Safety Thoughts

["Robert Harper" <rharper@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Paul has asked me to sum up some of the safety discussion that took place  
on Sailing Anarchy in the Dinghy forum after the recent death of Peter  
McGonigle Wenner, training with Shark on Pegasus.

Aparently Peter had his hook catch in the webbing of one of the racks and  
could not get free. Unfortunately they could not get him free in time and  
was on life support for a while in the hospital and the family had to make  
the tragic choice to remove the life supports and he shortly passed away.

Following that event, there have been two long threads in DA over what  
could/should have been done to avoid this in the future.

Sailing in general and maybe especially skiffs is a dangerous sport though  
the numbers don't show it. I know in my area, they did a little research  
when the legislature was thinking of requiring all boaters to pass  
something like a auto driving course in order to operate any water craft.  
In the ten years they looked at, there was one sailing related accident  
that was reported to the state. 60% were due to PWC's, and the bulk of the  
rest were pleasure boaters not paying attention.

That being said, it would be a very bad thing for me to lose any of my  
sailing friends. So I'll try to summarize what was covered in the Dinghy  
Anarchy threads.

First is to make sure you are fit, aware of the conditions, and not alone.  
As much as possible, sail with buddies or a chase boat. If you don't have  
either as I often don't, cary a waterproof hand held VHF radio with you so  
if you get in trouble, you can call for help. Almost every body of water  
has someone with a radio. It is almost a required toy these days for  
people who like toys to go with their toys. ALWAYS let someone know where  
you are going, how far you intend to go out, and when you plan to return.

Check your boat very closely while rigging and make sure that there are no  
sharp objects that need to be covered with chafe tape and make sure the  
rigging is not worn. I prefer using shackles to hooks. Shackles are closed  
and don't easily open and aren't usually prone to catching things. I've  
heard of one Swiftie having a hook catch on the back of his PFD and  
trapped him under the boat for a bit. Make sure that what you use for  
rigging cannot catch onto anything. This will not only save your life but  
often lenghten the life of you kite. Take the attitude that if it is at  
all possible to hook onto something, it will and find a better part.

It was recommended to tape a knife to the tiller, gantry, or for us the  
cross bar. This is in addition to carying a knife on your person. There  
are knives that are specially made that make it very hard to stab yourself  
but very easy to hook a line or webbing and cut yourself free. I often  
cary a knife in my wetsuit at my chest with a lanyard that will allow me  
to get the knife out to arm's length. I know Ron takes a knife with him at  
all times, I've sharpenned it several times and seen where it ends up when  
I'm done. Some harnesses come with a knife and sheeth built in.

Now for the gear you wear. It was recommened to always wear a wetsuit or  
something similar to protect against the inevitable cut. When it is hot,  
I've started to wear a very thick pair of running tights but usually wear  
a wetsuit. I remember being chastized by some friends while having a beer  
break and was handed a great oportunity to say see that's why when a woman  
came off a Hobie with a six inch gash in her thigh. I also have some war  
wounds and ugly scars from times I've gone out without a wetsuit myself.  
Stitches and a trip to the ER are much more costly than a good wetsuit.  
Gloves are a very good thing to have and I've gotten so I prefer those $3  
work gloves that are cottong coated with the blue or red rubber. They last  
longer than the regular sailing gloves and at $3, you can go through a lot  
of them for the price of a good pair from Ronstan though I do love their  
gloves. I've had the work gloves last a season before. Just dry them well  
at the end of the day. Cut the tip off the index finger and the thumb and  
there you are.

It was also recommended that people wear a rash guard top over everything,  
EXCEPT the harness. The reason for not wearing it over the harness is that  
it makes it very hard to get out of your harness with a rash guard over  
it. With the harness on the outside, all you have to do is cut some of the  
straps around the hook to get free of the harness. Make sure your harness  
fits well and doesn't have any hanging loops that can catch on the rigging  
or other gear on the boat.

To me, the quick releasing harnesses are a red herring as there is a small  
handful of people that would need one and though the loss of any life is  
tragic, I don't think legislating them is the answer. I feel that with  
proper planning and training, we can avoid almost all of the conditions  
where they would be needed. For me, this is a personal choice and if you  
find one that works well for you and you like, I'll be the last to harass  
you for it.

Bram has built a lot of safety into the Swift because he feels it is  
important in a single handed boat for that boat to be safe first. Often  
people have said a Swift would be faster if.... but then it wouldn't be a  
safe boat either. Another thing that Bram has always preached is that you  
should stay within your limits. Start in lighter winds probably between 6  
and 8 knots. Unless you are Mark, you won't be trapping but you also won't  
get into too much trouble either. Then work your way up the wind range as  
you become comfortable with the boat. Get to the point that you can easily  
tack, set the kite, gybe, and dowse at will and without capsizing before  
moving up to the next range. Unless you have a good support crew ready and  
waiting to help you, it is better to play it safe and live to sail another  
day. It will be far easier on you and the boat if you do. If you want to  
push yourself, do so at the clinic but let the chase boat know so that  
they can shadow you closely. We'll have experienced sailors there to help.

Ask questions of fellow Swifties/Musto sailors. There are no stupid  
questions. Many of us have had the same ideas and wondered the same thing.  
I haven't seen any of us that look down on new sailors. Quite the oposite,  
we are very glad to see more people joining in the fun and one thing  
you'll find, is that we love to talk about our boats and sailing. The hard  
part is to get us to shut up once you get us started.

I'm sure there's more but I'm already up to almost a book for e-mail so  
before I lose too many, I'll end here. I feel this pretty much summarizes  
the topics covered on Sailing Anarchy. Some of you will have differing  
points and preferences and that is fine with me. Feel free to share them  
with the rest of us. More information is better than none and I'll be  
happy to learn more.

Sail safe, sail fast, love your sailing, and keep the stick in the air. I  
hope to see you all very soon!

--
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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