Catamaran Jack Line Attachment

[danielamartindm]

Hi Everyone,

On my vessel, the deck cleats to which I'd normally secure webbing jack lines are right along the gunwale, which would leave a crewman dragging in the sea if washed overboard. Even with the boat making only two knots of way, few would have the strength, I think, to pull themselves back aboard . Standing on the side decks, it seems clear that jack lines would be better situated to run along the tops of the hard cockpit and bridge deck roofs. How have other cat owners configured their jack lines, and to what points of attachment?

[Seaslug Caravan]

Yes, the chances of getting back on board such high sided vessels are very low.

I run my jacklines from the forward outboard edge of the cockpit ( so I can remain clipped on in the cockpit) to just forward of the centre line mounted anchor winch.

Makes it possible to reach the headsail tack, but impossible to go over the side when on the foredeck.

Been over once, never want to repeat.

[thinwater]

I like running them from the tramp flange (~ 4' back from the bow) and then along the edge of the hard top. This keeps them away from the edge, and puts it high during the narrow bit. It also keeps them out from under foot, but this is boat-specific.

Play with it. It depends on where you rigging runs. No single right answer. End them short of the bow, in from the edge, and along the cabin edge if practical.

I also like clipping points along the back edge of the hard top. This allows me to work down on the sugar scoops (landing fish?) and along the back rail.

[fxykty]

On my older Outremer, which has a curved low profile cabin, rounded at the front, and long front tramps, the boat came with two jacklines. The first does a half-circle around the front of the mast, anchored on the deck at the front inboard corners of the cockpit. The second jackline runs up the centreline from just in front of the mast to the front beam (4.5 m).

The first jackline is used for mast work (reefing, halyards, etc) and is by far the most used. The second jackline is used for forestay and prodder work and is not used much at all in the kind of weather when you actually need to be tethered.

The only problem with this setup is that you can't reach the bows without unclipping from the forward jackline. There are hard points to clip to, but it is a pain.

However, the twin jackline setup described by others would allow us to reach the bows, but would cross our tramps on the diagonals - certainly not convenient when jacklines are not needed.

I like having permanently mounted jacklines. If we changed to the twin jackline setup, we'd have to remove them. I don't really want to add yet another thing to my leaving berth checklist. Thoughts?

[Dave_S]

I'm looking to replace mine soon. I thought I would run a loop around the mast and under the roof of the rear deck then it is well inboard and not possible to go over with the long tether and you can clip on from the rear deck before going out.

Then I was going to run a removable tether from the mast to the bow with a stop on it to restrict how forward I could go. This would suit the short tether.

You could leave it there permanently attached at the front and clip it to a lanyard that allows it to sit on the deck then if you need it you can clip it up high on the mast.

[Nani Kai]

Originally Posted by danielamartindm

Hi Everyone,

On my vessel, the deck cleats to which I'd normally secure webbing jack lines are right along the gunwale, which would leave a crewman dragging in the sea if washed overboard.

I was just having this discussion with a cruising couple who are friends of ours. We were sharing MOB procedures and they said that in addition to having their jacklines inboard they have snap shackles on their tethers so in case they do go overboard and are being dragged under water they can un-snap. This would of course be the last resort but better to be floating astern in your PFD with your AIS activated than drowning. They also had several other tips based on their decade of cruising double handed which I hope to share soon in a post about MOB situations.

[UNCIVILIZED]

Originally Posted by Nani Kai

I was just having this discussion with a cruising couple who are friends of ours. We were sharing MOB procedures and they said that in addition to having their jacklines inboard they have snap shackles on their tethers so in case they do go overboard and are being dragged under water they can un-snap. This would of course be the last resort but better to be floating astern in your PFD with your AIS activated than drowning. They also had several other tips based on their decade of cruising double handed which I hope to share soon in a post about MOB situations.

I've done this for a couple of decades, & the contingencies to go with it are to carry a signal mirror & a laser pointer/flare in with your PFD. Plus of course, a strobe, some chem lites, & a whistle. And you can/should attach the same to your horse shoe ring & buoy, with it's drogue, etc.

The mirror & or pointer allows you to show rescuers where you are when you're all but invisible to them. Including other folks involved in the SAR ops if it comes to that. Including aircraft. And you do need to practice a bit with using them, but either one makes a huge difference in visibility.

The strobe is good at night in that it's visible for a long, long way. But it's really tough to pinpoint one exactly, due to how human depth perception works. Which is where the chem lites come in, since they're continuously on. Once, that is, folks have your basic location nailed down via your other "I'm over here" tools (above). Then the chem lites allow them to better fix your exact position. Including for pickup.

They don't replace a flashlight, which is something I always carry along with my rigging knife, & my marlinspike/fid (usually on my PFD, with my primary knife in my pocket on a lanyard). But every little bit helps. Plus there are no batteries to expire or go bad on chem lites, they're cheap to replace, & you can tie several of the smaller ones (about 4" long) to your PFD inside of it's cover easily.

My strobe's generally on my harness, not my PFD, as much of the time during the day it takes a siesta (isn't worn). But the other bits are always with me, as they easily fit in with any PFD.


EDIT: I carry several chem lites, so that I have a backup or two in case one's a dud. And were I ever in the water for ages, & the first one gets dim, then I'd snap the 2nd one & so on.