Death by Dinghy : Risks and Best Practices

[sailingunity]

I nearly broke my foot one time. We were landing our dinghy on a beach with a little surf, not much, but when coming straight toward the beach the waves kept breaking into the back of the dinghy. So I jumped out and turned the dinghy sideways and braced it against my leg to keep it from washing up any further onto the sand. A wave picked up the dinghy and dropped it on my foot. It hurt pretty badly the whole evening but we still had a nice bonfire.

[hellosailor]

"The simple solution is to always use a "Diver Down" bouy"
Yeah. No.

Some of us used to dive regularly off a private beach, a restaurant with a nice deck and bar that welcomed patrons to use their beach before or after dining. And they got boat traffic from folks who would run small craft up on the beach, or anchor just offshore, so we learned that before surfacing, you LISTENED for any mechanical noises, like props. And then, because of kite surfers and sailboards, you also surfaced back-to-back with a buddy, so you could look all around you and submerge again if needed.

No big deal, no floats needed. We didn't WANT floats, because idiots would always drive over to see what the pretty flag was about. Diving flags are an attractive nuisance in most waters!

The one day when everything was copacetic, my buddy and I surfaced...to find a SEAPLANE descending towards us. "DOWN!" Just when you think it is safe to leave the water...

Anchored one night next to an informal (unmarked but popular) seaplane fairway. Helluva way to wake up in the morning. If you've never seen the movie "Always"...one of many good reasons to do so, the rowboat scene.

[Steadman Uhlich]

Originally Posted by sailingunity

I nearly broke my foot one time. We were landing our dinghy on a beach with a little surf, not much, but when coming straight toward the beach the waves kept breaking into the back of the dinghy. So I jumped out and turned the dinghy sideways and braced it against my leg to keep it from washing up any further onto the sand. A wave picked up the dinghy and dropped it on my foot. It hurt pretty badly the whole evening but we still had a nice bonfire.

Thanks for adding to the discussion.

Yes, the force of a wave on a dinghy can be great, enough to sweep a man off his feet, or to break bones.

When the dinghy (12' RIB = 160 pounds) and 15hp motor weigh (together with gas tank and other gear) about 300-400 pounds, it can also be a crushing weight if the human is caught below the boat when it flips over on them. And that flip can happen rapidly, in just a few seconds, too fast for most people react to get out of the boat or away from it.

[Tetepare]

Originally Posted by zeehag

THE ANSWER TO INJURIES IN AN ANCHORAGE IS FOLLOW SPEED LIMITS. while achieving planing speed you are exceeding the 5 mph limit that anchorages and moorings demand. .

Not a single anchorage, either formal or informal, in my area has a speed limit.

And, I'd hate to see that enforced in Canada or elsewhere outside USA. "WARNING 8.05672 KPH SPEED LIMIT"

[Dave22q]

I suspect most dinghy fatalities are associated with overpowered dinghies speeding on plane. Very easy to flip or be bounced out. IMO a 15 on a 10 or 11' dinghy is way too much.

[CarinaPDX]

Originally Posted by Dave22q

IMO a 15 on a 10 or 11' dinghy is way too much.

This is a misunderstanding. Small RIBs will have about the same top speed with a 6hp or a 15hp, as it is limited by the top RPM and the fixed prop pitch, not horsepower. The extra power is needed to get more weight up on a plane; once planing it takes much less power to get to top speed. One of the great advantages of a RIB is the higher speed, which extends the practical range and enables more exploring.

I have a 15hp 2-stroke Merc on my 2.6m (~8-1/2') RIB, and can just barely get 3 people (total) up on a plane in calm conditions, if they haven't eaten too many tacos. It allows me to carry a good load of full jerry jugs as well. It would be a great loss to not be able to plane with a full load.

Greg

[daletournier]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

"The simple solution is to always use a "Diver Down" bouy"
Yeah. No.

Some of us used to dive regularly off a private beach, a restaurant with a nice deck and bar that welcomed patrons to use their beach before or after dining. And they got boat traffic from folks who would run small craft up on the beach, or anchor just offshore, so we learned that before surfacing, you LISTENED for any mechanical noises, like props. And then, because of kite surfers and sailboards, you also surfaced back-to-back with a buddy, so you could look all around you and submerge again if needed.

