MOB Retrieval

[Dean Abramson]

While you're at it, why not have the same gizmo furl the jib and drop the main.

I don't want the thing to get cocky. When it's all over, I still need to be the skipper.

[Steve Laume]

O.J. I believe that having the self steering set makes going foreward safer. If not tethered I could see the logic of having the boat eventually run up. How long this would take is a whole other question. If the boat held course for a while and then rounded up and started to drift off you still might not be able to catch up to it by swimming. Heaving to would certainly be the safest but is not something I would routinely do.

The reason I believe having the vane hold a steady course is the prudent action is that I am tethered. I have no worries about the boat remaining steady and the movements predictable. If I should go over the side it will most likely be to leeward. With the boat moving through the water and the rail down it should bring a MOB close to the rail. When I look at my jack line set up, it seems like a MOB would hang up on something before drifting to the stern. With the rail down there would be some hope of climbing back aboard.

I have thought about this a great deal. The line over the stern might work but I still believe being tethered to the boat is the key. I wonder how long the line would need to be. That is if you went over the side, submerged, surfaced, tried to get your wits back about you and then swam like crazy for the line, would you make it before it was gone?

When we were kids my cousin and I used to jump off the stern of my dad's power boat while it was running at speed. Sometimes it seemed like you would just skim along. Other times your feet seemed to penetrate the water and then you would get a sort of whiplash effect. The one constant is that as soon as you looked the boat would be very far away.

I do realize the speed was vastly different but I question being able to reach a towed line. I have also read about doing this. Anybody want to jump off my boat and see if it works?

When I first read about the line and float, I immediately thought of shark teaser and live bait. That thought might be enough to enable you to swim past the boat, Steve.

[David van den Burgh]

Steve, Dean (and others),

Having responded to the call of warm summer days and refreshing freshwater, I call tell you from experience that a boat doesn't have to be moving very fast to outpace a swimmer OR to "drown" someone being towed behind.

With the boat moving at a couple of knots (maybe), I could keep up in a fairly strenuous crawl. Even at that slow speed, the transition between swimming and grabbing the deployed swim ladder was critical - a little off on the timing, and it was back to a sprint to catch up to the ladder. And that was in a bathing suit; there's no way I could have done it in shirt and pants.

On being towed, even in a bathing suit there was a lot of drag and water in the face. I could pull myself hand-over-hand to get to the stern, but once there I didn't have enough left to pull myself up the rope and to the taffrail (we don't have a stern ladder). If there were a stern ladder, it would be necessary to use a lot of upper-body strength to pull yourself high enough to get your feet on the ladder. I think it would be really tough to get your feet on the ladder first.

Certainly a stern ladder deployable from the water is better than nothing, but it'd still be tough. Perhaps a dose of adrenaline would make the process easier?

[Dean Abramson]

Anybody want to jump off my boat and see if it works?

No, but if you do it and report back, we will all admire you.

[WaywardWind]

I once knew a lifer Marine who when he was in his early 30's, he and several other lifer Marines also in their early 30's tested in the water their ability to pull themselves back up to a moving boat. These were exceptionally fit lifer Marines and they used a heavy, knotted rope, the kind of rope they climbed in Marine training courses easily.

Not one of them could pull themselves forward towards the moving boat if boat speed were greater than 3 knots. Not one.

My takeaway was that if I fell overboard solo, I would be dead. Therefore, don't fall overboard.

[Steve Laume]

Anybody want to jump off my boat and see if it works?

No, but if you do it and report back, we will all admire you.

Okay, how about takers for driving the boat with the promise that you will come back and save me if I miss the grab?

Cloths add a whole new demension to the equation. Imagine falling in with sea boots and foul weather gear. You couldn't swim and if you took the time to shed cloths the boat would certainly be long gone, Steve.

[Neil Gordon]

Excuse all the rounding, but sailing speed might be about a boat length in 4 seconds. So in a minute, the boat's gone about 150 yards.

The Olympic record for 100 meters is about 48 seconds. (In a seaway, that might have taken a bit longer.)

Best to stay put and wait for the next random boat to come along and pick you up.

[Dean Abramson]

My quickie math says this:

At 4 knots the boat goes approx 20,000 ft in an hour.
That's 333 feet in a minute.
My 150 foot line has gone by in around 27 seconds.
A 300 foot line would allow you almost a minute. For about $300. :-(

Maybe not worth it?

Dean

[Dean Abramson]

Not one of them could pull themselves forward towards the moving boat if boat speed were greater than 3 knots. Not one.

I get that. But if, say, a large fender were on the end of the line, would a man be able to wrap his arms around the fender and be towed? Just to stay in contact with the boat until the on-board crew reacts. I have never tried this, but I am wondering: if the MOB clutched the fender, could he plane along like that for a little while, while keeping his head above water?

Just trying to think this though...

[bottomscraper]

Maybe this is urban legend, maybe not.

