Your Autopilot Could Throw you in the Drink -- Really!

I'm a big fan of autopilots. Some people call them their "invisible crew member" or some other crew nickname that shows just how valuable they can be. If you're single-handing, for instance, the autopilot can keep your bow pointed into the wind while you raise the sails. No one ever told me what I'm going to tell you now, though. I heard "You should have an autopilot" over and over, but not one person said, "However, it can throw you in the water" -- until I said it. Then others agreed with me. I think it's just a good rule of thumb that anything you put on your boat will bring risks as well as benefits.

There's a saying about sailing that the number of errors equals the number of crew members -- squared. This includes your autopilot, because they can malfunction, and they can do so unpredictably and at just the wrong time -- just like humans.

An untended autopilot caused another boat to hit mine once. My helmsman had turned the helm over and was on my cabintop photographing the boat that ended up hitting me at the time, so we know exactly what happened. The "skipper" of the other boat 1) had his boat on autopilot, and 2) wasn't at the helm. The photos very clearly show him sitting on a side bench next to his cabin top, nowhere near the helm.

Sorry, but autopilots aren't really crew members, and a human has to be at the helm at all times. If common sense didn't tell you that, maritime law does.

Why is this important? His boat was sailing very fast, at least seven knots. He was only about ten feet away from us, silly really since we weren't racing and there was plenty of room.

So when his autopilot suddenly hiccuped and turned his boat 90º to port, at his speed even if he had known what was going on, he wouldn't have had time to steer away. His boat went right across the stern of my boat, leaving his bottom paint behind. His anchor hit my split back stay. It probably would have pulled the whole rig down except that the stay had a plastic PVC cover on it. The anchor, thankfully, rolled off the stay, damaging only the cover.

Autopilots can do that. They can be steering the boat dependably for quite some time. Then a wave hits the rudder wrong, or the power hiccups, or -- you won't always know why, but the boat suddenly makes a hard, lurching, and completely unpredictable turn.

If this happens to your boat and you're on deck somewhere instead of in the cockpit, and you're moving at 6 - 7 knots, that sudden turn can throw you into the water.

So what do you do? Because we all know we're not going to give up our autopilots.

First of all, any time you're relying on autopilot while you move around the boat, slow the boat down to the minimum speed you need to maintain steerage. That's whether you're going on deck or below decks, because you don't want to be thrown around in the cabin either. I suggest that you slow down  even if you have someone at the helm, because humans can control for things like errant waves in ways that electronic gadgets cannot. It's all about keeping the person who is out of the cockpit safe.

Second of all, always remember the old rule, "One hand for the boat, and one for yourself." Don't be up on deck doing something with both hands, and nothing to hold on to. If you have to use both hands, then you should be tethered. For instance, if you're reefing the boat, clip the tether to your PFD, wrap it twice around the mast if it's long, and then clip it to your PFD again. I know someone who did that as a storm approached. The wind hit before he was done reefing, and his boat heeled over nearly 90º. He was knocked off the cabintop but stayed on the boat, which saved his life.

Autopilots are terrific. They let you go down to the head, or grab a sandwich, or get that CD you want. Used intelligently in open waters (not near other boats, for instance -- please, I don't want to be hit again, and you really don't want to hit another boat), they are a tremendous asset. Just remember that they introduce a new element of risk along with all that tremendous convenience.

Beyond this, ALWAYS ask yourself when you get a new piece of equipment: "OK, I know the good it can do -- what can it do that's bad?" A preventer can keep you from a dangerous jybe when you're sailing downwind. I don't know how many times I've heard that. However, only one person ever pointed out that if you attach it to the boom in the wrong place, it can bend (destroy) your boom.

We're all newer sailors here, but I know for a fact that people who have been sailing for more than 60 years are still learning things. Complicating this process is the fact that we don't know what we don't know. So we don't know that the autopilot can send us for a swim, or that the preventer can bend the boom. Take all the things you have on the boat and make sure you know the downsides as well as the upsides. The internet can be a great help, but use it with caution, as the internet is packed with misinformation, some of it dangerous. As you keep poking around, you'll start to get a sense for what is and isn't likely to be true.

This one is true: your autopilot can pitch you in the drink. Turn it off if you have crew and put someone on the helm before you leave the cockpit. If you're by yourself, slow it down to steerage speed.

And have fun out there!

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Freighters are the Big Boys and They Can Smash You Up

Correction: I said below that the sailboat was not found to be at fault. That has not been decided yet. The decision reported here was made by the Washington State Department of Transportation. They looked only at what their ferry captain and crew did. The Coast Guard will look at both boats' actions, and probably assign fault to both, since the sailor acknowledged paying too much attention to his radar at the time.

