[Rhodes22-list] Beer Overboard

[Bill Effros]

Slim,  (Alain--pay attention!)

Some details on the beer overboard maneuver.  Seriously.

We haven't talked enough about the difficulties of recovering things and 
people falling overboard.  Especially single handed (which everyone 
would be if their partner fell overboard with only 2 originally on board.)

Would your partner be able to recover you?  Mine wouldn't.

When I was practicing anchoring last summer, I discovered that when the 
wind is blowing at 20-25 kts. it is almost impossible to recover a 
properly set anchor while sailing single-handed and remaining tethered 
to the anchor.  Some extremely dangerous situations can (and did) arise.

So I developed a technique of tying the bitter end of the anchor rode to 
a life preserver and throwing it overboard.  This allowed me to get my 
boat out of facing directly into the wind, and into a position where 
either my motor or my sail could position me where I could retrieve my 
(too expensive to leave behind) anchor.

As noted previously, I use floating anchor line with little or no 
chain.  This leaves a long line of rode floating on the water, attached 
to a life preserver,  which is far more difficult to see and retrieve 
without fouling the line than you would imagine, if you've never tried 
it before.  But once recovered, the scope is shortened, the pressure is 
off the anchor, the boat can maneuver, and the anchor can be easily 
retrieved.

Still, I find myself using this technique only as a last resort because 
of the difficulties of retrieval, and the amazing fact that you can 
easily lose sight of the floating life preserver under these conditions.

Which got me to thinking..."what if the floating life preserver had a 
person in it?"  Would I be able to retrieve that person in time with out 
causing more harm?

So I decided one of the things I would work on this summer was MOB. 

I have also retrieved objects fallen overboard as trivial as beer 
holders, and been surprised at the difficulty, and my willingness to 
blow closer and closer to rocks in an attempt to save a $10 item.  In 
fact, I purchased a 3 part extending pole with a reach of more than 12 
feet to replace my 2 part extending pole with a reach slightly under 10 
feet specifically to try to address this problem.

More than you expected, I'm sure, but I would like to know more about 
your recovery, and anyone else's experiences.  It's something I can't 
remember talking about, but something I think we should.

Bill Effros 

Slim wrote:
> Rummy,
>
> Glad you had such a fine season opener.  The scenery looks pretty familiar.
> 8-)  What's that red thing in the guy's mouth in the first shot?
>
> We had our shakedown sail today and it was terrific.  My new luff pad works
> great.  It was quite windy and we were deeply reefed with main at about 75%
> and the genny at various reef points and the luff pad really takes the belly
> out of the big 175% and held a much better shape when it's rolled in.
>
> One casualty--we lost a nearly full beer overboard in a big puff.  Bad
> seamanship!  However, we did a beer-overboard maneuver and recovered the
> coozy.  8-)  
>
> Slim
>
> On 4/15/06 9:03 AM, "R22RumRunner at aol.com" <R22RumRunner at aol.com> wrote:
>
>   
>> Well, the annual breaking in of the lake went off perfectly. We had great
>> winds and warm temps. There was also a multi-hull regatta on the lake.
>> Attached  
>> are two pictures of the regatta.
>>
>> Rummy
>>
>> Name: IMG_3634.JPG Type: image/jpeg Size: 1490608 bytes Desc: not available
>> Url: 
>> http://www.rhodes22.org/pipermail/rhodes22-list/attch/200604/15/IMG_3634.jpg
>>
>> Name: IMG_3663.JPG Type: image/jpeg Size: 1381379 bytes Desc: not available
>> Url: 
>> http://www.rhodes22.org/pipermail/rhodes22-list/attch/200604/15/IMG_3663.jpg
>>
>> __________________________________________________
>> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>>     
>
> __________________________________________________
> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
>
>