Offshore Sailor Needs Advice

[highseas]

Sometimes the rudder tube bcomes loose inside rudder and just spins around freely,sounds like possible scenario.Why he departed in Oct. is beyond me.Glad to hear he is safe,and maybe he will sail again one day.Something to be said for an auxuillary/self steering rudder on stern as back up.I wish I had room for self steering on my boat,but stern is already quite cluttered.Hopefully "Ray" will steer me through!

[GordMay]

As Ronnie wrote at: Pirate Attack! Which anchor is best? (Post #23)
http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...est-18838.html

Originally Posted by ronniesimpson

“... As for the people that were giving me words of caution before single-handing to Hawaii: ...
... My boat is a veteran cruising boat, and I am sure that it is up to the task of crossing oceans, even with me at the helm, alone. I know that I don't truly know what I'm up against, but I am used to identifying and solving problems as they occur, and this is the mindset that I am taking with me. Yes, I'm sure stuff will break. And i'll fix it to the best of my abilities. People always give me these hypotheticals like "what are you going to do when ...
... I am still planning to leave San Diego, solo, on Oct. 1 for Hawaii. and then head south.”

One might suppose that some of Ronnie’s certainties have been re-calibrated.
I'm glad to hear that Ronnie's well.

[Talbot]

Originally Posted by Alan Wheeler

This is where the experience makes things easier. All those little things like how to set up emergency steering, how to trawl warps to steer, how to use sails to steer, what to expect with seas, and so on and so on. Without having any of that experience, it suddenly becomes all too big and demoralising out there.
Can anyone remember a certain couple on a certain cat that made a journey around the world not knowing any of this and fortunately they made it. But mate didn't some of us get a right royal roasting by them and some others for the comments made. But this here story is exactly what many of us were trying to say. It can go horribly wrong and the difference between making it the journey or not is simply knowing the tricks.
And another reason why NZ requires a certain level of safety standard and Crew knowledge before Kiwi's are allowed to head off.

Totally agree

He is definitely older, and I hope wiser, but my sympathy really goes out to him, to get through the previous experience and then suffer this!!

Planning is such a poorly understood thing by the inexperienced, and nature sometimes makes us really suffer when giving us that level of experience.

[BlueWaterSail]

I would so like to be sympathetic in this case.

But reading this makes it very hard to be.

Originally Posted by LeeSailor

He has all video in tact and his laptop, which is wet. He called me from a sat phone aboard the ship and was grateful to have been rescued. He is now heading to China, but the capatain is attempting to re-route to Hawaii. I will keep you posted. The journey is not over, but it has taken a twist. One site said that the trip was no longer "eco" friendly, this may be true, but this is just the first leg!

-RJ
Yes, there are small obstacles to him continuing, like, no boat, but were working on that...

Sorry, but these guys are idiots. So far they've polluted the ocean with a crippled hunk of a sailboat and cost us taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars for a rescue that should never have taken place (there was no life-threatening emergency).

USCG should send them a nice fat bill for x hours of C130 operation, etc.
But wait, they're irresponsible, better bill the parents.

And yet these two morons are determined to continue on a delusional journey they obviously want to document and sell back to us as a hyped adventure.

There are some really good people on this forum, sadly all the advice fell on deaf ears.

Perhaps the mods can remove the link to the website at the start of the thread. Responsible sailors cannot possibly endorse such behavior.

BWS

[BlueWaterSail]

Oh, and I hope the captain of that cargo boat continues on to China - that way the second leg of their fantasy would also be taken care of, with less pollution.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

BWS

[bmartinsen]

I guess the old moto "be prepared" was lost, anyway I would like to add that I have a hole though my rudder near the top to tie a line through incase the rudder post fails. It could then crudely be steered by the spin. pole with blocks on both sides. Downside to this is you have to have the line ready becsause you wouldn't tie it on in 30ft sea's. Live a learn. I can think of a few books on board that might have helped.