Some time ago I put up a short-term entry about how I was booted off of Cruisers and Sailing Forum because I said things others didn’t agree with. Those other posters got rude and snarky,

Over and over since then it’s turned out that the things I said that were sneered at – turned out to be true.

When the incident linked a little below (second link), that of a Washington State Ferry sinking a sailboat, was first reported, I suggested that the ferry captain might be at fault. Well, there are several professional ship’s captains on that forum, all of whom took my comment personally. I was told what excellent watches all commercial ships always keep.

Well, maybe not, because then there’s the example below. I could be wrong, but I don’t believe this particular freighter kept an adequate watch:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-RIM...e_gdata_player

(I hope there were no live-aboards in that marina, and no pets aboard ...)

Then I had the temerity to say that no matter what the COLREGS say, sailboats would be smart to steer clear of big freighters and cruise ships. Then EVERYONE got in an uproar. It was yet another deliberately provoking poke at commercial captains (in their view), and it gave horrible advice to sailors (in their view). Nothing but chaos would follow (in their view).

Well, now the Washington ferry/sailboat collision has been investigated, and the ferry captain and crew have been found to be at fault. They must all go through retraining on keeping a good watch. I didn't see any mention of attributing any blame to the sailboat, which almost always happens -- almost always, both boats are found to be at fault to one degree or another.

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/News/2013/11/Hyak_111313.htm

The powers that be on The Forum seemed to think I said the things I said in order to be confrontational, but the truth is that we are all responsible for our responses to what we perceive as provocations. We’re also responsible for our perceptions.

Your common sense, and that still small voice in the pit of your stomach hollering “Don’t do that!!!” are your FRIENDS. Meanwhile, strangers can give you really bad advice for all sorts of reasons. The more invested they are in being "the one who is right," the further they may go and the harder they may work to convince you that their misinformation is the best sailing advice you'll ever be given.

As for the sailor in the Washington collision, thankfully, he survived. He also apparently had the right of way, but his boat is at the bottom of the channel, and he didn’t have to survive that collision. He was very lucky.

Here’s a video of a collision I’ve put up before, one where the sailboat was at fault. I’m going to point out something I didn’t mention the last time I put this video up: pay close attention to the sails on the sailboat (it has a shocking pink spinnaker). You’ll see that they lose their shape. In all likelihood, that sailboat slowed down as it crossed the freighter’s path. Maybe the freighter blocked the wind, but an experienced racer would have spotted that coming. More likely, the freighter distorted wind flow in some way the helmsman on the sailboat didn’t anticipate. (This can happen under bridges, also.) Either way, the result was devastating for the sailboat. You can hear three of the five warning horn blasts the freighter gave:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tUoUxzt9sI

Give way to freighters. Just stay out of their way. Do it early, and make it as obvious as possible (in other words, make a big turn, not a small course correction). They move fast, and you’ll soon be on your intended course again.

Whether the stone hits the pitcher or the pitcher hits the stone, it’s going to be bad for the pitcher. Don’t play “chicken” with freighters.

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Learning the "Rules of the Road"

 

     Or, "A collision at sea can ruin your entire day.”

In a great practical joke aboard the USS Buck, that fictive quote appeared
 on a bulletin board, attributed to Thucydides, a writer from ancient Greece!

 I’ve kind of been avoiding this topic because it’s so complex, but newer sailors need to know what the rules are, where they came from and how they apply to them. I’ve found a great website that does an excellent job of explaining what these rules mean, and that’s what you need. Many of us read a law and think we know what it means when we don’t. Maritime rules are complex, and one rule affects another, and one has more prominence in one situation than another, so understanding what the rules mean can be tricky.

For instance, although you’ll hear “right of way” – as in, “I had the right of way!” all the time, that’s a driving concept that doesn’t work on water. On the water, instead of “right of way” you have the “stand on” vessel and the “give way” vessel. The “stand on” vessel is expected to hold its course, while the “give way” boat has to take certain actions specifically to avoid a collision.

All of these rules are designed to avoid collisions. But since there are no highways on the water, no lane markings, no traffic lights – and because boats don’t have brakes – it gets complicated.

The formal name of these rules is “The 1972 International Regulations for the Prevention of Collisions at Sea," but mercifully that's been  reduced to “COLREGS.” The COLREGS cover virtually any situation you could face while sailing in the vicinity of other boats, but they are complicated, and written in legal style, which unfortunately means they are easily misinterpreted when people without a legal background read them.

