# Beyond the "Edge"



## smackdaddy

We've seen a lot of rescue stories in various threads around here and sliced and diced them every which way possible. This thread is intended to be a "gallery" for those stories and conversations regarding what lies just beyond that "edge" of big sailing. It does make you think...

First story:

*The S/V "Lunatic Pirate"*
-Story from NZ Herald
-Email and pics from the guy who found the abandoned boat

RIP


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## vega1860

Makes you wonder what could have happened. Reinforces our "Harness and tether rule"

See video "Rule 1"

Latest videos


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## adru

Who can forget the "Ghost Yacht" catamaran found drifting off Australia's Great Barrier Reef a couple of years ago. Three missing sailors with sails up, engines running and food on the table? Quite a mystery.

FOXNews.com - Search Launched for Missing Crew of 'Ghost Ship' Found Off Australia - International News | News of the World | Middle East News | Europe News

Families of missing 'ghost yacht' crew end search


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## JohnRPollard

smackdaddy said:


> We've seen a lot of rescue stories in various threads around here and sliced and diced them every which way possible. This thread is intended to be a "gallery" for those stories and conversations regarding what lies just beyond that "edge" of big sailing. It does make you think...
> 
> First story:
> 
> *The S/V "Lunatic Pirate"*
> -Story from NZ Herald
> -Email and pics from the guy who found the abandoned boat
> 
> RIP


Sad.

I expect it would be eery coming across a vessel like that. But the usual practice is to scuttle derelicts (cut hose, open seacock). I wonder why they left it adrift like that?


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## JomsViking

At least the captain of the Lunatic Pirate died doing something he really wanted to do.
May he rest in peace.


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## smackdaddy

adru said:


> Who can forget the "Ghost Yacht" catamaran found drifting off Australia's Great Barrier Reef a couple of years ago. Three missing sailors with sails up, engines running and food on the table? Quite a mystery.
> 
> FOXNews.com - Search Launched for Missing Crew of 'Ghost Ship' Found Off Australia - International News | News of the World | Middle East News | Europe News
> 
> Families of missing 'ghost yacht' crew end search


Jeez that's freaky. From the article:

"Greg Connor, a forecaster with the Bureau of Meteorology, said the sailors would have faced moderate southeasterly winds of about 22 mph, typical weather for this time of year.

"It would have been excellent sailing conditions," he said. "There's no reason to believe this is a weather related incident."

Well how do they explain the jib?


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## JomsViking

The jib did not need to hit eg the spreader too many times to look like that... The first tear, and then... 
But yes, spooky...


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## WhatTheFoley

Very spooky... not sure when the pic was taken (when they first found it or after crews had been aboard), but why are the fenders down.... 

Also the news articles mention a laptop running and food on the table. I know multi's are pretty stable, but if the weather had been really bad, I doubt they'd have gear and food on the tables... 

Weird... just Weird.. Cool find Adru!


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## sailingdog

If the weather had really been bad, even if they had food on the table, it probably wouldn't have stayed there... an uncontrolled multihull in a storm will often have quite a bit of vertical motion...and the chances are more than likely that the food would have ended up on the cabin sole.


WhatTheFoley said:


> Very spooky... not sure when the pic was taken (when they first found it or after crews had been aboard), but why are the fenders down....
> 
> Also the news articles mention a laptop running and food on the table. I know multi's are pretty stable, but if the weather had been really bad, I doubt they'd have gear and food on the tables...
> 
> Weird... just Weird.. Cool find Adru!


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## Omatako

*Shortest ocean crossing ever?*

It seems that Australasia is the focus of these events.

Remember the guy who left NZ on an ocean voyage and ended up being winched to a helo from his boat off the rocks of a local island. His track from point of departure to where he lost the boat is a mystery in itself that even the sailor appears not to be able to explain.

Yachtie rescued by helicopter on Great Barrier Island | NATIONAL | NEWS | tvnz.co.nz

But these things happen, no-one knows that better than me.


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## smackdaddy

Don't worry Omatako - there will be plenty of yanks getting smacked down in this thread.

What a way to end your first leg of a circle! Wake up on the rocks? Ouch.


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## JohnRPollard

sailingdog said:


> If the weather had really been bad, even if they had food on the table, it probably wouldn't have stayed there... an uncontrolled multihull in a storm will often have quite a bit of vertical motion...and the chances are more than likely that the food would have ended up on the cabin sole.


I haven't gone back and read those articles, but I vaguely remember speculation that they had all gone for a swim while becalmed, and the boat sailed away from them??

It can happen. I once read an account by folks whom this had nearly happened to, mid-ocean. Fortunately, one especially strong swimmer, and a brief lull, got them back aboard.


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## smackdaddy

Holy crap. So it happens that easily?


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## JohnRPollard

smackdaddy said:


> Holy crap. So it happens that easily?


It can, if everyone jumps in for a swim at the same time when becalmed -- with sails up. Even a light breeze can push the boat along faster than most folks can swim for any great distance.

Of course, the other possibility is alien abduction.


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## sailingdog

IIRC, the theory that had the most backing was that one of them had fallen overboard, and the others fell overboard attempting to retrieve the MOB.


JohnRPollard said:


> I haven't gone back and read those articles, but I vaguely remember speculation that they had all gone for a swim while becalmed, and the boat sailed away from them??
> 
> It can happen. I once read an account by folks whom this had nearly happened to, mid-ocean. Fortunately, one especially strong swimmer, and a brief lull, got them back aboard.


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## KeelHaulin

JohnRPollard said:


> It can, if everyone jumps in for a swim at the same time when becalmed -- with sails up. Even a light breeze can push the boat along faster than most folks can swim for any great distance.
> 
> Of course, the other possibility is alien abduction.


What if they were hove-to; two went in for a dip and the 3'rd decided to take a swim but forgot it would leave no-one aboard? The boat could still get away if a wind shift caused it to set sail on the opposite tack.

But engines running while the sails were up is another cause for concern, were they in neutral for charging or were they driving the boat along like they were motor-sailing?


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## smackdaddy

A pretty good summary of the Kaz II.


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## St Anna

Gooday fellows,
The Kaz II was left in a marina for a few months I believe, then the guys sailed off. The area is infamous for drug happenings. Then it does appear that they just fell overboard. 

Smackdaddy - RESIST THE URGE TO SWIM OVER THE SIDE WHILST AT SEA Thats why the old salts did not learn to swim - just prolonged the inevitible.

Jeez I sound like my old man.


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## JimMcGee

Both articles mention that the life raft was missing. The reality is unless there is a survivor you never really know what happened when a boat is found drifting. Sobering...


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## jaschrumpf

Why would all the fenders be deployed? Is this a precaution that multi-hull sailors take on a permanent basis?


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## NCC320

Once, while I was in the Navy, it was calm on a Sunday and we stopped to have a swim call. The ship took precautions with lookouts posted for either sharks or people in trouble and there were small boats in the water to assist if they were needed. Everything went smoothly except one thing. The local ocean current was a lot more than expected and in just a short time, people were strung out in the water over a quarter mile. No problem in our case, as all were picked up quickly and swim call was terminated. In my opinion, a swim call off a small boat at sea without a tether to the boat is not recommended. Not sure that this figured in the boat situation above, but a combination of current and a puff of wind can get you away from the boat in a hurry.


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## WanderingStar

Much less dramatic than these international stories: On my first solo cruise in 92, I was having a bit of a rough day. Sailing a 20' sloop from South Shore to North on Long Island. First night I anchored in the bay, next day to exit the inlet, sail west in the ocean. While still in the bay, everything went wrong. Strong breeze, lost my bearings, drove across a sandbar, lost a batten. Dropped the hook, regrouped, restarted. A cold front had come through, wind was north, strong. Actually surfed in the channel, scary but fun. Outside, off the beach, I noticed that the wnid was strong enough to blow the tops off the surf as it crashed on the beach. Far ahead I could see another sailboat, but, what? she seems to be heeling the other way. Can he be in a different wind? Is my perception off? As I closed him I realized the truth. It had sunk, was resting on the bottom, listing to windward. There was wreckage about, an inflatable, and two guys removing gear. It shocked and sobered me. Farther west, another mystery: a bouy I couldn't place on the chart. Proximity identified that too: a deadhead, piling floating upright, slowly bobbing. Could they have been related? I never knew. But it was a stark reminder to be careful.


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## smackdaddy

Oh man, this is seriously sad...

The Melinda Lee

Sounds like they did everything right. Some good info on AIS as well.


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## welshwind

*Lake Michigan Tragedy*



JohnRPollard said:


> I haven't gone back and read those articles, but I vaguely remember speculation that they had all gone for a swim while becalmed, and the boat sailed away from them??
> 
> It can happen. I once read an account by folks whom this had nearly happened to, mid-ocean. Fortunately, one especially strong swimmer, and a brief lull, got them back aboard.


