managed to put the port ama completely up on the dock. These docks had walkways between, then 16 foot wide docks. Took about 6 guys to shove the boat back off the dock against the tide
Here's the boat on launch day-That's me circled- had a good bit more hair then.
Here's the boat on launch day-That's me circled- had a good bit more hair then.
Not a crab, but man made. Could not understand why my Manson Supreme kept dragging that day.
In a recent WTF, was taking out a couple of people to watch fireworks. Noted there was an 18 kt breeze coming in on my starboard stern, no problem as I usually use the prop walk that way to get my turn as I back out. We have had out 310 for almost 14 years and we leave out lines on the dock (custom length and spliced so we can just drop them off when going out and drop them on when we return). Per our usual procedure I take the port spring off, walk forward and hand it to my wife who straightens it out. Then she drops the port bowline and goes over and removes the starboard bowline and the starboard spring while I walk back to the cockpit to get ready to release the aft starboard line and throw the boat into reverse; EXCEPT one of my non-boater guests decides to take the starboard aft line off and release it to help
. I am halfway back to the cockpit when the boat is slewing across the thankfully empty slip next to me toward the opposite dock to my port since the 18 kt wind shoved the stern out from the dock. Thankfully a dock neighbor was there to help hold me off the opposite dock while I put the boat in forward so my wife could drop the starboard fwd line and spring line, then I put the rudder over hard to starboard and full reverse throttle to get us into the fairway and on our way.Attachments
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Remnants of a 1 gallon milk jug. Did not even notice it when I pulled the anchor up. How I managed to hook the jug through the handle I am putting down to skill.
So just to fill everyone in, I had the rigging guys out two days ago and they repaired my roller furler! Apparently there is a set screw above the bottom furler but just below the bottom most foil, that either backed out or was removed by the PO and I didn't notice it to reinstall it. What happened was, with the set screw missing all the foils slid down the forestay about a foot, which caused massive pressure on the top foil where the cap is and separated it from the next foil down. Luckily they were able to put new rivets in without removing the forestay and replace the set screw, so no parts had to be replaced
. I haven't gotten the bill yet which I am sure will be a few hundred, but at least it is much better than having to replace my furler or foils. I am just praying this is the last of my bugs to be worked out for a while.
Stay in your lane!
If commercial traffic won't use or stay in their appropriate shipping lane, then what's the purpose? OK, I get it, "most" do. And, it's better than not having them at all. It's just a pet peeve of mine, having evaded multiple "lane violators", including two last weekend. At least, one discussed his lane violation in advance with Seattle Traffic, and I knew that we would be close. I was able to contact him on the radio, to let him know where we were, and where we would go.
But, NOT this one;
At Robinson Point, Vashon Island, WA. Where the southbound VTS lane literally touches the beach of Vashon/Maury Island.
1 - We were in the separation zone between the VTS shipping lanes, and we could see this floating box coming all the way from Brown's Point/Tacoma, so we had plenty of time. Still, we thought he would stay in the northbound traffic lane.
2 - At this point, we are at or beyond the western edge of the southbound lane heading perpendicular to the beach.
3 - Not only did this ship not stay in their northbound traffic lane, they completely cut the corner at Robinson Point. My planning app tells me that there is more than 3/4 of a NM from the buoy to the beach, and at least that much distance on the other side of the buoy... I heard conversations between vessels and Seattle Traffic, later in the trip, about numerous "pleasure craft" (fishing boats) in the traffic lanes farther north, but that was not the case here. There was virtually no other traffic of any kind east of Robinson Point, between Brown's Point and Three Tree Point.
WTF? Over?
If commercial traffic won't use or stay in their appropriate shipping lane, then what's the purpose? OK, I get it, "most" do. And, it's better than not having them at all. It's just a pet peeve of mine, having evaded multiple "lane violators", including two last weekend. At least, one discussed his lane violation in advance with Seattle Traffic, and I knew that we would be close. I was able to contact him on the radio, to let him know where we were, and where we would go.
But, NOT this one;
At Robinson Point, Vashon Island, WA. Where the southbound VTS lane literally touches the beach of Vashon/Maury Island.
