When do you put out the Drogue?

[arsenelupiga]

Originally Posted by Snowpetrel

20mm nylon will have much less stretch than our 11mm climbing rope had, and 125 meters is lots more than our 60 odd meters, so it would probably work ok, especially if you use plenty of chain to stop it popping out of the water.

ok, thanks for advice. Hope my first storm will not be that bad and will hopefully be able to try different things and improve technique.

this guy in cat in southern ocean keeps length bit more than 1/2 wave length

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQ-svmgOxqw

When boat on top of the wave, wrap appears to be on surface and not stopping boat when is most critical not to stop. Why would 2 wavelengths make it any better ?

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by arsenelupiga

ok, thanks for advice. Hope my first storm will not be that bad and will hopefully be able to try different things and improve technique.

this guy in cat in southern ocean keeps length bit more than 1/2 wave length

When boat on top of the wave, wrap appears to be on surface and not stopping boat when is most critical not to stop. Why would 2 wavelengths make it any better ?

I think if you want a better idea of crest to crest lengths look at some of the films taken from rescue helicopters etc as one gets a false impression from the deck of a boat running before.. for example the rescues near the Azores when five or six boats got in serious trouble.
I've never used a drogue.. my storm techniques are passive so do not get the 'stretched' impression.. I'm either hove to or on one or two occasions laying ahull.. its amazing how that gap seems to close up..

[Schooner Chandlery]

Snowpetrel thanks for the chart.

Since my own sailing in heavy wx has been with force 9 sustained we've never even struck all sail and ran with bare poles. Closest to that was running with unreefed staysail only so that's about 12% of full sail area. Some were multi day gales but had periods with winds dropping into the 30's. Loads of force 8 into force 9, a few sustained force9 but no force 10 storms thank goodness.

All the heavy wx experience has been on multi day passages within 200 nm of the west coast (between AK and MX) there's frequently seemingly been a ocean floor component steepening up the period and frequently we experience mixed seas that go on for days defying all the logic of sustained winds giving seas from a single direction. The mature wave trains crossing the pacific from the west or northwest carrying on from a eastern n pacific storm 500 nm away or from a western system 2k+nm away , well they mix with closer or immediate storm system waves and net nasty or at least challenging mixed sea conditions. What I'm getting at is we have never experienced the long wave trains w/o another confounding component.

We have aways run with (what I learn here is the Dumas method of ) 15deg or sometimes a bit more off the gale wind direction. That works for us. Aboard our 30T boat we do carry a range of warp trailing capacity. We have never trailed a thing. Most of what we carry are for other purpose aboard like spare running rigging, kedge line etc. Everything from several old 150'-200' lengths of former running rigging to the new stuff including 200' 10mm static climbing rope, 400' 5/8" VLS polyester braid, 600' 1/2" polyester 3 strand, 600' 7/8" polytron (our stern shore tie that would have to be used dragging an anchor since it floats...).

Having chatted with 3 different former owners of our boat who all 3 have sailed her through a full on f10 storm (2 in the north pacific and one sailed through a f11 violent winter storm in the North Atlantic that sank multiple other ships and yachts) as well as gales, we all have had the same experience on this boat which is that it is best to run with the storm not encumbered by warps or drogues if crew or AP are up to it.


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum