Re: rudder blues

["Robert Harper" <rharper@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

First, sad to see your broken rudder.

I think the hand held VHF is a very good idea. I try to remember to take  
mine with me when I go on long sails on GSL because I can and often do get  
as many as ten miles from the marina. I've been caught once in a nasty  
storm but, silly me, didn't have the radio with me that time. I usually  
put it in the sail pocket because I think I'll break it if I fall on it. I  
capsized when a gust hit at about 30kts. After a few Rusian rolls in six  
foot seas, I got the boat up with a broken van and dropped the main.  
Fortunately it was down wind to the marina and I surfed home under just  
the jib.

In very strong winds, it is probably easier to tack than to gybe as you  
think. One thing to remember is that as you start your turn down wind,  
heel the boat a little to weather and move back in the boat. Even in the  
lighter wind at Jericho, I'd move almost back to the aft corner of the  
boat. It keeps the knuckle of the bow out of the water and you need less  
rudder to make the turn. You also avoid going down the mine. Either way, I  
think I'd avoid the kite and "chicken gybe" in 30+.

I've heard of a couple other rudders breaking in the same way. I guess  
you'll have to decide where you want the weakest link to be. I think I'd  
rather have the rudder fail than the crossbar or something else.

I don't enjoy sailing the Swift in very gusty and shifty conditions. I've  
been hurt trying to sail in similar conditions where you went from 5 kts  
of breeze whith gust that are 20+ and an associated 30 degree shift. But  
then I don't like those conditions in any boat. I look at those days as a  
good day to catch some rays and down some suds keeping an eye out for  
someone who decided to try it anyway.

I'm glad to hear you are safe and sound though.

On Mon, 20 Aug 2007 08:08:41 -0600, Mark White <mwhite@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>  
wrote:

> To all,
>
> I made the mistake of misjudging the wind speed yesterday.  I left the  
> shore where it was fairly well protected from the wind, thinking the  
> wind was blowing around 20.  I knew it was in deep dodo as soon as I hit  
> the wind about 200 yds off shore.  The wind was not steady, it was like  
> rolling, or twisting constantly.  My heading was constantly shifting 20  
> degrees or so, just trying to maintain a straight course.  The battens  
> kept popping from left to right, while I bounced in and out of the  
> water.  The only thing I could think to do was to bear off, run down  
> wind, gibe, and come back to my starting point on the beach.  I tried 3  
> or 4 times to bear off but the boat refused to do so.  Every time I  
> tried, the bow went down to the gunwale and would start to heel over.   
> The last attempt I tried as fast as possible.  The boat heeled, and I  
> heard a breaking sound, like wood tearing.  I thought I had broken the  
> transom, or the transom bar.  After capsizing I couldn't find any  
> damage.  Luckily someone was there and helped me get the mail down while  
> capsized.  Thinking all was well, I started heading for shore under the  
> jib, and noticed the boat steered very sloppy, that was when I noticed  
> what broke.  The rudder was kicked off to starboard.  It lasted about  
> 3/4 of a minute, and broke off behind the boat.  Needless to say the  
> boat without a rudder just spins in circles.  The ride out lasted about  
> 1 minute, the tow back in lasted about 20 minutes.  I had left my wind  
> gauge at home and the one at the marina was broken, but the folks that  
> run the place thought the wind was blowing 35 gusting to 40, I didn't  
> think it was that high, but I really don't know.
>
> So it appears that the rudder was the weak link.  I still can't imagine  
> the rudder could have had enough pressure on it to break.  The question  
> is do you make the rudder stronger, then possibly breaking the next  
> weaker link, or let the rudder be the weak link?  Obviously the best  
> solution is to stay on the shore on days like this, but you can still be  
> caught in big wind while out on the water.  I think now it would be a  
> good idea to have a hand held VHF in my PDF.  If I had been farther out,  
> or out of sight of the marina and this had happened, and no one right  
> there to assist, it would have been ugly.  I believe I would have been  
> ok, but the boat would have eventually wound up on the rocks.  I now  
> have a new found respect for the wind, and the need for a new rudder  
> blank.
>
> I'm not sure what else I could have done, but it would be good to know  
> what to do if found in this situation in the future.  In hind sight, I  
> think I could have tacked, and maybe tried to stall the boat and drift  
> back to shore, but if it wouldn't stall, and drift, I would have headed  
> towards the floating piers.  I just knew I didn't want to get any  
> further away from shore.  I don't think I could have gotten the main  
> down and kept the boat up-right.  In a one man boat the options seem  
> limited.
>
> I think this is something that should be discussed, here or on the  
> website, since anyone could end up in a situation similar to this.
>
> Mark



--
Live large, love lots, and sail fast!
The mark of who you are is determined by what you do when you don't have  
to do it.
USA 050 Fugu
77959 Wasabi
Robert Harper

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