Enter the “Handbook of the Nautical Rules of the Road,” which answers all the questions and translates the “leagalease” into everyday language that non-lawyers can understand and use to be a better and safer sailor. Written by Chris Llana and George Wisneskey, this book is online – for free – at this website:

http://navruleshandbook.com/index.html

For instance, there’s Rule 5, on keeping a lookout. Here’s what the rule says:

“International : Every vessel shall at all times maintain a proper lookout by sight and hearing as well as by all available means appropriate in the prevailing circumstances and conditions so as to make a full appraisal of the situation and of the risk of collision.” (Sometimes the rules change slightly for inland sailing, but this book explains that too.)

What does that really mean to a sailor? In the online book I'm recommending, that one paragraph is followed by an extensive but very clear explanation of the practical meaning of the rule. By “extensive,” I mean just under 2,400 words just explaining what it means to be a "lookout."

Is that too much for you? Too bad – really. You’ve chosen to sail, and you need to know the rules. Llana and Wisneskey make it an easy read. That’s the good news. Mind you, the 2,400 words I just described only apply in open water. If the other vessel is a freighter in a narrow channel, such as we see in Tampa Bay, well .. that’s a different rule. But no worries, this book explains that, too. This book explains it all. For free!

The bad news is that there are seven rules just in that section of the COLREGS. But really – this book is so well written that you will know exactly what is expected from you.

It will take a while to read it all, and absorb it all, and I suggest you read this book twice. The first time is right now. Then after you’ve been sailing for another six months or so, read it again, and you’ll realize “Oh yeah, there was that time …” and you’ll begin to see how the COLREGS apply to your day-to-day sailing.

A word of caution, though: the word “COLREGS” brings a state of mind in some people that could quite fairly be labeled “obnoxious.” There are a good number of sailors out there who have read the COLREGS, are certain they know what they mean, and will not hesitate to give you a very hard time if you don’t agree with them. You know how your mother told you not to talk about religion, politics, or your personal finances at a party? I would add to that, don’t try to discuss COLREGS with another sailor unless you know him or her well. 

Self-appointed experts are everywhere, and they can be quite aggressive about pushing their point of view. In my most recent experience with this, several people tried to set me straight. As it turned out, they were wrong, because they didn't understand the nuances hidden in the rules. These self-appointed experts are often wrong and they will do you no good service. Be polite, nod your head, say something neutral and change the subject. Knowing and understanding COLREGS is important – important enough that you should find out for yourself.

One more thing about that “right of way” phrase: if the worst should happen and you are in a collision with another boat on the water, you will find that a maritime judge will give some measure of blame to both parties (even if it's 99% blame to one party and 1% to the other), because the overriding rule, the one that is the basis for all the others, is “Do everything possible to avoid a collision.” While the COLREGS don’t specifically state that you should, for instance, deliberately run your boat aground to avoid a collision, it might be the best choice at that moment.

You have to read these rules, digest them, get some experience and come back to them, then get more experience and come back to them again. But don’t just read the rules. Read the very clear explanations in Llana and Wisneskey’s book. There are other books out there, but this one is very good – and the price is right!

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DON’T FALL IN LOVE WITH YOUR CHART PLOTTER

      Or, Where DO these channel markers come from, anyway?

"Not all who wander are lost." 

JRR Tolkien

 Last spring at the end of sail school, all the sail school students were invited for a sunset/evening sail on Boca Ciega Bay. I was one of the host boats, and took some delightful people out.

One man in the group in particular was interested in learning everything he possibly could on this sail. So he got a fair amount of time at the helm, with me by his side since this was his first time sailing a boat of this size. He did a great job, too. He was a fast learner and I’m sure he’s still learning all he can.

As we were going in, I showed him how the chart plotter displayed the red and green channel markers so accurately that you could use the chart plotter to guide you through in pea soup fog. He stared at the chart plotter, watching the little icon that indicated my boat.

As we approached the entrance of the channel, he spotted the red marker on the chart plotter and stared at it intently. He had already heard about “Red right returning,” meaning to keep the red markers to the starboard of side of the boat when returning through an access channel.

And he was, indeed, approaching the channel with the red marker on the starboard side of the image of my boat on the chart plotter.

The problem was that he was not paying any attention to where the green marker was, and it’s a narrow channel.

So as we approached, I said to him, “Where’s the green marker?” He pointed it out on the chart plotter, not realizing that unless we changed course, and soon, we would hit that green channel marker. I took the wheel and pulled it to starboard, and then he saw what I was talking about. He saw it on the water first, and it made him gasp.

I told him – “Don’t fall in love with your chart plotter. Make sure you visually spot what you’re seeing on the screen."

The electronic gear can be fascinating. It’s kind of cool to watch how the depth changes as your depth sounder reads it. You soon learn that the ocean bottom is nothing like a road on land. Water depth can vary a lot in a very short distance. As long as your keel doesn’t touch any of it, it doesn’t matter, but it is interesting to observe.