There was a sailboat - I think around 30 ft - that was found without anyone aboard on Lake Michigan a few years ago. A 30 something father and two daughters somewhere between 8 and 12 (if my memory serves me right) were missing. Life preservers were on board. Sails down. I believe the body of one of the daughters was found several weeks later. The best guess as to what happened was the daughters went swimming, got into a bit of trouble as the boat drifted away, the dad jumped in and none of them could get back to the boat. At least, that is what people who knew the dad well surmised. I don't think the bodies of the dad and other daughter were ever recovered. Really sad.


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## Omatako

smackdaddy said:


> Oh man, this is seriously sad...
> 
> The Melinda Lee
> 
> Sounds like they did everything right. Some good info on AIS as well.


There is absolutley no doubt that this is a very sad event and what happened to the folks on the boat should never have to be endured by anyone at sea.

As it happens, Judith Sleavin is a friend of the family and we have heard the story told and retold. Judith has co-written (along with her friend Hester Rumberg) a book recently published called Ten Degrees of Reckoning that tells her story.

I have read the story and as I said, debated it ad nauseam and my family will want my blood for saying this but . . . . . whilst not trying to defend the actions of the crew of the freighter, the COLREGS require that if a collision is imminent all vessels should take avoiding action. It seems that the Melinda Lee never did.

Sorry if this appeared to be a thread hijack - never intended that.


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## JohnRPollard

Omatako said:


> There is absolutley no doubt that this is a very sad event and what happened to the folks on the boat should never have to be endured by anyone at sea.
> 
> As it happens, Judith Sleavin is a friend of the family and we have heard the story told and retold. Judith has co-written (along with her friend Hester Rumberg) a book recently published called Ten Degrees of Reckoning that tells her story.
> 
> I have read the story and as I said, debated it ad nauseam and my family will want my blood for saying this but . . . . . whilst not trying to defend the actions of the crew of the freighter, the COLREGS require that if a collision is imminent all vessels should take avoiding action. It seems that the Melinda Lee never did.
> 
> Sorry if this appeared to be a thread hijack - never intended that.


Omatako,

I haven't read the new book, but I do recall distinctly the article that she participated in with I believe Sail Magazine back in the mid-late-90s. That article provided much more info (some of it contradictory) than the article to which Smackdaddy linked.

First, my heart goes out, and always has, to her. And there seems to be no question that the ship was egregious in its conduct.

But I also recall that Ms Sleavin was on watch and had gone below to prepare a drink or food, and spent some time at the nav table. I remember when reading the Sail article that I felt very uncomfortable with the amount of time it would take to do those belowdeck tasks.

Then again, I am just finishing reading Tania Abei's _Maiden Voyage_, and was stunned to learn that during her solo circumnavigation she would simply button up the boat and go to bed for the night without keeping watch!! Eventually her luck ran out too, and she collided with a ship, but fortunately survived to tell her tale.

The Sleavins fared much worse. And given Judith's at most very brief lapse in watchkeeping, it seems cruelly unfair that her family should have come to such a horrific fate, when another sailor made it 4/5 of the way around the world with barely keeping a night watch.


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## smackdaddy

Oma - that's not a hijack by any means. Thanks for the follow up - and I'm truly sorry for Judith's loss. Absolutely devastating.

I really also appreciate your honesty on this one. It's strange how, when one reads something like this, one doesn't want to pile on anymore misery through "blame". It's easier and somehow more "just" to put all of it on the tanker and be done with it.

But deep down when reading this I thought exactly as you did. They seemed to let down their guard for just a moment - and that's all it took. In a small, relatively vulnerable vessel you really can't ever do that can you?

What about the AIS technology mentioned in that article? What are your thoughts on that?


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## Omatako

smackdaddy said:


> What about the AIS technology mentioned in that article? What are your thoughts on that?


Sorry Smack - I never went on to read about ther AIS in the article. But suffice it to say that AIS was not around when this accident happened and the very fact that the vessel was approaching NZ (30 miles of IIRC) and a confluence of shipping lanes, the watch should have been pretty full-on.

Contributing factors were continuous poor weather (our NZ speciality)resulting in everybody aboard being whacked out and a very cold night. Judith went below to make a hot drink and check the charts and she dallied longer than necessary no doubt because it was warm.

The ship was in the wrong because the yacht was the stand-on vessel and they were also wrong because their search was cursory at best. They knew damn well they had run someone down and should have tried harder. Judith says that in the turn the ship did for their "search", they came so close to her that she could see the faces of the people on the bridge. Still, a decent watch would have prevented the whole episode.

My thoughts on AIS, for the record, I think it's too high tech for my boat, I have EIS (eyeball identification system) and it's worked for me for decades without any equipment failure (yet).


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## smackdaddy

Is it just me - or are the Gulfies just a tougher lot than most? Yes we keep falling over in our boats and getting wet - but even when the CG throws in the towel we're still out there laughing it up...

_*Missing boaters found alive off Texas coast

(CNN) -- A day after the U.S. Coast Guard said it was suspending its weeklong search for three missing boaters, the men were found alive Saturday night.

A boater found 28-year-old Curtis Hall, 30-year-old James Phillips and 43-year-old Tressel Hawkins sitting on top of their capsized fishing vessel drinking Lone Star and singing "The Eyes of Texas" at the tops of their lungs about 180 miles from Port Aransas, Texas, the Coast Guard said in a news release.

The men had been missing at sea since they failed to return from a fishing trip on August 22.

The Coast Guard called off its search Friday after it said it had searched more than 86,000 square miles for the men.

Following their rescue, the men were taken to Port Aransas to undergo medical evaluation.*_

A slight bit of embellishment added.


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## jerryrlitton

Fenders down? They were boarded. Sails were up because they were sailing. They were hailed, The engine was running to give them some maneuvering capability. The jib was damaged after the fact. Maybe they left the boat under duress. This is just speculation obviously.


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## smackdaddy

Ran across this rescue story from January 2...

Dennis Clements, battling gale-force winds and 30-foot seas for four days, was tossed from his Cal 39, Gloria A Dios, about 250 miles east of Cape Hatteras, N.C.

"I couldn't see anything," says Clements, recounting the Jan. 2 incident. "These were big waves, man, and it was dark and the wind was blowing like 40 knots. I was just floating there, trying to conserve heat."

Responding to the 55-year-old sailor's EPIRB signal - which Clements later learned only went off because he had mistakenly placed the beacon backward in its bracket - the Coast Guard dropped two life rafts from an HC-130J Hercules aircraft. But Clements couldn't see the rafts and the aircraft was low on fuel and had to leave the scene.

Clements started to pray, then kicked off his boots and swam blindly in the darkness. In a stroke of luck, he bumped into one of the life rafts, which had capsized. "I was able to flip it over and somehow get in," he says.

About an hour later a Navy helicopter, dispatched from the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, was on the scene and a rescue swimmer was in the water. Winds were blowing 50 knots, with 10-foot seas and driving sleet and snow.

Clements was en route from Hampton Roads, Va., to the U.S. Virgin Islands when he ran into heavy weather. His 10-year-old EPIRB activated when a wave crashed through the port side of the cabin and soaked the beacon - another stroke of luck because it was a manually activated model that normally would not go off in that situation. But Clements had mounted the EPIRB improperly in its bracket, causing the beacon to send a signal when it got wet (see sidebar).
The distress signal came in to the Coast Guard's Fifth District headquarters in Portsmouth, Va., around 5 p.m. Jan. 2, at which point the district dispatched the HC-130J Hercules.

After hoisting the Navy swimmer and Clements from the water, the helicopter flew 130 miles back to the aircraft carrier, with another Coast Guard Hercules aircraft overhead, according to public affairs specialist Andrew Kendrick.

Bad to worse
Clements, who bought Gloria A Dios in 1994, had made only one other long passage - a 740-mile cruise across the Gulf of Mexico from Tarpon Springs, Fla., to Galveston, Texas. The sailor says he properly planned and prepared for the trip to the USVI.

"I spent a month refitting, provisioning, checking everything out, making equipment upgrades," he says. "The recommended time to make this trip is [after] November, when hurricane season is over. That's really the main concern for an offshore run like that."

The weather forecast for the week after Christmas was good, says Clements, so he departed Dec. 26 from Hampton. "Saturday was mild and variable, and Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday was 10 to 15 [knot winds] or 15 to 20 [knot winds] from the west or northwest," he says.

On Wednesday, Dec. 30, the forecast changed - a gale warning was up, with sustained 40-knot winds, he says. After battling the elements for 12 hours, Clements went below to get something to eat. A rogue wave struck the sailboat, a 1969 model, knocking out the starboard cabin window and throwing the sailor across the cabin.

"A hundred gallons of salt water came aboard," he says. "I lost all electronics and something happened to the batteries and I had no way to restart the motor."

Engineless in worsening conditions, he was battered in the wind and seas for days.

