Tough stuff

[steve hunter]

Ouch!

Oh to be able to dock the boat! I sweat just thinking about it especially in a strange port. As one who has never parallel parked a car well, I suppose that docking is an even bigger challenge for me. Thank God for fenders...the bigger and more numerous the better.

 

[Dan C30]

2 thangs

1)getting away from work and/or all the other BS and getting on the boat2)getting off the boat and back to work and/or all the other BSeverything else is a piece of cake!

 

[John23907]

The hardest part

Well, as a brand new sailor, the hardest part is the time from just after we throw off the mooring lines until we're back in the slip.

 

[Miss Snooty]

Time

I can handle my old restored Hunter 25. Back in January or February my ancient motor quite working. I sailed and docked her for several months before I realized the motor was dead. She is, after all, a sailboat. My real problem is finding the time to sail all I want to. That and locating experienced crew who can run off at the drop of a hat. I am too old to "singlehand" her the way she is rigged, and too tired to rig her properly for solo sailing.

 

[Les Bon Temps]

So much to learn, but docking is the worst

I know I am not a great sailor, not even a good one, yet. I can get her out from the marina and generally get to where I want to go; after a while.The docking thing, is where it all falls apart. I can't seem to get the boat to turn and back like others do. I seem to get cross ways and bump into things.*yks I am so afraid I am going to run into someone's boat or the dock or the piling or something! I haven't dared to dock it alone and have missed some nice sailing days. I kept a boat on a mooring when I was a lot younger and that was a piece of cake compared to finger piers at a marina!

 

[Brad Newell]

Me, too!

I've been sailing for 40 years and I still put more concentration into docking with an off-dock wind than anything else I do. Usually it comes out pretty well, but you have to have a plan for those times that you get a sudden gust at just the wrong moment. Sailing is like flying; always have an escape route. Situations do occur where you would be better off to just wait for better conditions.

 

[Bob]

Docking is become a challenge / Love - Hate

#!Docking never used to be a problem, as we always had a mooring. dropped the hook or if we diod have to dock, it was a long pier like affair which ran parallel to the water. But now we have a slip at the Commodore's insistence. So far we have docked twice. The first time we had three deckhand volunteers (DV) and yesterday we had 6 DV's in additon to ourselves. The wind was 10 - 15 across the slip.One of the limitations I have on my slip, and I need to talk to the owener to see if it can be changed. The boat is , lets say 27 feet. The slip is 28 feet long. The bow dock cleat is about 1 foot from the front of the dock, and the stern cleat is 1 foot from the far end of the dock. No other cleats in between.Also, I have seen some boaters put one of those "mattress" type of fenders at the bow end of the slip, presumably to catch the offending bow and reduce potential damage. Has anyone else seen these used this way?Although I have read the article, "DOCKING A SINGLE SCREW", I have not yet assimilated it into my personal response system yet.But now that we know we have docking challenges, is there to be a forum dedicated to docking for us newbies and old hands for strategies that can work for most people?Bob*popps: There's a nice article titled: "DOCKING A SINGLE SCREW"A professional skipper discusses the inter-relationship of the propeller and rudder and provides maneuvers you can do with your boat. By Peter P. Pisciottawww.diy-boat.com DIY Boat Owner Volume: 2003- #2

 

[Roger (Ninette Manitoba)]

you asked for it... a docking simulator

I must say, that I too have taken a swipe at all those would be helpers on the dock with my boom, coming in to fast and letting go the main, but now I start the motor, furl the main and jib a good quarter mile off and putski in. If the wind is relatively constant, I have half a chance of not wiping out my bow, the dock nor the people on the dock by carefully playing the forward and reverse as well as the rudder. Of course I put the fenders out just in case it is a bit harder than a kiss.The following link gives you some practice with the forward and reverse, and even allows you to practice in some wind and current. It actually feels much like the real thing, at least for me, in that I get it right about half the time.http://mltsoftware.home.comcast.net/docksim/docksim.html

 

[Wiley24296]

Dodging Flotsam and Jetsum

I sail on Kerr Lake in Oklahoma, the largest acreage lake on the Arkansas River (Kerr-McGee System). Quite a few trees float downstream from Tulsa after storms/tornadoes, etc. It is "interesting" to watch my first mate (aka wife) clinging to the pulpit of our 22 footer yelling out - '6" x 8' tree submerged 2' port!' etc. My "fish-finder' object indicator doesn't register until the object is nearly undr the boat. Do any other fresh water sailors have a similar challenge?