Unfortunately we may (may, the inquiry hasn’t been done yet) have recently seen a case of what I call “electronics hypnosis” with tragic results out in the Seattle area. A 25’ sailboat and a very large, very fast ferry were on a collision course. They did collide, and although the man single-handing the sailboat survived, his sailboat is now at the bottom of a channel. We don’t know yet what happened except for one thing the sailboat skipper admitted to: he had recently been in some fog, and was focused on his radar screen.

He made a poor choice, choosing a channel that commercial ferries use at high rates of speed to double-check his electronics.

C’mon. We all know that the electronics tools are more than “gadgets” and can give us crucial information, but when you put a new one on your boat, get yourself out into open water before exploring it. Even then, set a kitchen timer to ring every two minutes so you can look around and make sure some boat isn’t gaining on you, on a collision course.

In fact, while you’re out there exploring your new chart plotter or whatever you got, take the time to explore it thoroughly, so when you are in heavy traffic you’ll only have to give it a quick glance. You wouldn’t drive down the road with your eyes intently focused on your rear view mirror, and you should use your electronics in the same way. If you need to dig through menus, make sure there’s no one around you, and if you have someone on the boat with you, put them on 360º constant watch so you don’t have to worry about playing bumper cars with your boat because you’re not familiar with your chart plotter yet. Even if the area is clear of boats, you still have to watch out for things like crab traps and lobster pots, which can make a royal mess of your propeller.

Tell your chart plotter: “We’re friends. I respect and admire you, but that’s all we can be.”

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Go Slow and Aim for Something Cheap!

     Or, TURN, boat, oh please TURN … oh dear!

When I bought my first boat, my little 25’ Irwin, I fell in love with her immediately. Even though I knew next to nothing about sailboats at the time, she had one trait I really liked.She was really, really skinny. That, I believed, would make it easier to get in and out of the slip … without hitting anyone else. Hitting another boat was big on my list of things I never, ever wanted to do. In fact, one of the pieces of advice I was given as a beginning sailor was the title of this little essay – “Go slow and aim for something cheap!” Of course, my goal was to aim for open water.

I took someone with me to look at this boat before I bought her, someone who knew a lot more about sailboats than I did. The fact is that for a really cheap sailboat, this boat I ended up naming Silver Girl was really in pretty good shape. Most of the standing rigging was in good shape, she didn’t need a bunch of expensive repairs, and the hull and deck were sound. The centerboard didn’t work, but I was assured that this didn’t really matter. I took her.

The one thing she lacked was an outboard motor. She was designed for an outboard motor, with a cut-down transom. But the man who sold her to me had bought her for the outboard motor. I said to the person with me, “I’m concerned about getting a dependable outboard suitable for a sailboat.” As most of you know, sailboats require longer shafts than an outboard used to push a fishing boat around, and good used ones can be very hard to find. He said, “I know where I can get you one at a good price.”

I had one question about that motor: “Is it reliable?” The answer was yes. He was confident that the engine would be completely reliable. So I took the boat, we borrowed someone’s outboard to move it, and brought it back to BCYC.

As it turns out, different people have different definitions of what “reliable” means. To me, it meant that the engine would start, and keep running until you turn it off. To the person who sold it to me, “reliable” apparently meant, “On the outside, it closely resembles an outboard motor.”

This was an old engine that hadn’t been properly maintained and had to be finessed just to start. As it turned out, the rubber bushing around the propeller was old and worn out. When you first started the engine, the bushing was too hard to do its job and the propeller would not spin, or spin quite ineffectively. Then as the engine warmed up, the rubber warmed up and would bunch up in a couple of places enough to get the propeller spinning enough to actually move the boat. THAT was the time to leave the slip. Unfortunately, if something delayed your exit, the rubber continued to warm, and then it would smooth out – and once again the propeller would not turn effectively.

Unfortunately, to aim for anything – whether it’s the channel out of the marina or “something cheap” – the boat has to be moving. If the boat isn’t moving, you have no steering. On this particular day, I didn’t get out of the slip promptly. As I finally pulled out, that rubber bushing flattened out, and the engine stopped pushing the boat. No steering. Right in front of me, a beautiful million-dollar trimaran from South Africai

The owner really was very gracious about the grapefruit-sized dent my bow pulpit put in his beautiful vessel. I paid him for the damage and a little extra to take his wife out to lunch for his inconvenience.

LESSON LEARNED: you cannot just will a boat to turn. It has to be moving! Don’t waste your money on an old, worn out motor. Just accept that if you’re buying a sailboat that uses an outboard, you need a good outboard motor, or it will fail you, and at the worst possible time. Also, you really want that centerboard to work. It helps the boat go where you want her to go sometimes.