On Saturday, Jan. 2, a wave slammed the port side, knocking Gloria A Dios on its side and holing the port side of the cabin. "I was very nearly upside down and took in a couple hundred gallons of water," says Clements. "It was a struggle."

Clements lost his boat, which was uninsured.

Meet the luckiest sailor alive


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## Superpickle

JomsViking said:


> At least the captain of the Lunatic Pirate died doing something he really wanted to do.
> May he rest in peace.


Im so glad you think Dieing while doing your favorite thing, is Better than LIVING.. 
So, if you get your Brains blowen out by a Pirat while Sailing, Thats OK ?

Ya know, that Stupid Dumb chick that was the Drag racer in Heart like a wheel, What a Dumb box of rocks, she Dumped her familey , ie, Husband and Kids, to Risk her Life for the FUN of it..

Totaly , incredably, STUPID..


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## smackdaddy

I agree with Joms. 

Otherwise, find a comfy couch in a retirement home, do crossword puzzles and open your mouth when the nurse brings your meds. Sure, that "lifestyle" is a hell of a lot safer than sailing but...no thanks.


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## knothead

smackdaddy said:


> I agree with Joms.
> 
> Otherwise, find a comfy couch in a retirement home, do crossword puzzles and open your mouth when the nurse brings your meds. Sure, that "lifestyle" is a hell of a lot safer than sailing but...no thanks.


It's funny how we can go for years. Pushing the envelope. Taking chances just cause they're there. Then one day, while doing something that you've done myriad times, life reaches out and slaps you upside the head. 
Who hasn't, or doesn't at times drive a little too close to the car in front. Who hasn't made a quick little trip to the leeward shrouds in the middle of a solitary night watch without clipping in. 
Hell, bad stuff often happens to people who never take chances and always try do the "prudent" thing.

There's only one way out of this game and unless someone is purposely and consistently stupid in the decisions they make, I think that chance has a lot more control of when we die than we do.

Having said that, there's nothing wrong with crossword puzzles. They beat the heck out of turning your brain off and watching TV. Which brings me to Meds. Sometimes it's necessary to turn the brain off. :hammer
Open Wide!  Bottoms up.  Smoke em if you got em. :laugher


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## smackdaddy

Yeah but have you ever tried to do the NYT crossword while completely gacked on ganga? Now THAT'S dangerous!


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## smackdaddy

Here's to our Coasties. Thanks for all you guys do:


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## smackdaddy

This sounds a bit spooky...

Lifeboat crew honoured after rescue | Sailing news | Yachting Monthly

Nice driving lads!


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## smackdaddy

Okay - this is just plain bad luck...or horrible seamanship to sink at the doick...

Sunken Yacht Rescue | Vlad Barry Photo


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## smackdaddy

So isn't this like the second yacht in 2 months to go up in flames? Hmmmm...

Coast Guard Rescues 8 From Burning Yacht Near Newport's Goat Island | WPRI.com


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## smackdaddy

Late night swim with drifting boat...ouch...

Sailor dies, man missing, 2 rescued in sailing accident - Chicago Breaking News


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## smackdaddy

Jeez, this stuff is depressing as hell. I'm going to get some sailing in tomorrow.


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## CalebD

This is less likely to happen to you if your know your engine really well and know all your hoses, thru hulls, filters etc. 
If you re-built your own engine then you should know it intimately, right? Not always as Murphy was an optimist. A minor gas leak can become a fire, or worse with an electrical short nearby. Any kind of fuel can be a hazard at sea.

The folks in this report sound fairly clueless but I would not want to be in their shoes either.



smackdaddy said:


> So isn't this like the second yacht in 2 months to go up in flames? Hmmmm...
> 
> Coast Guard Rescues 8 From Burning Yacht Near Newport's Goat Island | WPRI.com


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## CalebD

This case looks like a failed seacock, water hose or other hole in the hull which should be obvious. It could have been caused by heavy rains, wind and waves with clogged cockpit scuppers as well. 
Sometimes it only takes a few inches of lower hull depth to start a siphon into the boat. This can be caused by snow, ice or excessive water in the cockpit. 
If it was a center board boat there is more to worry about there as well.
They also could have scuttled the boat there.
Just saying'.



smackdaddy said:


> Okay - this is just plain bad luck...or horrible seamanship to sink at the doick...
> 
> Sunken Yacht Rescue | Vlad Barry Photo


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## puddinlegs

smackdaddy said:


> Is it just me - or are the Gulfies just a tougher lot than most? Yes we keep falling over in our boats and getting wet - but even when the CG throws in the towel we're still out there laughing it up...


Well, if your water was a constant 54f, then you'd probably die at a much more prodigious rate after falling off the boat. Water along most of the west coast of the US is cold. It's that simple.

AIS... don't have it on our boat yet, but I've used it on others... works great and well worth it especially if you sail in an area with a lot of commercial traffic. The best example I've seen is the AIS, but not the radar, picking up the Victoria Clipper out in the Straight of SJdF... 29kts.... just a rumble out in the fog, but clear as a bell on the AIS receiver.

So you can get some sleep smack, you might look into one of these:

Standard Horizon Matrix GX2100 AIS Receiver VHF Radio... cut/paste/search.


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## smackdaddy

Man, this sucks...

The Day - Friends mourn sailor's death in 'tragic accident' | News from southeastern Connecticut

Condolences to the family.


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## bubb2

taken from the article

"The family is asking those planning to attend to wear flip-flops and Hawaiian shirts because he was "most-comfortable in that," 

I like the guy, May he rest in peace


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## smackdaddy

Just use the damn dinghy...

Sailor's body found inside shark at Jaws Beach - Telegraph


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## trisstan87

Lol, they wanted to swim back to shore. Idiots.


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## trisstan87

Oh, did anyone see the "I shouldn't be alive" show last night? It wasn't sailing related but it was so amazing.
Basically a guy and his friends went to go sky diving off the coast of Costa Rica. When they reached jump altitude they encountered sever turbulence and the plane started to go down. They guy and his friends jumped out of the plane and parachuted in to the Pacific Ocean miles off shore, no land in sight. 
So this ONE guy is alone floating in nothing but a pair of shorts in the middle of the Pacific ocean off the coast of a third world country.
The guy floats until night time where he is engulfed by school after school of jelly fish. After that, he sees a long object floating towards him (this is the middle of the night mind you, in the middle of the pacific ocean)
Well folks it turned out to be a log large enough for him to use to float on (THAT IS A MIRACLE)
So the guy wakes up still floating on this lag 15 hours after the crash and a rescue effort does not start until the break of dawn. The guy wakes up and sees land and starts heading for it but by noon he is no closer and realizes the log and under tow are sucking him further out to sea. 
The guy decides to give up his saving grace and make a break for shore, but shortly after he tires out. By this time he has been alone, exposed in the pacific ocean for over 24 hours. (this by its self is a miracle as the pacific ocean is many degrees cooler than body temperature. The ocean was literally sucking the life out of him every minute h e was in the water)
He has swallowed much sea water and is delusional. His body is severely dehydrated. He floats there waiting to die when suddenly he thinks he imagines a boat near by. He waves to the boat, then lays back in the water to await its arrival or death, whatever came first.
Well it WAS a boat. A boat of fisherman who knew nothing about the accident. It was by COMPLETE chance they found him as he had floated miles outside the search radius. He was the only confirmed survivor.
PEOPLE! How amazing is that? Think how alone and exposed he must have felt, floating there, alone, miles from shore, at night even! Anyway, I felt compelled to share the story, it was riveting.


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## johnshasteen

Here's a YouTube video of a Coast Guard Corpus Christi rescue of a wimpier boat than Paloma in the March '08 Force 10 storm we got caught in while transiting from Port Isabel to Freeport - they floundered in the early part of the storm while the winds were still only in the 40's and seas hadn't built much yet: YouTube - Coast Guard Rescues Two Men from Disabled Sailboat


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## smackdaddy

Jeez John - that's pretty stiff as it is!. You guys did good riding that bad boy out and coming home in one piece.

Here's another rescue:






Wasn't somebody asking about a C30 outside in the open ocean? In this case, it doesn't seem like the boat was completely to blame.


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## CalebD

A storm jib and triple reefed main would not have helped that C 30?
Perhaps even a storm tri sail?
Glad they got back safely but it can get nasty out there at the edge.


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## radioguy

JohnRPollard said:


> It can, if everyone jumps in for a swim at the same time when becalmed -- with sails up. Even a light breeze can push the boat along faster than most folks can swim for any great distance.
> 
> Of course, the other possibility is alien abduction.


Man, that scares the crap out of me!


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## smackdaddy

Stay on the boat. 

This kind of thing happened with my sailing buddy's girlfriend. We were hove to having a bev, it was hot and she wanted to swim. I told her to take a line to hold on to. She was convinced that we weren't moving and jumped in.

As we pulled away from her she tried to swim back to us. Couldn't make it. I slowly finished my D&S, then threw her a buoy and pulled her back in...heckling her mercilessly the whole time.

