Who has fallen off the boat?

[skipmac]

So far (knock on wood) the only time I've fallen off a boat was when it was on the hard. Might have been better if it had been at the dock as I ended up with multiple fractures in five ribs, broken clavicle and some minor internal injuries. I was very lucky I didn't break my back or neck.

I was pulling on a stuck part, it slipped suddenly and I back rolled off the side deck to the ground about 12'. 20/20 hindsight, I should have finished the backing plates for the lifeline stanchions and put that back together before moving on to other projects.

[tuffr2]

skipmac - did that part come off? If so, good job.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by tuffr2

skipmac - did that part come off? If so, good job.

Oh yea, it came off. It was the sudden coming off that threw my balance and sent me over. Now it's back on very solidly, through-bolted and bedded never to come off again (I hope).

I was sitting on the deck and felt pretty safe but, more 20/20 hindsight, realized that when seated one has less ability to move and shift to compensate for some loss of balance. If I had been standing or even squatting I might have prevented the fall or at least been able to jump and land feet first instead of on my back.

Ever hear the old story about when you fall your whole life passes before your eyes? I didn't see my whole life but that 12' drop did take about a minute subjectively. As soon as I slipped I knew I was going over. I had plenty of time to think about how badly I had just screwed up, then wonder how much it was going to hurt when I hit, even look down to see where I was going to land, then back to cursing myself for stupidity and a few more seconds to hope I wouldn't end up dead or crippled.

Actually the fall wasn't bad at all but the sudden stop at the end was brutal.

[Delancey]

First time was as a teenager, racing Solings. Went to hike out and my hobbles broke. It was April. The water was cold.

Second time was as a adult. Leaned on a pelican hook (yes, just like the ones you have on your lifelines) and it let loose and in I went. It was October and the water was also cold! Just my luck I guess.

[tmcdonagh]

I fell overboard a few years ago while cleaning the deck while on the mooring. Alone, early morning, too embarrassed to call for help. It took me 20 minutes to get back aboard climbing up mussel laden mooring pendants. Cold, tired and bleeding, I resolved to lower the swim ladder whenever aboard alone. My tethers are short so that I cannot fall through the lifelines. Lesson learned? Leave the deck cleaning to someone else.

[Pendragon35]

I used to live in suttons Bay, MI, halfway up the Leelanau Peninsula on West Grand Traverse Bay. The town at the tip of the peninsula is Northport and it has a big beautiful bay. In the 1990's a German couple were sailing a 42' sloop out of Northport on a nice, calm summer day. They got off the boat to swim, untethered. The breeze came up; a sheet caught .She made it to the boat; he didn't and he drowned.
I sail singlehanded, tethered whenever I'm alone on board with a self-inflating PFD. I sail on the Chesapeake, mostly fairly close to shore. But I still hang on tight, and remember the words of Chef in Apocalpyse Now: "Never Get Off The Boat".

[svHyLyte]

In the late 1960's I was invited to sail on one of my college roommates father's boat on an ocean race in SoCal. As is not untypical in the late Spring, there was not all that much wind when we started so the skipper--my former colleges roommate's Dad, called for a drifter, which we set without difficulty. The next morning, at about 0200 the wind finally came up somewhat and the skipper called for a sail change to the No#1. Wearing noting but a T-Shirt, a pair of jeans, and deck shoes, I turned too to the foredeck to help pull the big drifter down. In the raising wind we had a bit of difficulty and the skipper turned the helm over to a supposedly knowledgeable guy and told him to stand fast his course while he went forward to help us with the sail. Alleged "knowledgeable guy" turned out not to know shoot from shinola and let the boat get away from him, bringing the sail through the eye of the wind which put me, previously on the windward side, to leeward with the sail half way down. Of course, the damned thing filled away and, literally, shoved me over the side of the foredeck with nothing to grab but fistfuls of slack nylon. I went backwards over the lifelines with my lower legs pinned by the sail and slammed the back of my my head against the hull (I still have the "dent"). That stunned me and I simply dropped into the water next to the boat. I came up, sputtering, holding my profoundly aching head and floated on my back (somewhat) waiting for these rectums to turn around and come back for me. They didn't. And it turned out (later I discovered) that they didn't even realize I was "off the boat" until they'd gone a mile or more setting the Number 1. Me... I just watched the masthead light disappearing into the night.

