Another rescue in USA-Trio

[vmattiola]

I was going to do the delivery with these guys and their intentions were Beaufort to Pensacola.

[Rustic Charm]

Originally Posted by vmattiola

I was going to do the delivery with these guys and their intentions were Beaufort to Pensacola.

Does that mean they were about 200 miles into their trip? 2 to 3 days perhaps?

[vmattiola]

This is a Condor 40 we're talking about - arguably the fastest production boat ever made. Speeds in excess of 15 knots are possible with this vessel so 300 miles into the trip could have been 20 hours in.

[paxfish]

Is this the boat in question?




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[JPA Cate]

Judging from the photo, it looks as if the worst of the storm had passed by the time the pic was taken. I do believe it was moving away by then.

So, if they departed 24 hrs. before the Condor's rescue, would the predominant wind direction at their departure would have been westerly? so favorable for the boat on a NE course?

Like Rustic Charm, I am not familiar with the East Coast US Geography and weather patterns, so a brief tutorial might help.

Ann

[Rustic Charm]

Originally Posted by vmattiola

This is a Condor 40 we're talking about - arguably the fastest production boat ever made. Speeds in excess of 15 knots are possible with this vessel so 300 miles into the trip could have been 20 hours in.

Hot diggidy damn, that boat can do more than 300 miles a day in rough water?

I want me one of them.

[Rustic Charm]

Originally Posted by paxfish

Attachment 97249

Is this the boat in question?

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What's that funny square thing sticking up in the front?

[Sand crab]

Yes Pax it's that one.

[Sand crab]

That funny thing is the centerboard. Or daggerboard but I thought they came in pairs.

[smj]

Originally Posted by Sand crab

That funny thing is the centerboard. Or daggerboard but I thought they came in pairs.

Its a daggerboard in the main hull

[smj]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Judging from the photo, it looks as if the worst of the storm had passed by the time the pic was taken. I do believe it was moving away by then.

So, if they departed 24 hrs. before the Condor's rescue, would the predominant wind direction at their departure would have been westerly? so favorable for the boat on a NE course?

Like Rustic Charm, I am not familiar with the East Coast US Geography and weather patterns, so a brief tutorial might help.

Ann

If they left on a westerly it would probably clock pretty quickly to the NW then N. Since they were about 60 miles of the coast of NC I would imagine they were either in or close to the Gulfstream. Could have been pretty rough.

[Jon Eisberg]

Originally Posted by Rustic Charm

Hot diggidy damn, that boat can do more than 300 miles a day in rough water?

I want me one of them.

Yeah, but apparently they're impossible to slow down... ;-)

I talked with Frank the owner,the problem was heavy seas,high offshore winds and the inability to slow her down under 18 knots,she was the fastest/lightest Condor ever built,she loved 18knots. I was hoping to buy her. stephen what a ride he had! no insurance

Condor 40 trimaran -Crew Rescued off US East Coast - Multihull Anarchy - Sailing Anarchy Forums

Looking at the data buoy report from Frying Pan, conditions were 30 knots/6' seas at the time they hit the Come Get Me Button... Breeze would have presumably been NW, but had been very light over the previous 24 hours, they were probably motoring most of the way after leaving Beaufort... Most striking about the weather data from the Frying Pan station, is how sharply the barometer had been diving all day, before the breeze started to build... Does anyone still carry a barometer aboard anymore, or have they gone the way of paper charts nowadays? ;-)

Why they chose to go out around Cape Fear and Frying Pan is a mystery to me... With that weather, they could have gone back in at Wrightsville, and run down the Ditch to Southport while the front came thru... Then left the Cape Fear River behind the passage of the front, and had a beautiful beam reach in much flatter seas closer inshore down towards Winyah Bay or Charleston... That area south of Frying Pan where they bailed can be a pretty nasty patch of water, even on relatively flat days, there's always considerable disturbance out there, inshore eddies spinning off the Stream meeting up with the extensive shoals off Cape Fear, and so on... Whenever in doubt, I won't mess with it and will always duck in behind Cape Fear if I'm on a boat that's ICW capable. That area out around Frying Pan is definitely one of those spots that seems to create weather conditions all its own, no way would I want to be out there at precisely the time a February frontal passage was moving through those waters...

Not to mention, the really dumb thing about going that route, is that on a straight shot from Beaufort to Charleston, it's actually slightly LONGER than ducking back inside at Wrightsville, and running down the ditch to Southport... Yet another head-scratcher, for me... ;-)

[JPA Cate]

Originally Posted by Jon Eisberg

Yeah, but apparently they're impossible to slow down... ;-)

Looking at the data buoy report from Frying Pan, conditions were 30 knots/6' seas at the time they hit the Come Get Me Button... Breeze would have presumably been NW, but had been very light over the previous 24 hours, they were probably motoring most of the way after leaving Beaufort... Most striking about the weather data from the Frying Pan station, is how sharply the barometer had been diving all day, before the breeze started to build... Does anyone still carry a barometer aboard anymore, or have they gone the way of paper charts nowadays? ;-) Yes, one electronic, one mechanical. The electronic one is more accurate, but both show a trend. One does have to look at it. ;-)

Why they chose to go out around Cape Fear and Frying Pan is a mystery to me... With that weather, they could have gone back in at Wrightsville, and run down the Ditch to Southport while the front came thru... Then left the Cape Fear River behind the passage of the front, and had a beautiful beam reach in much flatter seas closer inshore down towards Winyah Bay or Charleston... That area south of Frying Pan where they bailed can be a pretty nasty patch of water, even on relatively flat days, there's always considerable disturbance out there, inshore eddies spinning off the Stream meeting up with the extensive shoals off Cape Fear, and so on... Whenever in doubt, I won't mess with it and will always duck in behind Cape Fear if I'm on a boat that's ICW capable. That area out around Frying Pan is definitely one of those spots that seems to create weather conditions all its own, no way would I want to be out there at precisely the time a February frontal passage was moving through those waters...

Not to mention, the really dumb thing about going that route, is that on a straight shot from Beaufort to Charleston, it's actually slightly LONGER than ducking back inside at Wrightsville, and running down the ditch to Southport... Yet another head-scratcher, for me... ;-) Maybe they wanted a boost from the gulf stream? or back-eddies?

In any event, it sounds like poor timing. Possibly driven by a schedule?

[Double-Wide]

Yes, something definitely went wrong with this trip. As a former Condor owner, I can attest that the boat can withstand much more than most owners can handle. Sailing these boat at speeds in the high teens is exciting but soon becomes a situation where you have "A tiger by the tail". With temps just above freezing I can understand how the crew could have become too exhausted to continue.

I wonder if they had a drouge aboard that could have been deployed to slow the boat and allow crew to recover below deck.




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[JK n Smitty]

One report said they had a drogue out and the bridle parted. That's when they pushed the button.

Also that conditions had calmed at the time of rescue. They were surfing done wind at high teens under bare pole.


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