Why anyone would think it's cool for everyone on board to swim at the same time is really beyond me.


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## Cruisingdad

smackdaddy said:


> Jeez John - that's pretty stiff as it is!. You guys did good riding that bad boy out and coming home in one piece.
> 
> Here's another rescue:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Wasn't somebody asking about a C30 outside in the open ocean? In this case, it doesn't seem like the boat was completely to blame.


You guys notice how far out that boat was (scope) from teh rescue boat. Interesting. I guess he does that to accept the shock and not be affected by the seas??

Anyways, good eye opening thread, Smack. I had never seen it before.

Brian


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## smackdaddy

I think I remember Erps showing off some pics of when a towing line snapped on his job boat and blasted out a window. That crap'll kill ya!


----------



## smackdaddy

Coast Guard saves two sailors heading to Bermuda
Don Burgess
Deputy Editor

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 27: Two sailors who were headed to Bermuda were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard after their boat began to take on water.

Chase Duran of Oklahoma and Rowan Wagner of Maine found themselves in trouble when their 45-foot sailboat sprung a leak and they could not locate it.

The North Carolina area Coast Guard received a radio message at approximately 6:52am from crewmembers of the 45-foot sailboat Celedon saying that the vessel was flooding.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Coast Guard said: "An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City was diverted to the scene, and a nearby commercial tanker ship, the Atlantic Leo, responded after hearing an urgent marine information broadcast issued by the Coast Guard.

"The helicopter arrived on-scene at 7:37am The sailboat had taken on 3 inches of water, and its crewmen were unable to determine the source of the flooding. They were then airlifted from the sailboat by the helicopter’s crew."

Weather conditions on scene included winds gusting to 40 knots and 12-foot seas.

Neither man received any injuries, and they returned with the helicopter crew to Air Station Elizabeth City.


----------



## Minnewaska

smackdaddy said:


> Coast Guard saves two sailors heading to Bermuda
> Don Burgess
> Deputy Editor
> 
> SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 27: Two sailors who were headed to Bermuda were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard after their boat began to take on water.
> 
> Chase Duran of Oklahoma and Rowan Wagner of Maine found themselves in trouble when their 45-foot sailboat sprung a leak and they could not locate it.
> 
> The North Carolina area Coast Guard received a radio message at approximately 6:52am from crewmembers of the 45-foot sailboat Celedon saying that the vessel was flooding.
> 
> A spokesperson for the U.S. Coast Guard said: "An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City was diverted to the scene, and a nearby commercial tanker ship, the Atlantic Leo, responded after hearing an urgent marine information broadcast issued by the Coast Guard.
> 
> "The helicopter arrived on-scene at 7:37am The sailboat had taken on 3 inches of water, and its crewmen were unable to determine the source of the flooding. They were then airlifted from the sailboat by the helicopter's crew."
> 
> Weather conditions on scene included winds gusting to 40 knots and 12-foot seas.
> 
> Neither man received any injuries, and they returned with the helicopter crew to Air Station Elizabeth City.


Good on everyone, especially the Coasties and tanker crew. But 3 inches of water in what must have started before they made the call? It sounds to me like there is a perfectly salvageable boat out there right now, with all their stuff on it.

All you folks looking for a blue water boat for under $10k. You finally got an answer.


----------



## Omatako

Minnewaska said:


> But 3 inches of water in what must have started before they made the call?


Yeah, 3 inches of water. Flooding?? Hoo-ooo-oooo . . . . scary . . . . .

I think "gusting 40kn" scared them witless and this rescue probably had little to do with flooding. Unless of course they had no bilge pump.


----------



## smackdaddy

Oh good lord...who sails a freakin' 88' galleon these days anyway?

Two aboard sailboat headed for Bermuda are rescued

"Possible" flooding? What's that?


----------



## smackdaddy

*Cats Kill*

Okay, I'm now convinced....cruising catamarans are death traps:

Sailor recounts dramatic rescue off Kangaroo Island after catamaran | Adelaide Now


----------



## JaredC

The "submerged container" strikes again.


----------



## imagine2frolic

Death trap? It was still afloat, and the EPIRB available. Surely that's just your twisted humor?...........*i2f*


----------



## Omatako

imagine2frolic said:


> Death trap? It was still afloat, and the EPIRB available. Surely that's just your twisted humor?...........*i2f*


It would be nowhere near as humorous if it had happened here . . . .










Not too many helos out there. And whilst it may still be floating it is of little use to the people who are already in the liferaft.

Just a question (my research into cat survival hasn't been extensive) - how long does a cat in this attitude continue to float? At some point it must become a hazard to navigation? I suppose the proud owner would need to spend a bit of time hacking holes into it to send it to the bottom. I wonder how long the helo will hang about for that exercise to take place?

Then again maybe the builder has cleverly built in permanent positive flotation as an added "safety feature". Then it will float around the planet forever. Hope I never meet it on a dark night. The definition of "death trap" perhaps doesn't apply to the owner but to those still sailing.


----------



## JaredC

Omatako said:


> Just a question (my research into cat survival hasn't been extensive) - how long does a cat in this attitude continue to float? At some point it must become a hazard to navigation? I suppose the proud owner would need to spend a bit of time hacking holes into it to send it to the bottom. I wonder how long the helo will hang about for that exercise to take place?
> 
> Then again maybe the builder has cleverly built in permanent positive flotation as an added "safety feature". Then it will float around the planet forever. Hope I never meet it on a dark night. The definition of "death trap" perhaps doesn't apply to the owner but to those still sailing.


Irony. Boat hits a partially submerged hazard, and becomes... a partially submerged hazard.


----------



## HDChopper

"hitting a submerged container "

Ok I am starting to think Steel Boat again ! 
I swear I would get numbers off that container and go to hunting!!


----------



## imagine2frolic

There are monos floating about, trees, containers, whales, and the list goes on. I guess it's just as bad to have the mono sink, and take the epirb with it? I have seen videos where boats rammed cats to sink them.

Imagine has 1 1/2" of foam in her decks, the whole bridge including between all windows, and the outside of her hulls. Not to mention she is wood, so she's going to float even in pieces. Oh yeah, and the collision bulkheads.

We all get through life differently, and boats are compromises. I'll take my chances that the boat will stay afloat. They can ram it if they wish if it has come to that............*i2f*


----------



## SailingStNick

Don't know if any of you remember this tragedy. My post in that same thread tells about my about finding a book about Cultra's first circumnav. My story has an additional interesting twist:

The survivor, Leo Sherman, saw my post and asked to purchase the book. As luck would have it, he was very near me and came by my classroom (high school teacher) to get the book. (I gave it to him) I had shown the kids some pics of the boat and the rescue and told them the story. He spoke for a few minutes and answered a few questions. This was only four weeks after the accident and his rescue. He couldn't stay long and was emotional, so we only had a short visit.


----------



## sailingdog

Of course, if a monohull had hit a partially submerged container, there's a damn good chance that it would have sunk... I'd rather be on a floating but inverted multihull than a sunken monohull.


----------



## smackdaddy

sailingdog said:


> Of course, if a monohull had hit a partially submerged container, there's a damn good chance that it would have sunk... I'd rather be on a floating but inverted multihull than a sunken monohull.


Actually, they were in the life raft, just like a mono crew would have been. The difference this that they had a huge, catamaran-shaped uber-drogue/food-locker they were dragging behind the raft.

Definitely helped with visibility too. Who needs a flare when you're dragging a 50' capsized cat?

Now if multis just didn't fall over so easily, they might be worth something.

Heh-heh.


----------



## smackdaddy

JaredC said:


> Irony. Boat hits a partially submerged hazard, and becomes... a partially submerged hazard.


Gold.


----------



## Omatako

It seems there is also this unwavering belief that cats will always continue to float. One has to wonder what would have happened if the cat in this picture had reached "critical mass" and sank in the night. Unless it had a part that has a known volume of unsinkable material and in a large cat I'm not so sure this is always so, the air inside that causes it to float may easily leak out of some damaged area, sending the remains to the bottom.

My guess is the liferaft wouldn't support it.


----------



## sailingdog

*Most modern multihulls are built using foam or balsa cored construction, and as such are generally buoyant even if fully filled with water.* Also, most multihulls will have multiple watertight buoyancy compartments built into them in addition to being made of lighter than water materials. Scuttling one is a very difficult task most of the times.

This is much akin to what Etap does with their double-hull and then filling the space between the hulls with foam. And I'd point out that multihulls don't have the keel weight than an Etap does, so have less mass overall to support. 


Omatako said:


> It seems there is also this unwavering belief that cats will always continue to float. One has to wonder what would have happened if the cat in this picture had reached "critical mass" and sank in the night. Unless it had a part that has a known volume of unsinkable material and in a large cat I'm not so sure this is always so, the air inside that causes it to float may easily leak out of some damaged area, sending the remains to the bottom.
> 
> My guess is the liferaft wouldn't support it.