Men hold the distinction of drowning in boat related incidents at a greater rate than women. Why? Well one reason could be that men tend to be alone in boats more often. Many drown by falling overboard. When a man is in a boat he usually stands up for one of two reasons. The first is to cast or retrieve a line during fishing. The other has to do with what is called " the call of nature". It has been reported in various boating publications that a good 50% of men who drown are pulled out of the water with their fly unzipped. I know, it sounds funny, but it is deadly serious.

One source:
http://www.volunteer-yachtclub.com/safe_boating.html

[Steve Laume]

Dean, not to make too light of the subject but a boogie board might make a better float choice.

Might want to keep an extra whistle on the BB in case the MOB leaves without theirs, Steve.

[Dean Abramson]

Steve, since I posted that, I actually was looking at boogie boards!! Seriously. Man, the whistle is an EXTREMELY nice touch!

But then I began to think that with the time, as you point out, that it would take to gather up oneself and swim towards the boat's track... I dunno, maybe this is getting a bit silly. (Or a lot silly?) High cost/possible-benefit ratio.

Plus it isn't like I don't have enough of a yard-sale on my stern rail already.

Then again, I could hire a circus clown and have him perform on the stern. That would entertain the porpoises, which would follow the boat. The COB could ride one of the porpoises, and..

Back to the drawing board.

Seriously, is this really not worth the effort?

[Maine_Buzzard]

I was in the kneeboard and tripline for the autopilot, but it's an overcomplication for what should not happen.

Run a jackline and use a harness like it is a religion...

Stay in the boat.

[Johnd]

As a white water kayaker, when being rescued by a throw line, always roll onto your back, with the line held tightly over your chest, and running over your shoulder. This keeps your face free to breathe. And then using your back and shoulder muscles you can maintain a good strong hold.

Steve, Dean (and others),

Having responded to the call of warm summer days and refreshing freshwater, I call tell you from experience that a boat doesn't have to be moving very fast to outpace a swimmer OR to "drown" someone being towed behind.

With the boat moving at a couple of knots (maybe), I could keep up in a fairly strenuous crawl. Even at that slow speed, the transition between swimming and grabbing the deployed swim ladder was critical - a little off on the timing, and it was back to a sprint to catch up to the ladder. And that was in a bathing suit; there's no way I could have done it in shirt and pants.

On being towed, even in a bathing suit there was a lot of drag and water in the face. I could pull myself hand-over-hand to get to the stern, but once there I didn't have enough left to pull myself up the rope and to the taffrail (we don't have a stern ladder). If there were a stern ladder, it would be necessary to use a lot of upper-body strength to pull yourself high enough to get your feet on the ladder. I think it would be really tough to get your feet on the ladder first.

Certainly a stern ladder deployable from the water is better than nothing, but it'd still be tough. Perhaps a dose of adrenaline would make the process easier?

[kerlandsen]

R.I. (March 9, 2011) - US SAILING’s Safety-at-Sea Committee has awarded an Arthur B. Hanson Rescue Medal to the crew of a powerboat that assisted in a rescue off the coast of New Jersey.

After sunset on the night of October 18, 2008, the 72-foot powerboat Coastal Queen was running at nine knots in a steep sea in the Atlantic Ocean with a 32-foot powerboat in tow several miles southeast of Sandy Hook, N.J. Skipper Deacon Nelson heard a faint cry for help and with a searchlight he spotted a man in the water.

Nelson turned Coastal Queen toward the victim and stopped alongside him. When the victim was unable to secure the life ring that was tossed in his direction, Nelson inched forward and turned the boat so the towline came to the victim. When the victim grabbed the line Nelson stopped the boat. Nelson and crewmember Penny Gehring hauled in the towrope, pulling the victim to Coastal Queen. By hooking a leg around a davit, Nelson leaned over the stern, grabbed the victim under his arm, and hauled him on deck with Gehring’s assistance.

The victim had been in the water for over an hour after his 19-foot fishing boat capsized. He kept himself afloat with his airway just clear of the water by holding a Thermos, a large bottle, and a piece of his stern ladder that had broken off. The victim gradually regained body temperature by taking a warm shower aboard Coastal Queen. Nelson notified the Manasquan Coast Guard station to request a medevac.

"The keys to rescue was staying calm and being able to make secure a connection with the victim," said Nelson.

The Arthur B. Hanson Rescue Medal is awarded by US SAILING’s Safety-at-Sea Committee to any person who rescues or endeavors to rescue any other person from drowning, shipwreck, or other perils at sea within the territorial waters of the U.S., or as part of a sailboat race or voyage that originated or stopped in the U.S.

Since it was established in 1990 by friends of the late Mr. Hanson, an ocean-racing sailor from the Chesapeake Bay, the Arthur B. Hanson Rescue Medal has been presented to more than 165 boats. Any individual or organization may submit a nomination for a Hanson Rescue Medal. For more information, including nomination forms, please visit the Hanson Rescue Medal site.

For the most authoritative daylong seminar on safe seamanship, heavy weather tactics, weather forecasting, communications and boat preparation, register for an upcoming US SAILING Safety-at-Sea Seminar. Please visit the US SAILING Safety-at-Sea Seminar site for details on these certification opportunities.