Fortunately, because the "race" had been a drifter until about 0200, the boats were bunched up somewhat and within an hour or so, another boat came by, so close that its bow wave pushed me away from the boat. I screamed bloody murder as they went by and the on-watch crew realized they had a man in the water and popped the d-ring on their MOB pole (which damn near speared me when it hit the water as they passed) and pulled their MOB strobe and horseshoe ring buoy into the sea, which I grabbed and all but climbed onto. They rounded up and came right back to me and pulled me over their transom, none too gently (but, hey, I wasn't complaining). At that point I had nothing on but my under-shorts and t-shirt as I had kicked off my shoes and taken my jeans off, tied knots in the legs, zippered up the fly and "flooshed" as much air into the legs as possible to make "water-wings" (God Bless the Boy-Scouts!) and curled up over them, clutching my knees--which in hindsight probably kept me from dying from hypothermia given how cold the damned Pacific is, even in late Spring.

Once aboard, they wrapped me in a blanket, fed me hot coffee and somewhat later loaned me some dry clothes. In those daze very few boats had radios so there was no way of notifying my former boat crew or the authorities I had been picked up. Once we made it in, however, there was a great reunion (and I, literally, bent down and kissed mother earth!).

Unfortunately, after 50+ years, I no longer remember the names of the crewman that picked me up. The name of the boat was, however, Night Wind. In an interesting twist of fate, after 9/11, when my (much) better half insisted it was time for us (after 26 years) to buy a "bigger boat" while we still had a chance, the yacht she picked out was named...'Night Wind" (we discovered when we went to inspect it). "It's Fate" she declared, and bought the boat on the spot (tough negotiator that she is!).

In closing let me say that going overboard at sea, day or night, is a heart stopping experience. And, I can assure everyone, it was a L-o-n-g damned time before I did it again and never without (perhaps excessive) safety precautions since. It will be a cold day in heck before I, any of my family, or anyone sailing with us repeats the experience.

FWIW...

[pdxsailordiver]

