Jacklines

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by thomm225

This may be the answer I was looking for. Have a line or 2 tied to your tiller (and/or tiller autopilot in my case) hanging over your stern in such a way that you can discontinue the autopilot's control and bring the boat to weather so you can get aboard somewhat easier.

I would rather attach the pilot's 'switch-off' line semi-permanently (e.g. with a climbing carabiner to my tether) to myself (that is, to the driver) - while still in the cockpit.

Sort of like the driver BEING the fuse. No driver = no ride.

Counting on being able to pull on something once you are already overboard is IMHO one step too late.

b.

[sailorboy1]

I hope you can swim really well! By the time the boat turns so far into the wind to stall it is going be a ways away. And what if the boat is going downwind?

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Don Lucas

I hope you can swim really well! By the time the boat turns so far into the wind to stall it is going be a ways away. And what if the boat is going downwind?

In this scenario, the individual is already harnessed and hooked up to the jackline so when he falls overboard he's still relatively close by.

I was thinking after B's idea to have one line attached to the tiller autopilot and going over the top of the stern railing. One pull and the pilot comes out of it's support hole and is basically disabled. The other line is tied to the tiller and around a stern railing in such a way as to pull the tiller totally in one direction. With the sheets still locked the boat is going to end up pretty much holding postion or at least it will be going much slower than a boat continuing along on autopilot.

[Cruiser2B]

Originally Posted by thomm225

Me and another guy race periodically and we are sometimes very far apart and I have to go forward to setup for wing and wing with the boat on autopilot..................it gets you to thinking.

Stop Beating him so badly......

J/k

I have jacklines and harness. I have them set up so that i not quite at the boats edge with tether fully extended when in the foredeck and in the cockpit. At some points along the side decks I could go over the lifelines but there I have the cabintop hand holds and rigging. It may be a false sense of security but I feel safer when clipped in .

[Bash]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

I would rather attach the pilot's 'switch-off' line semi-permanently (e.g. with a climbing carabiner to my tether) to myself (that is, to the driver) - while still in the cockpit.

Sort of like the driver BEING the fuse. No driver = no ride.

Counting on being able to pull on something once you are already overboard is IMHO one step too late.

b.

fabulous idea. A concern would be for those times when the rig is balanced so perfectly that the boat won't round up for at least a mile. Maybe there's a way that the switch-off line could cause the helm to go hard over once the vessel is no longer under command?

[delmarrey]

I've boarded my boat while it was on the hard just using a line hanging over the stern. So that's all I need.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Bash

fabulous idea. A concern would be for those times when the rig is balanced so perfectly that the boat won't round up for at least a mile. Maybe there's a way that the switch-off line could cause the helm to go hard over once the vessel is no longer under command?

+1!

Yep.

Upwind, ours will sail on if left to herself.

If she is on AP, perhaps a remote would help. But I am not certain of their remoteness nor of their waterproofness.

b.

[Kettlewell]

I suspect it would be very hard to reboard if you fell over attached to the jackline and the boat was moving any speed. My hope would be to be able to get into a position where at least I wasn't drowning and I could shout for help. I think chances would be very good you would be dragged under and or smashed against the hull. Luckily, my wife wakes up if someone else yawns, so I suspect she would be up quickly, but on a black night with lots of wind and waves things could be iffy. I give a little lecture before going distances with newbies onboard that if they fall overboard they should consider themselves dead and chances are very good we won't be back to get you. Yes, I will try my hardest, but it is your responsibility and your life to stay onboard. Much more important than jacklines and lifejackets are handholds, and a jackline down the centerline of the boat, connected to the mast, can act as both.

On the blacker side of things, I have read of several people dieing because the safety harness lifeline held them under water and they drowned. Most recently that I can recall was during the recent capsize in the Macinac race up in Lake Michigan. So, the jackline/safety harness rig is not always a savior.

We should all keep in mind that the vast majority of drownings are when someone falls overboard in perfect weather on a calm day, even in the harbor, and usually from a small boat like a skiff, dinghy, or canoe.

[Cruiser2B]

Originally Posted by Kettlewell

On the blacker side of things, I have read of several people dieing because the safety harness lifeline held them under water and they drowned. Most recently that I can recall was during the recent capsize in the Macinac race up in Lake Michigan. So, the jackline/safety harness rig is not always a savior.

What about the incident with Low Speed Chase in CA? Many claim the crew would still be here had they worn harnesses. Lets face it, these are safety devices much like car seat belts, they work most of the time for most people, there will always be an exception. Odds are probably in your favor if you have one on.

[delmarrey]

Originally Posted by Cruiser2B

What about the incident with Low Speed Chase in CA? Many claim the crew would still be here had they worn harnesses. Lets face it, these are safety devices much like car seat belts, they work most of the time for most people, there will always be an exception. Odds are probably in your favor if you have one on.

If your single handing, at least, they'll find your body when the boat runs aground.

[zeehag]

Originally Posted by delmarrey

If your single handing, at least, they'll find your body when the boat runs aground.

unless your jacklines are centered on your boat and your tethers short enough to not reach over side, this quote is exactly dead on accurate. have fun out here....

[Cruiser2B]

Originally Posted by delmarrey

If your single handing, at least, they'll find your body when the boat runs aground.

Agreed, if i go over, but chances are my harness will keep me in the boat. i the event that it doesn't it will be much easier for my wife to collect the insurance money because they will have a body, Without a body hard for my wife to collect any insurance...

[sneuman]

If the question is about the utility of jacklines, I can offer a (sort of) personal experience. A buddy of mine and I were in very heavy seas and he was dousing the main as the boat went over about 80 degrees after getting slammed by a wave. The (cable) jackline strained as he hung on to the boom with both arms. Had he gone overboard in those conditions, he would have been a goner, I think.

It was the jackline that saved him.

[Cruiser2B]

Originally Posted by sneuman

It was the jackline that saved him.

You mean you didn't find him dead hanging from the boom...how can this be?

[sneuman]

Originally Posted by Cruiser2B

You mean you didn't find him dead hanging from the boom...how can this be?

Um, the jackline arrested his lateral movement. If he had not been tethered, I am quite sure he would have been flung from the boom and be in the water. Of course, I haven't tested that theory.