[Fishspearit]

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, and comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat. ~Theodore Roosevelt

[Pelagic]

Ok…the guy is safe and enjoying Chinese food, so time to talk plain:

1/…The steering problem was probably caused by an amateur who didn’t know how to hand steer in the first place to get a feel for the boat by gauging weather helm. You need to learn how to balance the sails in different conditions, so as to take it easy on the steering gear.

2/…My gut tell me that the shaft is not broken, but probably something like a side brace near the quadrant that he has not found or was even aware of it’s function.

3/…Even if it was irreparable, fabricating a steering oar and continuing on when conditions allowed is just basic seamanship, that anyone leaving sight of land should be able to do. It is not a big drama.

4/…35knots out there is nothing and his most dangerous situation was when the freighter scooped him up. (I am sure the captain was mumbling about….bloody amateurs!)

I hope Ronnie becomes a virtual poster child for all those You-tube wanabees who need to get away from their computers and learn how to sail properly, before puckering up at the first problem.

The Oceans are safer without them!

[GordMay]

Nobody doubts Ronnie’s courage.
But, courage is only one of the pivotal virtues, which should be tempered with another - prudence, lest it become the sin of recklessness.

"Courage is nine-tenths context. What is courageous in one setting can be foolhardy in another and even cowardly in a third." ~ Joseph Epstein

Even the bravest firefighters don't rush into a burning building before coming up with an informed (expert) exit strategy.
Courage, without prudence, is just rashness/recklessness.

[Wotname]

Originally Posted by Fishspearit

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. .................... so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat~Theodore .Roosevelt

Originally Posted by Pelagic

Ok…the guy is safe and enjoying Chinese food, so time to talk plain:

....................

I hope Ronnie becomes a virtual poster child for all those You-tube wanabees who need to get away from their computers and learn how to sail properly, before puckering up at the first problem.

The Oceans are safer without them!

More straight talking.

My opinion of Ronnie is that he is a fool to himself and a burden to others yet I applaud him for departing and I am sorry to hear of his troubles.

However that does not disguise the fact his actions were foolish and ergo, he was a fool, hopefully he will not remain one - time will tell.

Fine quotes won't alter the facts and IMO, don't really have a place among his peers who are not "cold and timid who know neither victory or defeat"

A general consensus of the five pages of this thread is that we advised him of other actions to follow, wished him well when he followed his own plan, hoped he would succeed even when adversity beset him. If his peers can't offer him deserved criticism in this situation, we are failing him.

He was a sailor (yes, a foolish one) and hopefully will become a less foolish sailor.

Pelagic's advice is good - get away from the computer......

[johnar]

This was very sad for me to read, First off i was very shocked by rude remarks when a person was in danger.

I will admit right off that i am Very new to sailing, but everyone of us had to be new at some point.

From what i read on his site he has sailed the boat a number of months around SD and from what i am told the sailing there will test anyone.

I would not have set off solo myself and Like i have ask my Friend John a number of times i want him to teach me bad weather sailing.

Myself i have been out on the river two time in the last month (very light wind) and both times had problems with the Main Sail coming down so i do understnad how things can go wrong at any time.

The time of year this man left for this trip was very bad in my eyes, that is the one part i did not understand at all.

As i said i am new but i will ask this question: His boat has a wheel and from what i understood at first his biggest worry was the self steering, why cant you just tie off the wheel and get some sleep? Most Mono's make 4 to 9 knots if you sleep one hour how far off course can you be and how hard to get back on?

one last question: this being the net is there a way to check and see if this is fake or not?


John

[johnar]

When i said tie off the wheel i should have also stated not under sail but motor

[Wotname]

Originally Posted by GordMay

Nobody doubts Ronnie’s courage.
But, courage is only one of the pivotal virtues, which should be tempered with another - prudence, lest it become the sin of recklessness.

