174 seamanship secrets
- Lash and stow. Start inside the cabin. Stow or lash anything that might
fl y around when your boat is rolling and pitching in a seaway. Use bungee
cord, small line, or marline. You can also stuff items into lockers, but make
sure any such items stay in place. Shove towels, rags, clothing, or pillows
inside to keep things from becoming movable ballast or unguided missiles.
Lockers need positive latches to keep heavy gear from crashing through. - Seal her up. Make the vessel watertight. Start forward and work your way
aft , checking these three positions:
Up. Close and seal hatches. Remove the forward cabin ventilation cowl
vents and screw on the cover plates. (Do not remove or seal engine
intake and exhaust vents.)
Sides. Close opening ports and windows. If portlights have cover plates,
install them.
Down and center. Check bilge access plates and covers to make sure
they’re properly seated and dogged (latched). Check the engineroom
hatch. In sailing vessels, the companionway ladder oft en serves as the
engine access hatch. Check the seating and dogs (twist latches). When
you exit the cabin, close and latch the door or companionway hatch. On
sailing vessels, install dropboards and close the main hatch. Secure the
main hatch cover with an easily removed non-locking device. Check the
exterior of the vessel for loose gear and open lockers. Imagine getting
doused with a wave breaking on the bow or quarter. What needs a cover?
Could something use an extra lashing?- All hands into life jackets. Everyone onboard should wear a life jacket
(PFD)—properly tightened, clipped, and zipped. If you and your crew are
wearing infl atable PFDs, fully infl ate the bladders with the manual tube.
If conditions warrant, rig port and starboard jacklines and don safety
harnesses. Make sure that 75 to 100 feet of line is attached to a throwable
PFD (ring, horseshoe). Bend the line to the aft rail or tie it off to a cleat. - Keep crew low for safety and stability. If you have a lower steering station,
use it. Keep the crew off the fl ying bridge. You want the crew ready in the
cockpit to handle any emergency. If you must steer from the fl ying bridge,
have one crewmember stay with you to act as a messenger between you and
the crew below. - Rig warps or drogue. Make the call now whether to rig warps or a drogue.
Th e simplest warp consists of a large bight of line, rigged from one quarter
cleat to the other. When towed astern, it provides some resistance and helps
keep the stern square to the seas. Maintain a sharp lookout in the cockpit
when you are towing warps in breaking seas. You don’t want a line to wrap
around your propeller shaft inside an inlet!