Yachting World – 01.04.2018

LETTERS

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LETTERS

A hard blow

On our feature online on the risks of

hitting a container at sea:

We hit a container at night and the

sound was unmistakably metal against

glassfibre. It pinholed the bow just above

the waterline and hit us twice more down

the starboard side.

Our helmsman immediately put the

helm over to kick the stern away from

it, to avoid impacting the rudder, and

then let go of the wheel so there was no

resistance if it came into contact.

Upon hauling later, we could see

gouges where the container had made

contact and a slight scrape along the side

of the rudder. Had we hit it square on

at speed while on a reach, we all believe

the damage would have been severe. We

surmised that, luckily, our angle was a

glancing blow off one end.

The unexpected sound of an impact

around midnight and the sudden shaking

of the rigging is something I still get cold

sweats over...

For the record, the yacht was a Tartan

41 and, if you’ve ever owned one, you’ll

know that they are built like tanks. We

actually wonder if our collision holed and

sank the container!

Jack Crobaugh

Running out of puff

On sailing without an engine:

I had a yacht without an engine for two

years and happily sailed through reefs

and onto anchorages. The mistake I

made was going into St Martin.

A cruise ship was anchored 100m off

a steep cliff and at the last moment I

decided to go astern of it. The wind died

and it took an hour and a half to reach

the stern – I could have swum quicker!

The only consolation was that I must

have had about 1,000 photos taken of us

by the Japanese tourists on board. But I

will never get caught out like that again.

I’d crossed the Atlantic and sailed

thousands of miles but I learned more

in those two years without an engine

than during the whole 30 years before.

I learned how to dock and even reverse

the boat into a berth.

I’m not saying I didn’t have my heart

in my mouth at times, but I realised that

before my motorless experience I didn’t

really know how to sail.

I now feel very confident without an

engine and looking back I appreciate the

knowledge I gained.

David Ellis

Sailing without an engine may be OK in

the open ocean, or in a sea area without

strong tidal streams or busy sea lanes,

but for coastal sailing an engine is always

an asset.

If you want to play the romantic purist

game, fine; just discipline your use of the

engine. But for emergencies, you should

use whatever you can.

Anthony Train

Going faster

The Dynamic Stability System (DSS)

technology has enabled yachts to access

the full power of their sails and rigs. So

now imagine what potential performance

could be realised by increasing the power

and reducing the drag of the rig.

Think of it like a car: it’s all well

and good to have the best tyres and

suspension, but you mustn’t forget the

engine, because that is where the power

comes from.

If you had semi-rigid wings (SRW) with

DSS, sailing fast can be achieved with

less effort. With just SRW you go 15 per

cent faster and get higher angles upwind,

so your VMG is up 20 per cent. Add to

that no sail flogging and longer life.

I’m not a great sailor but with SRW

I can sail faster and spend more time

relaxing. With DSS there is even more

speed, the boat becomes more stable

and more comfortable and is more able

to use the SRW horsepower.

Going slow is easy, being able to go

fast means you can choose slow or fast.

So it’s a win-win.

Patrick Johnston

The beautiful game

Reading that challenger of record Luna

Rossa will be spending €65 million to go

sailing in the next America’s Cup makes

me reflect that this is another world.

But then it’s still cheaper than some

football transfer fees!

Toby Marshall

Around 1,

containers are

lost at sea each

year, posing a

constant threat to

yachtsmen

Volvo Race MOB

I watched the videos of

the man overboard on

Scallywag, and every

single fibre in your body

should literally scream

‘Lifejacket! Harness!’

Everyone should clip on

when offshore.

It is terrible to think

that in the heat of

the moment these

fundamentals were missed and a man went overboard. They

were extremely lucky to find him and get him back aboard, and

especially lucky it was not during the night, when the outcome

could easily have been very different indeed.

Phil Payne

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