----------



## Omatako

sailingdog said:


> *Most modern multihulls are built using foam or balsa cored construction, and as such are generally buoyant even if fully filled with water.*


Whilst not wanting to start a huge debate . . . . .

A few examples of cruising cats:

Fountaine Pajot 36 5.0t
Fountaine Pajot 41 9.8t
Fountaine Pajot 48 10.5t
Lagoon 380  7.3t
Lagoon 440 10,5t

Whilst I am ready to be educated  I have to say that I find it hard to believe that coring of a hull and deck would provide enough bouyancy to keep one of these vessels floating. To my apparently uneducated mind, the foam/balsa core would have to be several inches, maybe even feet thick to float the mass of the vessel.

Maybe there are watertight compartments or sections that are foam filled but the coring? Really??

Also the known fact that cats can't carry weight (the old adage that too much weight turns a cat into a dog comes to mind) without significant sacrifices in performances flies in the face of all this positive bouyancy. Probably the bouyancy only comes into play when the vessel is in the process of sinking.


----------



## smackdaddy

Omatako said:


> Whilst not wanting to start a huge debate . . . . .
> 
> A few examples of cruising cats:
> 
> Fountaine Pajot 36 5.0t
> Fountaine Pajot 41 9.8t
> Fountaine Pajot 48 10.5t
> Lagoon 380 7.3t
> Lagoon 440 10,5t
> 
> Whilst I am ready to be educated  I have to say that I find it hard to believe that coring of a hull and deck would provide enough bouyancy to keep one of these vessels floating. To my apparently uneducated mind, the foam/balsa core would have to be several inches, maybe even feet thick to float the mass of the vessel.
> 
> Maybe there are watertight compartments or sections that are foam filled but the coring? Really??
> 
> Also the known fact that cats can't carry weight (the old adage that too much weight turns a cat into a dog comes to mind) without significant sacrifices in performances flies in the face of all this positive bouyancy. Probably the bouyancy only comes into play when the vessel is in the process of sinking.


Oma, I don't know if you noticed, but that was the *bold text*. *You're never supposed to argue with the bold text.*

My money is on water tight bulkheads and the fact that multis usually end up upside down, hence making water ingress/air escape more problematic.

I just can't wait for the day that a mono gets sunk because it struck a partially submerged multi.


----------



## smackdaddy

Jeez. At some point the boat is just not worth it:


----------



## HDChopper

Jeezzzz that was crazy try! and that boat sunk way faster than I would have thought .....


----------



## sailingdog

I'd point out that the boat in the video is clearly a monohull...



smackdaddy said:


> Jeez. At some point the boat is just not worth it:


----------



## Omatako

sailingdog said:


> I'd point out that the boat in the video is clearly a monohull...


Luckily, else it would have washed out to sea and become a navigational hazard.

But yeah, what a futile attempt at staying with your boat - seriously dangerous.


----------



## smackdaddy

Rogue Wave Takes 45 Footer Down:

YouTube - ‪Boaters Recount Harrowing Sea Rescue‬‏

Interesting pics in the video.


----------



## smackdaddy

And another...


----------



## Omatako

smackdaddy said:


> And another...


Other than the crew allowing the sails to be destroyed, this boat appears to be in no danger. I'm guessing it was abandoned and found floating in good shape days later.


----------



## smackdaddy

She does handle that 10-15 meter (I'd guess) wave pretty nicely...even beam on.

Looks like a nice time for a JSD.


----------



## smackdaddy

Anyone know the story on this rescue? That boat looks like it's floating okay...






PS - Here's the story...rudder fell off...

Rescue of the Crew of Epiphany

Anyone know the make of this boat?


----------



## smackdaddy

How are your hand-held and flares?

Coast Guard: 4 boaters missing off NJ coast - US news - Life - msnbc.com



> Group radioed for help at 3:15 a.m. Tuesday; no sign of the boat or debris
> 
> updated 2 hours 36 minutes ago
> 
> MIDDLETOWN, N.J.- The Coast Guard says it hasn't heard from four people aboard a sailboat off the New Jersey coast since they radioed that it was nearly submerged.
> 
> Coast Guard spokesman Charles Rowe says those aboard the 33-foot Courtney Lynn said they were abandoning the vessel and getting into a smaller boat.
> 
> The crew said they didn't have a hand-held radio or flares, but according to The Star-Ledger, the boaters were wearing life jackets.
> 
> There's been no sign of the boat or debris.
> 
> The Coast Guard launched a search after the sailboat radioed it was taking on water at 3:15 a.m. Tuesday.
> 
> According to NBC10, state and local officials have joined the search by sea, air and land.
> 
> Rowe says the vessel reported it was a mile west of the Naval Weapons Station Earle pier in Middletown. Rowe says the operator then said the sailboat was a mile east of that location.


What were the conditions like there?


----------



## Ajax_MD

Don't you owe us a write-up?


----------



## smackdaddy

BubbleheadMd said:


> Don't you owe us a write-up?


Heh-heh. I'm working on it you pesky bastard! It's going to be the "War and Peace" of posts.

Also, I'm waiting on some photos from the other crew members to add to mine.

Stay frosty.


----------



## smackdaddy

I hate when clueless idiot adrenaline junkies put our brave and capable SAR personnel in danger with their stupidity...well, except here, where one of the SAR boneheads apparently forgot to put the drain plug in the transom. Heh-heh.



> Rescuers scramble as a Westfall, Pa. Fire Department rescue boat sinks in the Delaware River during a search for 18-year-old Daniel Rak of New York on July 28, near the Ten Mile River Scout Camps in Narrowsburg, N.Y. All six emergency personnel were rescued. Divers recovered the body of Rak, who was trying to swim across the river in an area with strong currents when he went missing Wednesday.


----------



## TakeFive

I'm getting ready to head up near there this weekend, with Trophy boat in tow. I am always terrified of forgetting to put the plug in before launch. I'd do it now (2 days ahead of time, like usual), except rain is forecast for the next couple of days (and coming down steadily right now), and I don't want to risk damaging the trailer with too much weight.


----------



## LauderBoy

smackdaddy said:


> PS - Here's the story...rudder fell off...
> 
> Rescue of the Crew of Epiphany
> 
> Anyone know the make of this boat?


A lost rudder equals a mayday call, turning on the EPIRB and abandoning ship???

My favorite part:



> . Regular calls from the CG were now extended from every 30 minutes to a 2-hour interval. We were becoming confused with the intentions of the USCG. Were they coming? Would they come at all?


What are they expecting? A helicopter rescue off their perfectly safe boat where no one was injured? At worst this should've been a Pan Pan so a local boat(or the coast guard when they got around to it), could come and take them off.


----------



## Kiltmadoc

LauderBoy said:


> A lost rudder equals a mayday call, turning on the EPIRB and abandoning ship???


OMG, that boat is at my yacht club! It's one of our members. I didn't see any of the coverage before, i only heard some discussions here and there.

The epilogue, so i heard, was that they were able to track the boat online via the EPRIB. It went around in a 8 mile radius circle. They got back on the boat, put a new rudder on....and it fell off, just off the US coast. Luckily, this time, they were able to be towed in. It's a hunter brand boat incidentally. Furthermore: I have not seen it leave the floats yet this summer.


----------



## smackdaddy

Kiltmadoc said:


> OMG, that boat is at my yacht club! It's one of our members. I didn't see any of the coverage before, i only heard some discussions here and there.
> 
> The epilogue, so i heard, was that they were able to track the boat online via the EPRIB. It went around in a 8 mile radius circle. They got back on the boat, put a new rudder on....and it fell off, just off the US coast. Luckily, this time, they were able to be towed in. It's a hunter brand boat incidentally. Furthermore: I have not seen it leave the floats yet this summer.


No way!!!! A second rudder fell off the thing????

No wonder they refuse to get back on the thing! Heh-heh.


----------



## LauderBoy

smackdaddy said:


> No way!!!! A second rudder fell off the thing????
> 
> No wonder they refuse to get back on the thing! Heh-heh.


Why did the rudder fall off?
--
"Well a wave hit it"

"A wave hit it?"

"A wave hit the ship!"

"Is that unusual?"

"Oh yeah, at sea? Chance in a million..."


----------



## smackdaddy

LauderBoy said:


> Why did the rudder fall off?
> --
> "Well a wave hit it"
> 
> "A wave hit it?"
> 
> "A wave hit the ship!"
> 
> "Is that unusual?"
> 
> "Oh yeah, at sea? Chance in a million..."


At least it was beyond the environment.


----------



## smackdaddy

Ouch! Isn't this Branson's baby?