Lucky to be Alive
Last summer I hauled my Santana 28 up to Olympia to start a summer of cruising. I am a High School teacher and was looking forward to seven or eight weeks of cruising. I was starting out with my two kids Gwen 8 and Aaron 11, and Piggy the guinea pig. We were buddy boating.boating with Phil and Penny aboard Gallifrey, a Vancouver 25. /We left Olympia on the 1st of July and cruised up the sound, stopping along the way to spend time at Point Deception Zoo, Hartstein Isand, seattle. Blake Island Whidbey Island, and into the San Juans. While in the San Juans the auto pilot gave out so it was a lot of hand steering.. After a few day’s we headed into Anacortes to meet my wife (Cheryl) and dog (Neptune) on July 20th. When we arrived in Anacortes, I went to/www.cruisersforum.com/forums/tags/marine.html"]marine[/URL] electronic repair shop to see about auto. But they were too busy to get right to it. So, I got some advice and went back to the boat and with the help of my crew I performed surgery on auto. We found the trouble, a broken drive gear. So back to the shop we went but they were closed. We went for ice cream to plan our next move. We decided to return to the boat and await Mom. <br />
After a night of pizza and root beer and telling Mom of the great adventures and wonderful sites, we prepared to get underway. I went back two times that morning to get the parts but the shop was not open. So, we cast off lines right after Phil and Penny, who always seemed to get out before us. It was a wonderful sunny day but no wind, so we headed up Bellingham channel. The plan was to go to Sucia then into Canada to cruise the Gulf Islands and see the Buchart Gardens and Victoria. Cheryl and the kids were down below playing a game. <br />
I was in the cockpit sitting on the coaming with my feet on the cabin top, steering with a hiking stick, leaning on the lifelines, enjoying the sun. What a wonderful trip this had been and now Cheryl was onboard and things were as they should be. We were motoring along (noisy) at about five knots. I had been relaxing for about an hour when all of a sudden I heard a popping sound and the pelican hook on the gate POPPED OPEN! <br />
Needless to say I fell over backwards into the water with a death grip on the hiking stick. I could not hold on. As I hit the water the force of the boat tore it out of my hand. I went under and when I came up the boat was leaving me. I tried to grab the inflatable dingy we were towing but I missed the painter on the side as my fingers could not grasp it. The whole time I was screaming for help. <br />
Cheryl and the kids down below suddenly felt the boat make a sharp turn to port. Cheryl yelled up to ask me what was going on. When I did not reply she stuck her head up through the companionway to see what was going on. But where had Dad gone? She slowed the boat and scanned the water. She saw the open gate and panicked. Scanning the water again she spotted my red hat but did not see me and, knowing I am not a very good swimmer and was fully clothed, thought I had drowned. Then she spotted me waving and screaming. She headed for me at full throttle with both kids on deck keeping a eye on dad. <br />
From the water the sight of your boat going away from you is one I cannot describe. It seemed like forever before anyone was on deck looking for me. When Cheryl appeared on deck I knew I had a slim chance of making it as I was swallowing water and having a hard time staying up. At one point I tried to take off my pile pullover but went down and was afraid, so I swam towards the boat. <br />
Now my boat is coming at me at what seems like warp speed. “Oh my God she’s going to run me down.” <br />
Cheryl and the kids lost me as the boat got close. Now I was doing all I could to get away from the boat but not too far. On the first pass they missed me . Great, now instead of getting run over by my boat I was just back to drowning. On the second pass Cheryl parked the boat about three yards from me. I was struggling to stay up and begging them to throw me something. Aaron was holding one of the two throw cushions that were in the cockpit and Cheryl was telling him over and over to throw it, but could not take it from him, throw the other cushion or the lifesling, nor our man overboard pole. Gwen was just wide eyed in disbelief. <br />
As I was along side the boat, one of the main traveler lines was hanging over the side. I reached up and grabbed it. Tired and very cold, I asked for the lifesling which they dropped to me. Now I could go around to the stern and get back onboard. <br />
Phil and Penny, seeing our boat turn around, headed back to us. When they spotted a black object in the water they thought it was Neptune the dog. Laughing, they came back to watch us get a 90-pound lab back on board. As they got closer they saw me in the water and were laughing about me in the water to rescue the dog. When they got close they realized Neptune was onboard. <br />
When I sail the boat on the Columbia after work, I wear my life jacket. The kids do not come up on deck without a life jacket and are good about reminding each other. Phil and Penny both commented on how impressed they had been with me wearing a life jacket every day. This was the only day I did not put on a life jacket. Most times I wear a manual/automatic West Marine vest. <br />
I know how lucky I am to be alive. The one thing I kept telling myself was I could not drown in front of my kids and ruin something they both love.<br />
Tim <br />
<br />
This happened in 2000. I am not a swimmer. I can barley tread water. We had practiced MOB many times, On the Columbia river,Puget sound and lakes when we had an Aquarius 23.<br />
<br />
Tim

[MLOI]

More than once.
Slow learner I guess. Trying to get better at it given one of my Uncles went overboard in Bass Strait 5 years ago, we never found his body.

Gone through the rails a couple of times racing on a competitive 50 ft er. We were a ton or so heavier but raced the TP52s boat for boat, so needed to be quicker, which meant taking the odd chance. Never lost contact with the boat, water rushing past pushed me back on once, the crew pulled me back the othertime. Inside PPB, good crew, so wasn't too worried.

Also managed to fall off a converted 70" trawler in the Straits of Jahore. There was a platform on the back of the boat that was just perfect for standing on while recycling consumed beer into the ocean. It was protected with a light chain.
Which broke.
While I was standing there leaning against it with one hand occupied.
I grabbed the chain with my free hand, but was unable to support my 90 kilos holding with one hand to a light chain, so fell the few feet into the water.
Finished what I was doing and did my shorts up. Waved to the boat boy who was staring, somewhat puzzled at me. They came back and I climbed aboard, no big deal.

Until about 30 minutes later when I had an attack of the shakes, realising I had taken exactly the same piss, from exactly the same location, twelve hours earlier at 1am. When there was only one person on watch, half asleep in the wheelhouse, as we steamed from north of Borneo to Singapore. If the chain had broken then, it would have been 6 to 8 hours before anyone would have missed me, as no-one would have heard me yell as I fell. And instead of being a mile of land (easy swimming distance for me) in daylight, I would have been 100 NM from land in the darkness, with no other ships around, and a 12 to 16 hour wait until the boat I was on came back along the path looking for me.

