Harbor Maneuvers

[Eleven]

The only thing he could be sure of was not meeting someone coming out!
Everything else was uncertain.
The boat looks to be one of those modern drop keel jobs, maybe water ballasted too. It was certainly getting up on the hull as it rode in, and had good rudder authority. I was surprised not to see it broaching then head on into that pier head.

[swagman]

The confidence with which the skipper made the entry makes me think it was not a first time for him, and despite the OP saying the skipper was the only experienced sailor I was encouraged so see his crew moving around with equal confidence.

Overall the impression to me was they knew exactly what they were doing and carried it off well.

It's easy to be critical from an armchair and I am sure we've all made decisions which with afterthought might have been thew wrong side of risky - but he got away with it this time and one cannot argue that he knew how to handle his boat.

JOHN

[Dockhead]

It seems crazy to me that he had a guy on the foredeck during that incredible ride through the surf. I can't think of any sane reason to risk the life of that crew in that way and that makes me doubt the overall seamanship of the maneuver.

"Gethomeitis" after 26 hours at sea? This same disease killed much of the Polish political leadership in a plane crash near Smolensk in April.

I think it's hard to judge sea state from a video or a photo. I went out to sea in very rough conditions with breaking seas at a narrow harbor entrance in August. The conditions looked something like that video. I don't think it was unseamanlike because I was quite sure how the boat would handle it. The sea was so rough that my crew was not able to go forward to tie down the anchor after we got out of the harbor. The bow of the boat was underwater in the troughs (despite 2 meters of freeboard at the bow).

Coming out of the harbor was a bit of a roller coaster ride BUT -- in total control and it was not at all scary. Contrary to what most of the people thought who gathered on the breakwater expecting, I guess, to watch us get shipwrecked.

After successfully getting out of the harbor, we had a great day's sail downwind in a F8 surfing on the big waves, and knocked back 50+ miles before lunch time to tie up in the pleasant shelter of Poole Harbor. We needed to get out of that place despite the storm because we were tied up to the fishing quay against a wall, which required constant tending of the fenders to keep us from getting bashed against the wall. Two sleepless nights of that were all we could handle.

Getting out is a far cry from getting in, however. I can't really judge whether or not the maneuver in the Youtube video was really so reckless, although, again, the fact of that crew standing on the foredeck does give me some doubts.

[motorbaad]

The follwing was reported:

The boat was chartered in g`Dynia in Poland and had a crew of 9 poles. Only one of these knew how to sail. They had been underway for 25 hours. The wind was blowing 22 metres per second, as they entered the harbour.
I guess that the captain was quite tired after the voyage and took quite a chance getting in. They were lucky to get away with it safely.

Michael

[gettinthere]

9 poles?

Lets see; a mast, a spinnaker pole, a whisker pole, a boom.

5 spares?

[boatman61]

LMAO..... ROTFLMAO.....
One guy posts a video of a race which is a catalogue of mistakes.... the skipper and crew gets panned...
Another Skipper makes an immaculate entry into a small harbour in difficult conditions also gets a panning....
What does it take to get PRAISE on this forum....

[gettinthere]

Originally Posted by boatman61

What does it take to get PRAISE on this forum....

Deposit money to my paypal account & I'll praise you till the cows come home; maybe even beyond that! Wanna be my best friend?

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by gettinthere

Deposit money to my paypal account & I'll praise you till the cows come home; maybe even beyond that! Wanna be my best friend?

Praise is like sex.... I've never had to pay for it...

[Blue Stocking]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Praise is like sex.... I've never had to pay for it...

I heaped praise on the 84 yr old raft guy

[Ti' Punch]

Whether it was genius or insanity, that has to be way up there on this guy's pucker factor. I can't imagine the sense of relief he must have experienced when that was all over. Of course, maybe he wasn't scared at all until he watched it on YouTube.

[gonesail]

he got lucky that's all ..

[Connemara]

Mods mite want to combine the two threads on this issue.

Connemara

[Blue Stocking]

Originally Posted by gonesail

he got lucky that's all ..

---or he has skills that many on this forum don't believe they themselves have.

[Capt Phil]

Additions to this thread indicae that the skipper was tired after driving the boat for 25 hours. Lessons learned that sometimes you don't make the best decisions when tired which may have contributed to the decision to shoot the entrance. The guy on the foredeck may have been trying to secure the anchor or some other loose gear when the boat hit the surf line. I counted 5 on deck that left 4 below who were probably not doing all that well which leads me to surmise that they were seasick, perhaps had been for some time hence the skipper deciding to try the entrance in those conditions. Armchair suppositions like mine are just that, suppositions. Best we can do is watch and learn from the exciting entry and file it away in case we are faced with similar circumstances... Capt Phil

[hummingway]

I rewatched this a couple of times - fullscreen. 22 m/sec is about 50 knots I think? It looks to be blowing off the starboard beam. And they are steering so the wind and wave direction move them into position to shoot that opening. If it was all luck then they should be buying lotto tickets.

In the video it does look like they missed the breakwater by a couple of feet but that might be a flattening of perspective. It sure looks like there's local knowledge and experience in their approach.