Fastnet race yacht capsizes off Ireland | The Guardian


----------



## smackdaddy

From the Ed at SA:



> Here's the latest from Balitmore Lifeboat Station:
> 
> A special association with the Fastnet as Pats dad and Diarmuid Grandad, Christy, had been the Coxswain on the 1979 Fastnet rescue.
> Reports from Wave Chieftain say that 5 of the crew were in the water for over 3 and half hours. Four of the crew had been off watch below decks when the capsize occurred. They were forced to swim out from under the hull and were not adequately clothed for the ordeal ahead.
> The five crew who had been separated from the boat tethered themselves together in the water to be more easily found.












Those are some bad-ass sailors.


----------



## smackdaddy

This one deserves its own thread...and Chuck has started one here...

http://www.sailnet.com/forums/gener...mbler-100-lost-keel-capsized-all-rescued.html


----------



## smackdaddy

Rescue of _Baccus_ crew in an F9. Those rigs are tougher than I thought:


----------



## smackdaddy

Now this one just doesn't make a whole lot of sense:






Skipper washed overboard, swims for 9 hours - US news - Life - msnbc.com


----------



## smackdaddy

Aw man, that sucks.



> Summary of facts via the official press release sent by the Préfecture Maritime de l'Atlantique, today Monday the 12th of September 2011:
> PREFECTURE MARITIME DE L'ATLANTIQUE
> Bres on the 12th of September 2011.
> 
> A yachtsman found Dead off Cap Ferret
> 
> On Monday the 12th of September at about 09:00 a.m., the Cap Ferret's semaphore was warned by the fishing boat "Atalante" that a sailboat "Karantez VI" - Pogo 2 6,50 - was under full sails without people aboard. The sailboat was adrift, 8 nautical miles (14 km) from Cap-Ferret.
> 
> The customs plane from Bordeaux has rerouted to position the boat. The security helicopter "Dragon 33" was sent in the area to do the initial researches of man overboard.
> 
> Around 10:00 a.m., the body of a man around 40 years old, wearing integrated buoyancy clothes with the name of the boat on it, was found by a yachtsman on Lège-Cap-Ferret's beach.
> 
> A fisherman has moored the sailboat off Cap-Ferret. It is now watched by the Cap-Ferret semaphore.
> 
> End of the Préfecture Maritime de l'Atlantique press release.
> 
> Jean-Marc Allaire's body was then identified by the Gendarmerie (Ed. French police force). His family was soon after informed.
> Jean-Marc Allaire was to participate to the Charente-Maritime/Bahia Transat 6,50 2011, single-handed transatlantic, that will leave on Sunday the 25th of September.
> The Classe Mini, its members and the entire Mini community, Grand Pavois Organisation, its President, its Board of directors and the Race comity of the Transat 6,50 share the immense pain of the death of Jean-Marc and their thoughts are with his loved ones in this tragic death.


http://www.charentemaritime-bahia.t...rc-allaire-found-dead-after-sea-accident.html


----------



## zz4gta

Cause of death? That's horrible news.


----------



## CapnBilll

Omatako said:


> Luckily, else it would have washed out to sea and become a navigational hazard.
> 
> But yeah, what a futile attempt at staying with your boat - seriously dangerous.


That river had a serious current, also it appeared that the boat snagged an underwater obstacle pitchpoling it in mid sinking. In open ocean it most likely would not have sunk like that, but in any case staying clear of a sinking ship, (they can turtle at any time, as they often lose stability as they lose bouyancy). snagging the rigging as these two found out can be extremely dangerous.


----------



## smackdaddy

Ouch! This sucks any way you look at it! Freakin' EPIC!










Pacific Northwest Boating News: Two Northwest sailors rescued from sinking boat off California coast | Three Sheets Northwest
(Don't miss the comments at the bottom of the page by the spurned sailor chick)

and

Pacific Northwest Boating News: After rescue at sea, wife left to pick up the pieces of a broken dream | Three Sheets Northwest


----------



## SailingStNick

Why in the world would she marry a guy who had been married four times, and expect it to be like her parents' fifty year marriage? ...Let alone trust him!


----------



## smackdaddy

He has a beard. Chicks just go all melty for guys with beards.


----------



## wingNwing

Wow - amazing story - what a loser. Smacky, thanx for bringing it to our attention!


----------



## smackdaddy

wingNwing said:


> Wow - amazing story - what a loser. Smacky, thanx for bringing it to our attention!


No worries. If you see the guy, slap him.


----------



## smackdaddy

How to completely destroy several racing sailboats...and a few crew.


----------



## smackdaddy

Phuket NEWS: Phuket-bound yacht crew rescued from southern Thailan












> PHUKET: Two foreigners sailing to Phuket from Langkawi in Malaysia are safe after being rescued from turbulent seas by the Royal Thai Navy off the coast of Satun early this morning.
> 
> Vice Admiral Choomnoom Ardwong of the Royal Thai Navy Third Area Command at Cape Panwa, Phuket, was notified of a distress call from the sailing yacht Aqua at 1:45am.
> 
> Sailors Gionata Bellagamba from Italy and Luke Lockyer from South Africa reported that they could not make landfall at the southern Thailand province of Satun due to strong winds and large waves.
> 
> The Royal Thai Navy dispatched a rescue vessel at 2am, arriving to render assistance at 4:30am, according to a report.
> 
> The report said the two sailors were found floating in the water and the boat was suffering a battering from the surly weather.
> 
> With Mr Bellagamba and Mr Lockyer safely on board, the Navy vessel took Aqua under tow.
> 
> Both vessels arrived at a safe port at Satun at 8 am, with both men reported to be alive and well.


They were floating in the water? WTH?

(PS - make sure to read the comments below the article. The skipper give his account.)


----------



## jholder

Whats the story with this? No one bother to check the tides?




smackdaddy said:


> How to completely destroy several racing sailboats...and a few crew.


----------



## smackdaddy

Here's a great doc about the rescue of the Rambler 100 crew at Fastnet:

RTÉ Player: Catch up with your favourite TV programmes online

Go the coasties - and others who helped out!


----------



## smackdaddy

This is some really good stuff. An interview of the swimmer and a video of his most difficult rescue ever...:

Rescue Swimmers Have Special Strengths


----------



## TakeFive

Soldier dies on rescue mission in Nunavut

Inuit hunter weeps recalling tragic rescue from icy waters


----------



## smackdaddy

Oh man, this sucks. Another casualty of the NARC storm:

Event Information for World Cruising Club: Caribbean 1500

I'm getting confused here...the NARC and Carib 1500 are different races right?


----------



## smackdaddy

Lifesling anyone?

This happened in Kemah/Galveston Bay - the area where I race. Not much freeboard on that boat - and they still couldn't bring her on board. Makes you wonder...


----------



## smackdaddy

A pretty bad scene in the Clipper race. Pooped by a big wave in 40-60 knots - 4 hurt pretty seriously:

Coast Guard nears damaged race yacht for rescue, weather interferes - CNN.com


----------



## smackdaddy

Some sad news in the Farallones race. 1 dead and 4 missing...

U.S. News - One dead, four missing after California yacht race accident


----------



## smackdaddy

SailorTJK and Sailaway21? Is this you guys???

U.S. News - Boater rescued from Lake Michigan -- 2nd time in year



> A sailor and a friend were rescued from the waters of Lake Michigan Wednesday afternoon near Chicago, nearly a year after after the same sailor was plucked unconscious from the water when the same boat overturned.


----------



## peterchech

smackdaddy said:


> SailorTJK and Sailaway21? Is this you guys???
> 
> U.S. News - Boater rescued from Lake Michigan -- 2nd time in year


My guess is that there was insufficient flotation in a chop to right the boat.

Add lots of positive flotation and practice regularly, or else get a keelboat 

I've been in this situation, could have died, that water is COOOOOOLD, a wetsuit only works for a little while.


----------



## smackdaddy

This looks like it will be a good doc:


----------



## anthemj24

smackdaddy said:


> This looks like it will be a good doc:


"hey, your boat scratched my anchor"


----------



## dmcMaine

smackdaddy said:


> This looks like it will be a good doc:


Thankfully nobody was injured. Judging from the googles, the real drama was the legal fight afterward.


----------



## therapy23

Are we going to get to see it or not?


----------



## smackdaddy

Okay - this is funny...






PS - This looks like the same boat that was towed by the CG in that other thread?


----------



## centaursailor

Never say die, well not this time
Safe sailing.


----------



## therapy23

smackdaddy said:


> Okay - this is funny...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> PS - This looks like the same boat that was towed by the CG in that other thread?


Yikajeebers dudes.

As I watched the first few I was thinking "timing". Yep.


----------



## smackdaddy

Sailboats are definitely the best saiors around.






Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy


----------



## CalebD

I saw an earlier report of this SmackD. 
Pretty humorous on some levels. Boats with nearly full keels like that ketch can pretty much steer themselves and hold a course. What course? The course they choose. It is a good thing the owner depowered the main so the boat could mostly sail by jib n' jigger.

Are you going to help that guy find his ketch or claim it for salvage???


----------



## smackdaddy

Me sail a _ketch_? Ahmmm....no. That's for guys like Cam.