On my sailing boat, my kids wear lifejackets on deck all the time, we have jacklines and tethers for use after dark or when it's bumpy, and everyone carries a PLB attached to their lifejacket.

I think I have learned now.

Mike

[JPA Cate]

Re: post#24:

Isn't it remarkable how experience informs our practice?

In my younger years, i fancied myself a powerful swimmer, then, one time off Monterey, California, about 5 miles offshore, I had an epiphany of sorts, and said to myself that I was mad if I thought I could swim 5 n. mi. to shore. It's sharky there. Scratch one illusion.

NOthing bad had happened. I did not fall overboard, but I just knew in the very heart of me, that expecting to swim 5 miles to shore to safety in the ocean--while not undoable--was probably undoable by me. True.

Ann

[MLOI]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Re: post#24:

Isn't it remarkable how experience informs our practice?

I have to confess to having been young and stupid for a very long time.
Event with a couple of relatives and more than a couple of friends having drowned (mostly diving) I was still fairly relaxed personally. (In easy conditions I think I could probably make your five miles, although the closest I have come to not making it to shore was only 100m offshore in surf in Brazil. Apparently they dont shut beaches on a whim).

Its being responsible for others that has given me new caution. Firstly looking after them, secondly not putting them through having to look for me due to laxness. What I didnt think about at all as crew or passenger, now keeps me awake at night as the skipper.

Mike

[tuffr2]

Some of those stories are scary. Like falling off the boat and it takes the crew hours to notice....or at night being alone in the ocean...yikes.

Boating and not being a swimmer...now that takes...I am not sure what. Guts or no brains...typically people that can not swim/tread water stay away from boats.

Now, I never tread water with with waves crashing into me. That might be more of a challenge than I think.

Falling from your boat while working on it on land, they call it ' On The Hard' for a reason...ouch.

Glad there are sailors that have fallen off and have lived to tell about about it.

[svHyLyte]

Originally Posted by pdxsailordiver

...
I was in the cockpit sitting on the coaming with my feet on the cabin top, steering with a hiking stick, leaning on the lifelines, enjoying the sun. .....

I had been relaxing for about an hour when all of a sudden I heard a popping sound and the pelican hook on the gate POPPED OPEN!

Needless to say I fell over backwards into the water ...

Tim

I have seen Pelican Hooks "pop open" unexpectedly more than once when life-lines were placed in tension. Accordingly, on our boat we have dispensed with the macrame pull tabs that are commonly used on the pins and have fitted the pull ring with 1/8" line, doubled and "cow hitched" to the pull ring. The tails, each about 10" long, are wrapped, in opposite directions, around the hook, over the levers, and tied with "Reefing Knots" (the same knots used on one's shoe-laces). With this, there is no "popping open" unintentionally but the ties can be easily removed and the hook released when necessary.

FWIW...

[Time2Go]

Interesting and Educational Reading For Sure
A few years ago while qualifying for RYA Coastal
It was drilled into the candidates a few absolute rules

1. Out of the Cabin PFD were mandatory
2. If alone in the cockpit, tethers mandatory
3. At night, tethers mandatory for all out of the cabin

We also did a crazy amount of MOB drills
and I'm really glad we were practicing with a giant fender
and not some unfortunate crew in the cold English Channel.
It's much harder then it appears and that was when we knew
immediately when the drill started.
Didn't take long to adopt the above three rules as Gospel
Cheers
Neil

[Suijin]

I was on an ocean race about ten years ago and was dressing down one of the younger crew members for pissing off the stern. He turned his head around, told me that he would never fall in and that I was an old fart...except it came out as "far...$*%&" as he slipped and fell in. Needless to say he's much more deferential to me now, even all these years later lol.

It very light wind and so retrieving him ended up being a non-event, but it was dusk and we were 100 miles offshore. Had we had the kite up and moving 10+ knots, the story would have been different. A couple of minutes to get two more crew members on deck and douse, then turning around and getting back, then trying to find him. It sounds easy if you know where and when someone fell in but it's not at all. It is a strong argument for the new AIS personal locator beacons.