Prepper meets sailboat

[whgoffrn]

I'm starting to realize I never really outgrew the prepper lifestyle of stockpiling and preparing for all the emergencies that you might encounter when the machines, zombies or aliens take over lol with that said I realize I've just adapted that prepare for anything and everything mentality to boating .... therapy and medication is prob cheaper but its not as fun as watching a huge manta ray go under your boat ... I am nearing my yearly trip to islamorada and plan to push the envelope a little more this time and have expanded my arsenal with a lot of things prob not necessary rudders / brackets/sea anchor / drogue tons of stuff..... but one of my biggest fears has always been me or one or all of us going overboard WHEN the boat rounds up as it's done a time or two .... of course the objective is to make sure you don't go overboard but when I try to prepare for a problem I tend to work the problem backwards ....as in with a MOB I assume person WILL go in the water ....i just got a weems plath crew watcher 2 sensor (for both my kids) mob sensor that seems pretty well thought out ...it works similar to an anchor drag alert but also alarms when it's submerged in water and it transmits to an app on phone or tablet ...as that's my primary means of navigation which I now have water proof cases for.... it doesn't send to ais only allows GPS tracking to the device it's paired so it's for self rescue which is what I want... (I will have a plb for myself) and plan is to have 1 throwable on each side of the boat so i can chuck it out from the boat as far as possible and both tied together with floatable rope as to make missing the throwable much more difficult and of course pfds with the mob sensors and airhorn and whistle attached
What I'm still working out is a quick release for the dinghy if I happen to go over a way to release the dinghy which I intend to keep my outboard in to allow me to catch back up to the boat .... and how to ensure I don't miss it ....the best I can come up with is a floating rope with knots tied every 10feet or so behind the dinghy attached to a quick release and just hope a barracuda doesn't see the rope and hit it and release my dinghy.... any ideas?

Once I figure out what to do when in the water the rest is easy to attempt to prevent it...jack lines etc etc

[sailboatmike]

This seems a very long and very complexed way around a simple problem.

Just install jack lines and clip onto them whenever out of the cabin, simple, quick, light weight and no technology to stop working.

World sailors have been using this method for 100's of years and it proven technology.

I really think your over thinking this whole thing

[whgoffrn]

Well of course I am.... as i said I accept the reality that I prob need therapy as most preppers do.... Yeah jacklines and pfds are a given .... and don't take it as if we are constantly harnessed in out at the reef when anchored and it's 2kts of wind....... but wether that's just how I am or not I like to be overly prepared.... I'm not even sure if it's a worry so much as i like to have an answer to a problem .... I've always been that way .... and the military added to it and watching all seasons of doomsday preppers as well .... So don't think I'm stressing or worried when someone asks me how I'm going to contend with the great white shark coming back that was spotted at alligator reef...im not worried ...well mostly because I have a bang stick to kill it cause it already planned for it lol

But anywho yeah mob does happen and I think lots that find themselves out in the water with no land in sight have questioned what if .... the last squall I was in off islamorada a huge blast of wind rounded up my boat so bad it was near knock down category.... we were fine other than some soiled underwear but I know I would have had a difficult time locating my buddy had he gone over ..... the rain was torrential and waves were sizable and we were no where close to shore or any boats doing 6 and 7 kts so I do reflect back to that storm and consider what might have happened had the boat heeled 10 more degrees ..... jacklines yes I know
I guess I go about handling a challenge or problem in a different way ...simply trying to avoid the problem isn't good enough for me i like to have a good plan to deal with the problem and a separate one to avoid the problem....
So don't take it as if I'm stressing it...its just what I do and maybe one of the weird parts of sailing I enjoy

[whgoffrn]

Anyone looking into the crew watcher mob device ...well I wish I had read up on it a tiny bit more before hitting the buy it now button :-/ ...it does not give GPS signal ... it sets a GPS spot down when the alarm initially went off but only uses blue tooth for communication between phone and part you wear so there isn't going to be much range ... So it appears as though it has some positives being it will alarm much faster than a plb or ais but it definately has its limitations also

[Ixneigh]

If I needed to, I would drag a small fender on 100 feet of light poly line. Attach the other end to a sheet line, the weather jib sheet, for maximum effect.
You go in, catch the line and fender, the weight pulls the jib sheet tight. Boat becomes hove too and stops. If the boat has a tiller you can tie the line to that.
I towed my paddle board this trip. That was a nuisance in squalls. Next time I'll use a fender.
Even just your weight in the water will nearly stop the boat. This boat is not like my powerful 33 foot yawl that would pull a 12 foot dinghy, full of water, like it wasn't even back there.(sometimes I miss those days ) I suggest you try it when you have crew. Just hop off with a line. The boat will falter like a grandma tossed a big bag a bricks.
The bigger hurdle is getting back aboard.

