Dock line management when leaving dock

[AuChante]

Originally Posted by TrentePieds

AuChante said: "I thought the same thing. I guess cadets have a different experience than the lowly enlisted."

Indeed, the Navy League Cadet experience is nothing like that of "nossers" in the RN or even the RCN. RCNL cadets are between 10 and 12 years old :-)!

My reference was not particularly to the particular seaman's skills taught but rather to the manner in which you teach ANY subject to innocents. Rather like teaching puppy dogs, actually: very gently, very kindly, very firmly, and with unceasing repetition of very simple actions.

MyBeloved loves being in the boat, but she is terrified of the prospect of skippering. Not surprising when you've never set foot in a boat till you are five-and-sixty :-) But no problem! I recognized that the first time we went out, and I adapted my style to accommodate her. As you know, there is no trick to conning a 30-footer, but unless you choose to single-hand a boat with a bunch of passengers aboard, it requires that the crewmembers are capable of executing EVERY command given promptly and proficiently. And a green crewmember cannot do that unless s/he has been taught. Gently, firmly and by constant repetition. The problem for a green skipper is, of course, that because he doesn't know with unshakable certainty what commands to give, he cannot do such teaching :-)

The effect of proper teaching is to create an iLLUSION that the greenhorn is "in charge".

And now, for you Au Chante, I invite you to study carefully - not just look at it, but study carefully - this clip:

This man is executing a maneuver we ALL must be able to execute: What I call the "pirouette": He is doing it in 30 TON boat - not a mere 30-footer - with a one-lung semidiesel that stands 6 foot tall and has a reversible pitch propeller instead of the deeky little transmission we have. That calls for perfect timing and not a little guts :-)!

In TP, a 5-tonner with a right-hand prop, just like your boat, I do it every time I come into my slip, and often elsewhere. I recommend that you practise it assiduously. It's wonderful for building confidence :-)!

Cheers

TP

TP

Very nice. He makes it look simple... and no rudder changes throughout the whole ordeal. It looks like the rudder is kept on a starboard turn the entire time. So he moves forward, turning right (clockwise), then he shifts to reverse and prop walk pushes the stern to port (still clockwise).

[FrankC_OR]

I keep my lines on the boat. My slip has little current, so I can generally untie all lines before departing, save for a spring line (forward or midship breast), to rout it back to the boat. The other lines are coiled and placed in the lazarette. I might need them later to dock elsewhere or for an emergency, but mainly because I don't leave my stuff unattended out in the open.