1 - We were in the separation zone between the VTS shipping lanes, and we could see this floating box coming all the way from Brown's Point/Tacoma, so we had plenty of time. Still, we thought he would stay in the northbound traffic lane.
2 - At this point, we are at or beyond the western edge of the southbound lane heading perpendicular to the beach.
3 - Not only did this ship not stay in their northbound traffic lane, they completely cut the corner at Robinson Point. My planning app tells me that there is more than 3/4 of a NM from the buoy to the beach, and at least that much distance on the other side of the buoy... I heard conversations between vessels and Seattle Traffic, later in the trip, about numerous "pleasure craft" (fishing boats) in the traffic lanes farther north, but that was not the case here. There was virtually no other traffic of any kind east of Robinson Point, between Brown's Point and Three Tree Point.
WTF? Over?
Professional mariners are not always that professional. Best to just avoid them when you can.
OTOH, I had a big power boat turn dead onto me on a collision course with about 100 yards to me. Even though I was inside of the channel I did a sharp turn to get out of his way. Some fat old guy driving; I guess he was trying to impress the women with him. There are rules of the road and then the ultimate on that says do everything you can to avoid a collision, even if the other vessel is at fault.
OTOH, I had a big power boat turn dead onto me on a collision course with about 100 yards to me. Even though I was inside of the channel I did a sharp turn to get out of his way. Some fat old guy driving; I guess he was trying to impress the women with him. There are rules of the road and then the ultimate on that says do everything you can to avoid a collision, even if the other vessel is at fault.
All packed up and spending the night on he boat for an early morning departure from Berkeley to Half Moon Bay with the dogs. Hung out at the Berkeley Yacht club with friends for a nightcap. Took the dogs for a walk around the marina before bed and, while on the leash, my border collie managed to catch a skunk and hold it off the ground while the skunk sprayed him and me. He was so proud of himself. Walked back into club to inform the group that I would not be going to HMB. The group at the bar all took a step back simultaneously with looks of bewilderment as I walked up to them. I explained what happened and went home and washed the dogs.
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 22,867
Some days you just want to take up the sport of Paint ball and plaster the guy with florescent pink poke a dots.
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 22,867
IN the North sound it happens frequently. A tug with barge coming south down Rosario wants to cut the corner short at Partridge Point ans ride the inbound eddy on the Whidbey Island side of the channel rather than going to the turning point and roughing it over the rip at Pt Wilson and Marrowstone Point Light.
They will call VTS Seattle early and request an exception. When I am headed out thru Admiralty Inlet I will notify VTS Seattle about Bush Pt Light. I'll tell them My intended course and that I will be crossing the VTS Zone at Partridge Pt. Putting them on notice. Much like a private plane asking for permissions to cross a CTA area above an airport control zone.
VTS Seattle has been very accommodating. If notified, I usually get a call if there could be crossing traffic or they have given permission to a tug with a barge to travel outside the designated traffic route.
Ray's right. I was motoring home down the Oakland Estuary one nice day, putting my sail cover on on our old Catalina 25 under autopilot. I noticed a nice 32 foot Grand Banks coming up behind, with two fellows up on the flybridge, looking right at me. They continued, right up to about three feet off my port quarter, lurched the heck out of me, and just kept going! I was so hopping mad, I followed them back to their slip, pulled in to an empty slip close by, and walked over and asked them what they heck they thought they were doing. The younger guy said, "Oh, my father's a sailor, and just got this boat, it's new to him." Flabbergasted doesn't begin to describe how I felt. I suggested that he'd forgotten more than he ever knew...
The one constant in reading about these dorks, is that they never, ever apologize.
That's exactly the scenario that I encountered the next day, with a tug pushing a huge crane, headed for Tacoma. He contacted Seattle Traffic and asked if they would mind if he turned south of the buoy west of Alki Pt.. Having heard that, I knew who he was and where he intended to go. I hailed him directly and told him who I was, and where I intended to go. After he looked around, and saw me (
), he agreed that holding my current course would be fine. I've called Seattle Traffic myself, when crossing from Kingston once in reduced visibility. Both they, and this tug captain below, said thanks for the contact.With all of the traffic we have, it a very busy place. We use every tool that we have to try to be aware of what's coming at us, AIS, radio, radar, eyeballs, and paranoia.
