Would you be ready to handle this emergency?
- Thread starter jssailem
- Start date
I have nurtured a fear of losing a mast through out my years of sailing.
It motivates a constant inspection of standing rigging.
It motivates a constant inspection of standing rigging.
Good timing! Sue just opened the yard bill for our new rigging and she let me have it. I'll put this in the que for youtube viewing this evening!
Don't you just love it when about 30 seconds into the video, there just happens to be the right camera angle to capture some meaningless activity on deck to just casually produce some eye candy for the viewers? The choreography wasn't planned or thought out ... noooo!
Our mast is essentially two masts of very thick alloy. The rigger from Newport who I asked to survey the rig when I bought her said that it was likely the mast wouldn't come down if a wire broke, at least not before I could ease the pressure on it.
However, we do carry an electric grinder and plenty of wheels, should it be necessary for us to cut the 1/2" 1X19 SS wire.
However, we do carry an electric grinder and plenty of wheels, should it be necessary for us to cut the 1/2" 1X19 SS wire.
Unfortunately I’ve been there, done that and have the invoices to prove it. Lost the rig at night offshore texas. I can’t stress enough that on our older boats we have to do a chain plate inspection even if it means cutting inspection ports where the chain plates are barely visible inside the cabin like my H31. I had replaced the standing rigging months before but failed to thoroughly inspect the chain plate rod connection because at the time I didn’t have inspection ports. I do now.
I've been on two boats on which the mast came down. In each incident I was surprised in how gentle the fall was. And this video is another case. We think of a dismasting as a sudden event but actually it is often less dramatic. Yeah, there's danger there but a mast with sails struck sorta floats down.
My question is how many of us have pulled the chainplates out of the boat for the complete inspection. They indicated that this was a chainplate and not a wire failure. At 5:36 you can see that the fracture happened below the deck level where the corrosion would not be visible. After reading an article on crevice corrosion on C30 chainplates, I pulled mine to have a looky-see and all was well. I pulled them all again when I replaced all standing rigging a few years ago. During the re-rig, I replaced all tangs, chainplates bolts and pins with the exception of the upper chainplates which would pulled an inspected for any signs of corrosion or stress.
I finally watched the "Rest of the story." Considering that it took a large crane and at least 4 workers to undo the mess when they reached Thailand I don't know what else they could have done while out on the water; I guess they could have cut the whole rig away. I'm not sure there was very much to salvage. So maybe that would be OK. But it seems like that's reducing the options. As long as there are raw materials available, and there's no immediate danger I think I would do pretty much what they did.
NotCook
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- Dec 29, 2008
- 805
1. I wouldn’t start a passage wearing my best dress clothes.
2. I wouldn’t be in the cockpit on a passage without wearing a PFD, and
3. I most certainly would be on deck in a passage without wearing a PFD and a tether.
4. I’d be reluctant to start the engine with all the rigging dragging in the water.
2. I wouldn’t be in the cockpit on a passage without wearing a PFD, and
3. I most certainly would be on deck in a passage without wearing a PFD and a tether.
4. I’d be reluctant to start the engine with all the rigging dragging in the water.
All great seamanship points and practical guides for skippers. I suspect the video was heavily edited and that the vblogger had multiple cameras to choose from to tell her story.
My guess is the story told was not the anticipated story.
My guess is the story told was not the anticipated story.
Thanks for the video... Well there goes spending money on a new head.. time to thoroughly check all the rigging.
My Avatar demonstrates that I would likely not make a good YouTuber (PFD on at the helm). The image was taken at the end of a grand day of cruising the PacificNW waters. The sea had calmed as the evening approached. We still had about 75 minutes to go to reach our home port of Everett, as the sun was setting behind our boat over Whidbey Island.
One takeaway from the video is have a fully-charged, back-up handheld vhf radio.
Had an upper shroud chainplate snap on me a few years back. Had corroded from the inside. The whole boat shook as though I had hit something big. Luckily I wasn't under full sail. Replaced them all except for the stem head which snapped a year later on a downwind run. Scary does not adequately describe the experience. Surprised I didn't have to change my shorts after that.
Surprised I didn't have to change my shorts after that.
And perhaps a minimum bit of radio knowledge, like if you try to broadcast without an antenna you may burn up your radio. When you know the antenna is down, perhaps you can rig a replacement using the existing hardware from the top of the mast. Attach a new plug. Set up the replacement antenna on the mast stub. Then transmit your mayday or pan pan pan pan message.
Many ways to skin the cat. I would have thought the old salt of a skipper might have been in control of radio use. But tthen where would the drama of the story be.
Many ways to skin the cat. I would have thought the old salt of a skipper might have been in control of radio use. But tthen where would the drama of the story be.
That was my thought, also. Even with the limited range, they may have been able to hail another boat to relay a message. On another thought, maybe they did but left that part out for dramatic effect.
Edit: seems @jssailem types faster than me.