Boating

Seamanship

SCAN

ME!

Hand signals also prove effective to communicate

between a person in the water and a person in the boat.

Learn basic watersports hand signals by scanning this tag or

visiting boatingmag.com/watersporthandsignals.

The Need to

Communicate

WHEN SPEECH FAILS, USE SIGNALS

and aboard other boats on which

I’ve served as crew, we use the

following signals while anchoring.

A thumbs up means “drop the

anchor, we’ve begun to fall back

on the current.” Raising a closed

fi st while streaming out the anchor

rode means “stop,” “enough” or

“hold up.” A twirled fi nger means

“cleat it off.”

Of course, these signals can go

from bow to helm as well as from

helm to bow. So if, after the anchor

is dropped, the bow crewman

sees that the boat is overrunning

the rode, he can give a wave to the

skipper, meaning — you guessed it

— “back down a bit, you’ve still got

some way on.” When all is right, the

raised fi st can indicate “enough.”

(Note that when creeping through

that fog-bound harbor — if given

with wide eyes and extra emphasis

— it might mean “stop ... there’s a

big white boat anchored 30 feet in

front of us right next to the buoy, so

it will fool you on radar!” So always

“listen” to the signals.)

Other bow-to-helm situations

in which hand signals prove useful

come to mind. Often, when pulling

anchor, as the boat gets closer to

the anchor’s position, the skipper

at some point may lose sight of the

anchor rode as it slips from view

below the bow. At this point, line

may still need to be retrieved, and,

in order to do so, the boat must

be carefully nudged forward in

the direction the line is running. A

knowledgeable deckhand realizes

the point when the skipper can

no longer see the line, and, while

facing forward and keeping an eye

on the line, he must become the

skipper’s eyes. The signals are not

complex; if the boat needs to be

steered to port, the crewman can

point to the left, for instance. This is

done with one hand while the other

remains on the rode (or while a turn

is taken about a cleat if a current is

running). In this way, hand signals

not only prove effective, their use

builds and depends upon trust

between the crew.

In any event, always make sure

to close the communication loop

by replying to the initial signal with

the “OK” signal or a thumbs up.

Now, suppose we are

approaching a dock. We’d assess

the situation, judging wind and

current, and, perhaps, we’d ready

some dock lines, maybe even

pre-cleating a spring line and

hanging some fenders. Maybe we’d

task those aboard to handle each

of those and get the boat hook at

the ready.

How about unzipping a panel

of canvas? Or opening a vent win-

dow, if your boat is so equipped?

I know it’s not part of any docking

procedure found in any textbook,

but I also know that if we don’t

do that, we may not hear the

dockhand warning us about the

bolt protruding a foot below

the water from the piling we are

heading toward to snuggle against

and tie up.

Hand signals and unzipping

canvas may seem like overly

simple techniques to ensure safer,

smoother boat operation. But if

my experience aboard boats and

at docks is any indication, these are

not as obvious to some boaters as

many of us might think. Stay safe.

There are a number of

scenarios in which you may need

to give a crew member on the bow

some direction. Anchoring, dock-

ing, or picking your way through a

mooring fi eld in the fog all come

to mind. But even aboard a small

boat where the distance between

the foredeck and the helm is just a

few feet, it can be diffi cult to make

yourself understood to a person

on the bow. Wind in the ear of the

deckhand, coupled with the fact

that you are behind a windshield

and possibly surrounded by canvas,

almost guarantees that the skip-

per needs to repeat herself two

or more times until the correct

volume level of yelling is attained.

There is a better way:

hand signals.

Especially worthwhile with

regular crew, such as your spouse

or children, I strongly advise a pre-

arranged, pre-agreed upon set of

simple gestures to convey mean-

ing. Aboard my own Breakaway,

I

T’S ESSENTIAL TO GOOD SEAMANSHIP THAT YOU COMMUNICATE

with your crew effectively. The ability to instantly convey meaning

and intent may mean the difference between a textbook maneuver

that’s hardly worth the mention and one that becomes regrettably

memorable due to personal injury or damage to the boat. Let’s take a

look at some situations to further illustrate the point.

ILLUSTRATION: TIM BOWER

WIn any event, always make sure to close

the communication loop by replying to the initial

signal with the “OK” signal or a thumbs up.

32 BOATINGMAG.COM APRIL 2016