"Courage is nine-tenths context. What is courageous in one setting can be foolhardy in another and even cowardly in a third." ~ Joseph Epstein

Even the bravest firefighters don't rush into a burning building before coming up with an informed (expert) exit strategy.
Courage, without prudence, is just rashness/recklessness.

Sorry Gord, but I do doubt Ronnie's courage. At least by what I understand of courage - that is being willing to take action and continue on in the face of fear - not sure who defined it as such.
I don't doubt his boldness or his willingness to take on big projects and I admire the fact he started out regardless of others advice.

But in my book he lacked courage when he bailed out in what we understand at this stage, was not a life threatening situation. I am not suggesting he shouldn't have bailed, rather that his actions can't be described as "courageous".

Remember the days before we where required to carry EPRIB's etc. I guess it was easier back then to carry on when we had to. We also got much more sea time in just learning to navigate.

[Wotname]

Originally Posted by johnar

This was very sad for me to read, First off i was very shocked by rude remarks when a person was in danger.

I don't think the remarks where meant to be rude, rather they are straight talking. This man Ronnie has gone to sea and he wasn't prepared for it. He has posted on a sailing forum, we are his peers, we do not serve him by being politicly correct. The sea is can be harsh place to learn about life.

Originally Posted by johnar

I will admit right off that i am Very new to sailing, but everyone of us had to be new at some point.

Very true and good friends will help you learn, especially if you listen to them. If you don't listen, only true friends will continue to help you learn, but they might be blunt and harsh until you learn or go away.

Originally Posted by johnar

From what i read on his site he has sailed the boat a number of months around SD and from what i am told the sailing there will test anyone.

Good start but more was needed.

Originally Posted by johnar

The time of year this man left for this trip was very bad in my eyes, that is the one part i did not understand at all.

Even though you are new to sailing, you knew this. Now ask Ronnie why either he didn't know this or knew it and left anyway. Just foolish IMHO given his lack of experience. A seasoned sailor setting off in marginal conditions or out of season is one thing, an inexperienced sailor is another thing.

Originally Posted by johnar

As i said i am new but i will ask this question: His boat has a wheel and from what i understood at first his biggest worry was the self steering, why cant you just tie off the wheel and get some sleep? Most Mono's make 4 to 9 knots if you sleep one hour how far off course can you be and how hard to get back on?

As I understand it, his self steering was connected to the wheel. One of his problems appears to be the rudder wasn't responding to the wheel. So neither his wheel nor his self steering could be used to steer the boat.

As you are new, let me say that there are many ways to steer a boat if the rudder isn't responding to the helmsman - most of them aren't all that easy so you should start learning them over a period of time.

Learning just to balance the boat with the sails is a good place to start, then try yawing the boat with sail input only. Practice on calm waters and average winds. Then read, ask questions and learn more.

Keep it up, and you will not be reading about yourself on CF

[Hud3]

I remember the first time that I sailed an offshore passage, on a friend's boat. I had been sailing for years, but all of it was coastal up to that trip.

We encountered conditions just about identical to what Robbie described. We also lost our steering, and had to use the emergency tiller--three days in a gale steering with a little two foot long pipe. The boat leaked. We were totally exposed to the elements in the cockpit--no dodger or bimini. It was pretty bad for three solid days. Cold, wet, exhausting, debilitating. At least I wasn't seasick. And I was sailing with three very accomplished bluewater sailors, not by myself. You can't imagine what it's like unless you've been there.

What I'm trying to say is that we shouldn't be harsh or sarcastic in our criticism of Robbie. Most of us would have done it differently, but you do have to give him credit for trying. He made a strong effort to do it right. He's no David Vann, that's for sure. He's guilty of inexperience and optimism, that's all. Do you remember when you were in your twenties? How good was your judgment then?

I'd suggest that you not post anything here that you wouldn't say about your son or brother, if they attempted the same thing. This is a pretty traumatic thing for Robbie to be going through, and Lord knows he has been through a lot in Iraq, as well.

Cut him some slack.