Ix

[Russ]

If I needed to, I would drag a small fender on 100 feet of light poly line. Attach the other end to a sheet line, the weather jib sheet, for maximum effect.

Simple and effective. Brilliant!

[whgoffrn]

Or would maybe tying the rope to my sea anchor i store up in the cockpit? I have a 6' paratec that supposed to halt it to 1kt although it might rip the cleats out if the sails are still up and pulling against it.... hmmmm

[Ixneigh]

The sea anchor would stop the boat dead. But so would sheeting a sail flat. These boats and their high tech rigs require correct sail trim to operate. My yawl, much larger and heavier with a traditional rig, would still move at 4 knots no matter how you had the sails trimmed.
One could also trim the rudders on the Mac up just a tad to ensure weatherhelm. Let go the wheel, boat rounds up and stalls.
You won't rip the cleat off with that.
Ix

[Baha]

I always clip in when single-handing and/or in heavy seas or higher wind levels. I really like the idea of using a fender on a line, and trimming the rudders to induce it to round up on its own. Can you give a "for dummies" version of how to do that? The only other worry I have is when I set the autopilot and go forward to do something. Of course, my is probably going to round up anyway sooner or later because my wheel pilot does not do a good job of holding a heading.

[whgoffrn]

Yeah true ....plus I guess I also don't want to tie up the sea anchor with some kinda mob contraption I rig up...... I do like the idea of how a line tied to a fender in the water could be used to turn the boat hard over port or starboard just can't seem to wrap my head around how to do it

[sailboatmike]

I always clip in when single-handing and/or in heavy seas or higher wind levels. I really like the idea of using a fender on a line, and trimming the rudders to induce it to round up on its own. Can you give a "for dummies" version of how to do that? The only other worry I have is when I set the autopilot and go forward to do something. Of course, my is probably going to round up anyway sooner or later because my wheel pilot does not do a good job of holding a heading.

Sounds like you have a sail balance issue more than a autopilot issue, in theory the boat should best part o sail itself in a straight line with very little helm input if the sails are properly balanced. If you autopilot is having issues keeping the boat on course it will be working much harder wearing itself out and consuming bucket loads of power to constantly adjust the heading, your passage will also be markedly slower because of the rudders are constantly being adjusted causing more drag.

With the M or any boat that has a traveller it could be as simple as moving the traveller to the lee side (away from the wind) a few inches or without a traveller such as the X letting the main sheet off a bit. The clutches on auto pilots are not renown for their rugged construction and will fail sooner rather than later if they are working hard constantly.

[Baha]

Normally I would agree with you. I do get it nicely balanced quite often. The issue on the Norfolk coast of the UK is currents and wind shifts. We have quite strong currents coming from multiple directions and they tend to drive the autopilot a little crazy. You usually get about 5 minutes of good balanced sailing at a time. Once I had about 40 minutes...bliss!!!!

[Ixneigh]

I think the easiest way to induce weatherhelm in the M is to adjust the rudder stops. Or, just pull the rudders all the way down, then lift them a tad before securing the line.
For those using auto pilots you are going to want to depower the sail. Attaching the line with the fender to the mainsheet ought do to. Sheeting the main in flat will slow the boat down.
Or you could make a nice sea anchor bundle with a cord, and swap it for the fender. Pull the cord and the sea anchor chute deploys. Make the bag out of fabric with a few pieces of close cell foam. Stuff the drogue inside with the cord trailing out the back. Pull rip.cord to stop. (Just make sure you grab that cord as it goes by!)
Boat Brakes lol

Ix

[Wayne nicol]

great ideas Ix.