Good stories. On the Greek Island of Amorgos with a 30
knot side wind I came about 3" away from catching my neighbors chain with my rudder. I could hear the chain slide over the tip, it was that close. If we would have caught it, I'd guess that it would have made the whole harbor gather around as we all started to get tangled up.
Some friends of mine wanted to use Palarran while I went home so I hired a local Greek
captain for two months. We sailed together for 3 or 4 days before I left so he understood the mechanical aspects of the boat. One thing I learned from him, and it was so obvious after watching him, is that nothing - zero - is left to chance. He is absolutely positive how a docking or
med moor maneuver is going to
work out. I usually hope it's going to
work - he was certain. Man would he take his time, like 15 to 20 minutes, just figuring out exactly where he would place the
anchor and how far out.