No big deal, no floats needed. We didn't WANT floats, because idiots would always drive over to see what the pretty flag was about. Diving flags are an attractive nuisance in most waters!

The one day when everything was copacetic, my buddy and I surfaced...to find a SEAPLANE descending towards us. "DOWN!" Just when you think it is safe to leave the water...

Anchored one night next to an informal (unmarked but popular) seaplane fairway. Helluva way to wake up in the morning. If you've never seen the movie "Always"...one of many good reasons to do so, the rowboat scene.

I've actually had the seaplane thing happen as well, forgot all about it until you brought it up. I remember us all waving and he pulled back up.

[Dave22q]

Originally Posted by CarinaPDX

This is a misunderstanding. Small RIBs will have about the same top speed with a 6hp or a 15hp, as it is limited by the top RPM and the fixed prop pitch, not horsepower. The extra power is needed to get more weight up on a plane; once planing it takes much less power to get to top speed. One of the great advantages of a RIB is the higher speed, which extends the practical range and enables more exploring.

I have a 15hp 2-stroke Merc on my 2.6m (~8-1/2') RIB, and can just barely get 3 people (total) up on a plane in calm conditions, if they haven't eaten too many tacos. It allows me to carry a good load of full jerry jugs as well. It would be a great loss to not be able to plane with a full load.

Greg

No misunderstanding involved. A dinghy on plane is a lot less stable than one not on plane. It may permit higher speed but not an once more payload (actually less -extra motor weight). It may be convenient but is definitely less safe.

[CarinaPDX]

Originally Posted by Dave22q

No misunderstanding involved. A dinghy on plane is a lot less stable than one not on plane. It may permit higher speed but not an once more payload (actually less -extra motor weight). It may be convenient but is definitely less safe.

Admittedly I have a dated reference, but at the time I bought my 15hp it was a whopping 2 pounds heavier than the 6hp outboard. The payload off-plane is of course the same, for either engine. But the maximum payload to get up on a plane is very much different. Your assertion that the boat is "less stable" and "less safe" is just pure prejudice - unless operated in a dangerous manner a RIB on a plane is very safe and stable. I will admit that there is a learning curve in moving to a planing dinghy, and as in so much in life one needs to operate within their abilities, but it is not inherently unstable or unsafe. The expanded range on plane has allowed me to explore areas my old 2hp on a rigid dinghy could never reach.

I will agree that too many cruisers do operate their RIBs in an unsafe and/or inconsiderate manner. My particular issue is the lack of proper nav lights, which are required for boats able to exceed 7kn. That means bicolor and all-round lights. With LEDs that is very easy to do.

Greg

[charliehows]

Dodging the overhang - my boarding ladder is mounted on the rear transom, in a big swell the rear end of the boat can by 5-6 ft above the dinghy coming down with many tons of force. I've not been in this situation often but when it happens its downright scary. Nowadays if i find myself at this sort of risk i tie up midships and climb aboard there - much safer.

[hpeer]

Since we are discussing various types of dingys I'll chime in with a Porte-Boat.

We have a 10'er on the 33' boat with an 8hp Yamaha 2 stroke.
We have a 12'er on the 44' boat with an 8hp Yamaha 2 stroke.

I have made some modifications.
Ditched the chintzy stock oars and oar locks for the real thing, this requires reinforcing the gunnel with some mahogany or such wood.
I added nylon webbing straps to each corner of the transom and forward also. Allows me a place to tie to, sort of a soft cleat.
Filled transoms with Great Stuff to keep water out.

With real oars they row better, not great, but better. I can get by without an engine unless I need to go far. I always carry oars, I think that is a real safety concern.

Will plane with 3 mid-sized folks. The 12'er seems to do better than the 10'er. So I'm handling less weight every time I put a motor on and off.

On passages we carry the Porte-Boat on deck, not in a davit. That keeps the stern free for the wind vane.

The whole contraption, motor and all, weighs under 150lbs. That makes it easier to get on and off a beach.

Not enough experience to talk about surf.