Except, of course, in an ocean race...where we _race_ a ketch and win virtually every time. Why? Because they sail themselves obviously. So we can just sit back, fish, drink rum, then pick up the pickle dish. What's not to like?

And we don't even need any "sponsors"!


----------



## smackdaddy

What a dolt.

Russell Crowe rescued in Huntington Bay: Coast Guard


----------



## smackdaddy

Dude, it's a simple rule...

_Never _look back when you're driving...


----------



## TakeFive

smackdaddy said:


> Dude, it's a simple rule...
> 
> _Never _look back when you're driving...
> 
> Chinese Gybe - YouTube


That boom missed whacking the MOB's head by about two feet. It's good he let go when he did -a split second later and his skull would have been shattered.

Note that there wasn't a single PFD on any of these guys. That dude is lucky to be alive.


----------



## TakeFive

I just replayed the video several times, stopping the action at different points, trying to figure out what happened, so I can learn from his mistakes. I'm not sure looking backwards was a factor. So he's doing wing and wing with an asym(?) and maybe gets a gust from port that sidewinds the asym and heels the boat way over. At that point it looked like he turned the wheel hard starboard trying to keep the wind at his back, but the boat refused to respond (possibly because heel pulled the rudder too far out of the water?)

Is that accurate, or do you guys see a different scenario?

So aside from having too much sail area up for the conditions (like virtually all racers), what else might he have done to prevent it? Would there have been some other maneuver he could have done? Should he have seen the wind change coming by reading the water?


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## jasenj1

I'm a newbie, but have been crewing on a J30 for a few years. It looks to me like they took a big puff from port side. Rather than steer to starboard - thus putting the new wind behind them - he steered to port (or at least held the wheel), which kept the wind coming from port and tipped the boat. Trying to keep the boat from rolling to starboard, he turned again to port - making the problem worse. i.e. He turned "into/against" the wind rather than with it (putting it aft).

If you watch in the background just as the lifering is thrown, there's another boat with a spinnaker looking kinda rough. Wind may have been gusty in general or suddenly taken a turn for the worse.

It's amazing that at the beginning, everyone on board is just kicking back, having a drink and enjoying the race. 5 seconds later and it's a near death experience!

And, yeah, the MOB missed death by about a foot.


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## TakeFive

jasenj1 said:


> ...Rather than steer to starboard - thus putting the new wind behind them - he steered to port (or at least held the wheel), which kept the wind coming from port and tipped the boat. Trying to keep the boat from rolling to starboard, he turned again to port - making the problem worse. i.e. He turned "into/against" the wind rather than with it (putting it aft)...


Well, looking at the slow motion part, it looks like he did steer to starboard at 0:49, though not enough in retrospect. Then at 1:00, as the boat heels severely, he moves all the way to the port gunwale to avoid being tossed, and unfortunately pulls the wheel to port with him. IMO at this point he's not thinking about steering, he's thinking about staying on the boat. But that movement of the wheel back to port is probably what caused the jibe, assuming he still had rudder control at that point.


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## Barquito

I don't know what the polars are for that boat, but, might it have been faster (and SAFER) to head up to a deep reach rather than bomb DDW? If not then how about a preventer, and some life jackets... and teathers.

looks like they did a good MOB. One crew pointed, one crew threw life sling.


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## smackdaddy

Came across this story of a bad day on a boat - complete with lessons learned. Good stuff.

Passagemaking: My first offshore sailing attempt, a near fatal tragedy, and lessons learned (part 1/3).


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## mikel1

Good stuff indeed . . .thanks for that.


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## lavidanueva

This one was tragic, yacht was never found, or even an oil slick...the sinking of beserk. I would post a pic or link but in sailnet's esteemed view, we newbies are not allowed such luxuries.


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## lavidanueva

regarding the gybe, I go back to the old saying, too much money, not enough sense.


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## smackdaddy

lavidanueva said:


> This one was tragic, yacht was never found, or even an oil slick...the sinking of beserk. I would post a pic or link but in sailnet's esteemed view, we newbies are not allowed such luxuries.


Eech. Yeah I remember that one. I came across the Berserkers a few years before the disappearance. Seriously fun and adventurous dudes. True bummer.


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## lavidanueva

How did you meet them? Who do you remember the most?


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## zz4gta

The Chinese Gybe video in post 131 is caused by one thing. The driver. That's it. There's a lot wrong with the video. 

There's some breeze on. WTF is the guy on the boom going to do? Hold back 800sf of sail? I don't think so, get down. 
The guy using the mainsheet as an anchor point? Lucky he didn't break his arm. 
Driver is obviously too deep. 170* is where you want it. No boat goes DDW very fast. He messed up driving, had 4 people get dunked one completely off the boat. Hope he bought that crew dinner and a few drinks. As said above, 12" difference would've killed him. 
PFD's would've been nice, but I'm as guilty as the next guy, they get in the way and suck on a hot race day when your sweating like a whore in church. But they do safe lives. 
Tether and jacklines? lol that ain't going to happen on any inshore race. No one is going to clip in, then unclip to do their job, then clip back in. You can't do basic race maneuvers tethered in during a buoy race. 

Finally, it wasn't blowin that hard but the driver was way too deep, boat rolls when you do that and the sailplan is harder to manage. Take your eye off the ball, and you can break bits, like people. In heavy air, beware of the boom, vang, mainsheet, and traveler.


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## Ajax_MD

Barquito said:


> I don't know what the polars are for that boat, but, might it have been faster (and SAFER) to head up to a deep reach rather than bomb DDW? If not then how about a preventer, and some life jackets... and teathers.
> 
> looks like they did a good MOB. One crew pointed, one crew threw life sling.


This and what ZZgta says. Assyms are made for reaching, not DDW.


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## smackdaddy

Okay - here's the deal...when you've screwed up so incredibly bad that your boat is on a beach full of 15 year old dudesters...don't stand around and wait for the yellow blanket of shame. You're not a victim of the sea that needs first aid. You're just a bonehead.


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## TQA

Here is a saga of a fellow Brit on a cat on a circumnavigation. He puts it on the reef at Suva on the 27th of May 2011. 'Sarf & West mate, Sarf & West' - Pete Bernfeld

The ensuing trials and tribulations are worth a read.

His goal.



> 'Sarf & West mate, Sarf & West'


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## gamayun

Amazing story, a most incredible sailor:

Rescue At Sea: A personal account of overcoming obstacles >> Scuttlebutt Sailing News


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## smackdaddy

This was right in my sailing backyard:






A shredded boat with a pfd attached and dragging behind it. Not an encouraging sight 100 miles off-shore.

Turns out the couple had been rescued a few weeks previously. The _S/V Escape Pod_ is probably still bobbing around out there.


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## smackdaddy

Here's another good one:






Yacht abandoned at sea washes up after months adrift | Coffs Coast Advocate


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## smackdaddy

Always a good idea to keep the loved ones in the loop. A $250K oopsie? These guys were in my backyard.


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## smackdaddy

The yacht _Tao_ went down under 200 miles from where _Cheeki Rafiki_ capsized...






Morganscloud has another great write-up here...

Loss of Yacht ?Tao?


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## smackdaddy

45' Malo has broken rudder and begins to sink. Crew pulled off by ship:

Sail-World.com : Sailing crew's battle to save yacht lost in the Indian Ocean


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## smackdaddy

Another rudder failure in the SHTP:

Man in San Francisco to Hawaii sailboat race rescued after boat's rudder breaks off - San Jose Mercury News


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## smackdaddy

Okay - I really like this Bulgarian dude:

Man Rescued Trying To Sail To US In £300 Dinghy



> Man Rescued Trying To Sail To US In £300 Dinghy
> 
> The man was not wearing a life jacket, his boat had no lights and his only navigational aid was a street map of Southampton.


You go boy!


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## Tenoch

Ha, of course I just saw this post, after I posted a link to the same story as a new thread....I should have looked harder I guess. Regardless, he was truly a maniac.


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## smackdaddy

Wow:


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## WGEwald

> Mary Celeste ...was a British merchant brigantine. The ship is famous for having been discovered on 5 December 1872 in the Atlantic Ocean, unmanned and apparently abandoned (the one lifeboat was missing, along with its crew of eight and two passengers), although the weather was fine and her crew were experienced and capable seamen.


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## smackdaddy

Anyone know more about this one?


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## alctel

Amazing work by the rescue fishing vessel there


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## JonEisberg

smackdaddy said:


> Anyone know more about this one?


TAO was a French Alliage 42, an aluminum centerboarder... Apparently capsized and _remained inverted for 5 minutes_, before eventually righting itself, but by which time she was half-filled with water...

This from John Harries on MORGAN'S CLOUD...

https://www.morganscloud.com/2014/05/22/loss-of-yacht-tao/


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## mbianka

smackdaddy said:


> Wow:
> 
> Hurricane Wilma Adventure - YouTube


Wow is right! A good reminder to not even think about riding out a hurricane on board if you have other options.