 

[Capken]

Reefing is the main thing

Since I often am single handed, reefing the main can be a dicey affair when the wind picks up. Fortunately, on a lake I can usually find a place where the wind is not so strong. But getting caught is a sudden storm can really get exciting. Once I was racing a coming storm in to port, and just as I started to get up to douse the sails, a huge wind hit, followed by the rain. The wind was so strong I was unable to bring the boat into the wind to change tack, as I watched the rocks on shore fast approaching. I finally had to jibe and head back out across the lake on a reach with the main luffing.

 

[glenn west]

hey george

Yeah docking is hard sometimes--especially if I forget to go slow, slow, slow. My "esposa" does'nt always want to go out so I do a good share of single handing--, A reef is tough, the power boat traffic is tough ( on lake travis). It cost a lot to keep the boat up--and a hundred other things--but I've been on my sailboat twice as much as my power boat for the past 6 to 10 months and I love it. Just make it happen--do it , do it, do it.glenn west

 

[Capt. Brian]

DOCKING MUST BE DONE SLOW

My biggest problem is which boat to sail today(the hobie or the 28 fter).Capt. Bill and Bob,and and others with docking problems. 99% of the time you can stop back up and regroup when docking if you just remember 1 very important thing,you are going in to the slip slow enough when the dockhand gives you the finger,leaves and comes back before you get on the dock.remember this when docking and also remember the dockhand gets paid for being out there so dont worry about taking too much time.

 

[Capt. Sid]

What a Relief!

What a relief it is to see so many people with the same fears that I have had! Docking has always been the most stressful thing about sailing for me. I have read books on the subject and practiced docking over and over again but I still get butterflies when that final docking line is thrown off for departure and when making the final approach upon returning home. I do love the feeling I get when I am finally tied back up and nothing is bent or broken.

 

[gmeyerga]

the bad part

the worst part? scraping the slime off the hull. the slime is full of little critters whichdon't like to be disturbed and which reattached in hairy parts and bite. give me barnacles on the prop any time!

 

[David11062]

Easy docking..........

in our Pearson 26. Put the outboard in reverse and spin the tiller 180 degrees and she backs right in. Spinning the tiller points the rudder foreward and she backs down easly port and starboard. I discovered this by accident one time when I needed to back down fast. The rudder was forced around by the water preasure and I suddenly discovered I had complete control of the boat!!!David

 

[George H260]

Glenn, your so right

My boat is going in the water this weekend, come hell or high water! Everything is easy or a welcome challenge, once your in the water. You and this post have inspired! Thankyou, and good sailing, George

 

[Coquina16741]

Greatest Challenge

We constructed holding posts for our docking lines on the leading edge of our finger and another about two thirds of the way down. This saves the nimble jumping and scrambling that is the usual. The first holds the aft spring line and stern line. The spring line is quickly attached to stop our forward momentum which is usually slow by that time and I'm given the stern line while papa looks after the bow lines. We also are in a tight spot with wind blowing cross the finger most times. I have found it the greatest challenge to get the boat slowed down enough from the hull speed of arrival and the wind and current behind us without losing the drive needed to keep it under control. It's my in-laws boat I'm gonna crunch if I screw up. Not good.

 

[Dave T20525]

Raising the Mast

My O'Day 25 has the rigging to raise and lower the mast using the main boom. I've sucessfully accomplished this probably 20-30 times over the last 7 years. I do it at the marina late in the day by myself, hopefully after the peanut gallery has gone home. I always feel that it is an accident waiting to happen but things work out OK. I just wonder how close I am to loosing the mast to one side or the other. The furler hanging down as I'm going up doesn't help. This last time it went up, I must have had an angel on my shoulder. I normally leave my rig all together from take down in the fall to back up in the spring. Last year I planned to sell the boat, so I took the rig apart. After finding all the lines and getting everthing ready, I raised the mast. It went as usual. As I'm taking it apart, I find the main line that raises the mast is attached only by the knot in the end of the line, stuck in a cleat. I had forgotten to take any turns on it. Just luck. Maybe it was a wake up call. Has anyone else had any experiences with this?Dave

 

[Pierre Bureau]

thunderstorm

The most challenging aspect of sailing I found is sailing through a thunderstorm. It is not the high winds that have me groaning, nor the slashing rains. It is the lightnings! My solution : grounding every shroud down to the water, taping a steel cable to every one, including battery cables ... and wishing like crazy that the horror blows away!

 

[Ernest7381]

Reverse!!!

Ever since I upgraded to a 2002 outboard, I have had serious problems trying to back up into my slip. I am told that the prop size and pitch is correct for the engine. It takes for ever for the boat to reverse its direction, let alone stop; and when it does, its directional stability is seriously affected by both current and wind. Now that I am in a new location, I almost lost my wife overboard trying to back into the slip, fighting a strong current. I have been sailing my own sailboats since 1995 and docking is still one of the most difficult tasks I face.