Its NOT a great sea boat, doesn't like a lot of wind with only one aboard, easily blown off. Surprisingly stable, but I'm still working on a good way to get in and out in the water.

Ugly as sin, and unusual. Great theft presenters.

So listening to the discussion of RIB v Walker Bay, I would offer the Porte-Boat as a reasonable alternative to either.

I don't think I've ever heard a very credible negative to them. Sure they have weak spots, but what dingy doesn't.

[Chris Whitney]

Copied over at the request of the leader. We all think bad things cant happen. Well think again.

A different twist on "new isn't always better."

I was not going to post this story from shear embarrassment, but seems appropriate here. After three years with the big boat I considered myself a little salty. My old dingy engine was a little 5 hp and was always a problem, stalled a lot and never idled. After more that a few times of taking apart and being disappointed again I broke down and bought a new 9.9hp Mercury at a boat show on discount.

So as a good responsible skipper, I took it out for a test run in calm waters doing all the slow engine break-in stuff with my spouse. All went well and got back to the boat, she gets up on the big boat while I am holding the big boat with one hand and for some reason the tiller on the engine with the other. She gets safely aboard.

A bit of history is my old engine always stalled upon arrival at the big boat, so I didn't really have a shutdown procedure. On this instance the shiny new engine just purred waiting for it's next instruction. I still haven't pieced together ( just 10 days ago of this posting) what caused me to lean back and turn the throttle or why I held onto the big boat trying to hold it back, but this new shiny engine roared to life and made a hard turn to starboard away from the big boat.

In an instant I lost grip of both boats and into the water. Silly me thinking "that dingy is going to run away" and as it came around for the first time I grab it by the bow handle and off we go. The dingy at top speed stayed hard to starboard clearing the big boat to do perfect circles in the anchorage with me now dangling underneath. All this while my bride is on deck of the big boat frantically screaming with nothing she can do. In a flash my mind calculates the length of my dingy 10'-6" and how long i am 6'-2" plus the extension of my arm pondering the length of safety between my extended toes and the shiny new propellor.

Fortunately, I was able to hang on for 15 circles or so. While I was having my ride other boats came and tried to stop the dingy by ramming.. grabbing and generally trying anything to stop this before things could go terrible wrong.

Just for the record, as you have already guessed, I did survive the experience. While under the bow I was able to tug one side to the other causing the engine to suck some air out of the fuel tank and kill the engine. The engine was so new I hand not even bought fuel for it yet, I was running out the test gas that came with the free fuel tank. Thankfully there wasn't much in it, allowing the gulp of air.

Now I am sure most of you by now are screaming "where was your lanyard?" As I mentioned i saw myself as a little salty.... pffft.. who needs a lanyard..just out for a test run...yada yada yada. My old 5hp would not start without the clip on the lanyard in place. For some reason my new Mercury does not require this to start. But does have a fancy lanyard that works a kill switch. Now I doubt I would have had attached it to me as I didn't with the old one. Not as salty(wise) as I thought.

I have always been the pain in the arse skipper about safety including briefings about man overboard drills before departure with new people on the boat. I suspect that now I will be even more committed to safety including wearing my lanyard.

Now although my new engine is a world better than the old one, i am the same old skipper set in my ways. Even a Old Dog needs to learn new things. Happy to report still in one piece despite all my best efforts.


Captain Chris
SV Drawn to See

[SVOddity]

ALWAYS take an anchor on your dinghy... ( one that actually works ) especially if you have a shiny NEW motor.

Greg
Skipper
Dinghy Mud Crawling Expeditions INC

[Steadman Uhlich]

Originally Posted by SVOddity

ALWAYS take an anchor on your dinghy... ( one that actually works ) especially if you have a shiny NEW motor.

Greg
Skipper
Dinghy Mud Crawling Expeditions INC

And don't forget enough line (anchor rode) to reach the bottom.

[Steadman Uhlich]

To CHRIS WHITNEY,

Thank you for adding your very nicely written account of your dinghy accident.
Reading it made me think about how you must have felt while hanging on at the bow, under the dinghy, just a few inches from the motor which was running. Yikes!