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## hannah2

JonEisberg said:


> TAO was a French Alliage 42, an aluminum centerboarder... Apparently capsized and _remained inverted for 5 minutes_, before eventually righting itself, but by which time she was half-filled with water...
> 
> This from John Harries on MORGAN'S CLOUD...
> 
> https://www.morganscloud.com/2014/05/22/loss-of-yacht-tao/


I think that this is proof that any well founded boat such as the Alliage can come in harms way. Was it operator error or just stuff happens sometimes or a combination of both. The ocean is big and it can be terrifying at times. Given a crew being tired and a wrong situation can spell trouble for any sailor.

I believe a mast stepped water tight boat is your best possible way to survive an ordeal like this. Once I believed that a keel stepped boat was safer but boats like the Alliage and other aluminum center boarders are the best way to go. Reason being is that a keel stepped boat on a knock down could tear a hole in the cabin top and will let water in. I know that was not Tao's problem as water seems to have come in through the companion way at least that is the assumption.

Our story of being whacked off of Panama is in that link to Morgans Cloud. Though not 30 foot waves we were hit very hard and survived splendidly. Our boat a Boreal 44 is a bit more advanced than the Alliage in that we do have a keel with about ten thousand pounds of lead in it. She draws one meter with center board up. We feel confident that had we been in our previous boat a well founded Mason 44 we would have be knocked down and had some pretty serious damage. What I took out of the Tao story and many other stories posted in this thread is any boat can sink no matter how good they are made. We have great confidence in our boat but I will never believe that for a moment we are always safe no matter how big the waves maybe.

Cheers


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## smackdaddy

Holy crap! This one is sketchy...



> Motor vessel Tor Viking rescues a distressed mariner from his disabled 30-foot sailboat approximately 400 miles south of Cold Bay, Alaska, Oct. 20, 2015. The mariner alerted the U.S. Coast Guard with his emergency position indicating radio beacon. U.S. Coast Guard video.


https://www.dvidshub.net/video/embed/429231

What kind of boat is that? It almost looks like an Open 40.


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## JonEisberg

smackdaddy said:


> Holy crap! This one is sketchy...
> 
> https://www.dvidshub.net/video/embed/429231
> 
> What kind of boat is that? It almost looks like an Open 40.


Wow, that's unbelievable...

Hard to tell for certain, but to my eye it looks like a _'Not What I'd Care to Sail 400 Miles South of Kodiak Island in Late October"_ kind of boat...

;-)


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## mbianka

smackdaddy said:


> Holy crap! This one is sketchy...
> 
> https://www.dvidshub.net/video/embed/429231
> 
> What kind of boat is that? It almost looks like an Open 40.


Ouch. Personally I would have thought stepping off the sail boat on that big wide open transom would have been a better place to jump off the boat. Crew could have pulled the sailboat in real close too. Guy made a lucky leap.


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## ottos

Rough weekend off Atlantic City...

coast-guard-rescues-four-people-cat-off-atlantic-cape-may


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## mbianka

ottos said:


> Rough weekend off Atlantic City...
> 
> coast-guard-rescues-four-people-cat-off-atlantic-cape-may


The cat commented back on land "I never signed up for this!"


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## ottos

Props to that captain for being able to re-board his boat:

_ The waves were so intense that at one point, the sailboat's mast touched the water. The man was thrown overboard, but climbed back on his boat, the Coast Guard said._

:cut_out_animated_em


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## Minnesail

“Usually when we tow a boat, we prefer to have someone on the boat that’s being towed — it’s a safer evolution that way,” Ameen said Monday. “Plus we didn’t want the cat to be alone in there.”


Can't leave the cat alone! Major props to the Coast Guard.


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## MedSailor

smackdaddy said:


> Holy crap! This one is sketchy...
> 
> https://www.dvidshub.net/video/embed/429231
> 
> What kind of boat is that? It almost looks like an Open 40.


Some crappy production boat I'm sure. Hunter 40 perhaps?

:devil


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## MedSailor

All joking aside that rescue looks HAIRY! From my armchair 2000 miles away the boat looks like it is floating. I'd rather stay with the boat than risk a transfer like that!

Makes me wonder id a handful of Valium tablets is essential storm gear. Deploy the drag device, pop some happy pills and do NOT call for rescue!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I537 using Tapatalk


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## MarcStAug

I can't believe I missed this thread until now.... great content. Bought a couple of books from Amazon because of it too!


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## smackdaddy

Just saw where Jon mentioned this in another thread. Wow...

http://www.sail-world.com/Hong-Kong-yacht-missing-on-South-China-Sea-delivery/139011


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## aloof

smackdaddy said:


> Just saw where Jon mentioned this in another thread. Wow...
> 
> Sail World - Hong Kong yacht missing on South China Sea delivery


The lesson for us all from this one: Do not be stupid. Sailing straight into the path of any tropical storm of any strength went out of style back when they started tracking them...fifty years ago or more.


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## smackdaddy

Okay - this is freakin' hilarious. SmacklingTheEldest found this one - so credit where it's due:


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## mbianka

smackdaddy said:


> Okay - this is freakin' hilarious. SmacklingTheEldest found this one - so credit where it's due:


Looks like they might go back for him instead of finishing the race. Amateurs!


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## smackdaddy

"Oi - Elliot...you stand there and stay out of the way."

Flick.


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## smackdaddy

The RNLI kinda rocks:






Anybody know what 33'er that is?


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## smackdaddy

Is this one a Bene?


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## smackdaddy

And here's a nice traditional boat with the chainplates completely ripped out:


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## smackdaddy

Zowie...

http://www.ybw.com/news-from-yachti...c-footage-captures-rnli-sailboat-rescue-15971


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## hannah2

smackdaddy said:


> And here's a nice traditional boat with the chainplates completely ripped out:


Hey Smack, Ya but are you going or is anyone going to say that boat was in good condition. Looks to me they never did one damn thing to her. The decks are rotten. Chain plates don't pull out like that unless the boat is the pits. People are crazy.


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## smackdaddy

hannah2 said:


> Hey Smack, Ya but are you going or is anyone going to say that boat was in good condition. Looks to me they never did one damn thing to her. The decks are rotten. Chain plates don't pull out like that unless the boat is the pits. People are crazy.


No, I certainly wouldn't go that far. It's a lot like REBEL HEART was in that regard.


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## smackdaddy

Looks like a steel Van de Stadt lost a keel. Two onboard lost...


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/715947049745850373


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## chris95040

hannah2 said:


> Hey Smack, Ya but are you going or is anyone going to say that boat was in good condition. Looks to me they never did one damn thing to her. The decks are rotten. Chain plates don't pull out like that unless the boat is the pits. People are crazy.


I'm not sure what you saw on that boat that led you to this conclusion. The decks don't look necessarily rotten to me. They look wet.

Like you, I /hope/ there were obvious visual signs that the chainplate assembly was toast, but theres nothing in this video that proves that.


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## mikel1

Looked like big holes to me thru the decks at likely chain plate locations . . . . as if they pulled right up and out, look closely I could be wrong . . . .


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## chris95040

mikel1 said:


> Looked like big holes to me thru the decks at likely chain plate locations . . . . as if they pulled right up and out, look closely I could be wrong . . . .


Yep, thats what happens when a whole chainplate assembly is ripped through a deck. 

What I was questioning was Hannah's idea that the boat was in obvious disrepair, and that therefore the chainplates failing is not a surprise.

Using the chainplate failure as the evidence of obvious disrepair is 'circular reasoning'...

Clearly the boat had a problem. Was that problem obvious and apparent prior to the failure? I hope so, and I'd assume so, but this *video* does not contain evidence to support that.


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## jackdaw

chris95040 said:


> Using the chainplate failure as the evidence of obvious disrepair is 'circular reasoning'...


Can't get away from that. Its the coin of the realm for the 'internet experts'.


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## smackdaddy

I suppose this qualifies...


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## mbianka

smackdaddy said:


> I suppose this qualifies...


Looks like he would fit right in with the 5 month cruise gals.


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## marv55

No sails on this one, but I bet it could be also really dangerous to try to cruise the see on it. When you have dangerouse situation thanks to yourself it is bad. If you are put in danger by ignorant greedy company, it is worst.


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## smackdaddy

Godspeed John...



> Volvo Ocean Race Statement
> 
> Race Control for the Volvo Ocean Race has been informed by Team Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag of a man overboard incident on Monday afternoon at approximately 13:42 UTC.
> 
> The team, along with the Marine Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), has been conducting a search and rescue operation to recover the missing crew member, John Fisher (UK), who was wearing survival equipment when he went overboard. The remaining crew are reported safe.


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## MikeOl

marv55 
I completely agree with you. It's bad to go swimming in a broken yacht. But it can be repaired and you will be sure of it. But when the manufacturer says that everything is fine with the yacht, but it is not. At such times you are very afraid for your life.


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