Jacklines video

The more casual the day, the more useless a PFD on the skipper of a cruising boat.

Can your guests come back and pick you up?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vlkUzzsdPA

Great video, thank you.

I wear an inflatable PFD (a spinlock, quite comfortable) with integral harness every time I leave the marina.

I'm....uh... improving at reminding myself to clip in whenever out and about.

On the one hand, I'm almost never more than a mile or two from land in the Sound. On the other hand, I'm (apparently) not 18, infinitely agile and immortal anymore.

And can't swim fast enough to catch up with the boat.

Since I'm almost always alone on the boat... that last thing seems to work as the tiebreaker for the tether.

Bruce

Great video--informative and humorous as always. And a great reminder!

Not having jacklines (and not sure how to rig them around a dodger), I tied myself off to a halyard-end last time I was out on the boat. The higher tether point seems to be a slight advantage when amidships (say, working at the mast), but when fore- or aft- on the boat, there has to be extra slack in the line. The downside, I suppose, if you fall over, is the possibility swinging like a pendulum from the side of an unhelmed but still sailing boat. Maybe that gives extra credit for going-down-with (rather than abandoning) ship.

Glad to have this topic brought aboard. Suddenly in command is a consideration, http://www.cgaux.org/boatinged/classes/2011/sic.php.

When sailing with Christian he follows John Rousmaniere's advice and briefly briefed us crew on what to do. Where safety equipment could be found and to throw everything overboard that would keep him afloat. We were all sailors of some experience, but our experience did not extend to his vessel and I for one am glad he took the time.

IMHO, belt and suspenders. I always wear an inflatable PFD and am so used to doing so it doesn't inhibit action. My personal choice also has a harness attachment for jacklines to use when sailing solo. I figure the reason I am not on the ship anymore isn't going to be a simple spash into the water. A boom knock during an unexpected jibe, a slip resulting in a concussion or broken hip, a dislocated shoulder or broken wrist from trying to catch a fall, all are possibilities best avoided, but what if?

Swimming to shore in a rip current isn't part of the plan, but in an emergency what is? The things you are prepared for, the actions you are prepared to take, those are. So under those circumstances luck = preparation and opportunity.

I get this from sailors more experienced than I, present company included. One doesn't sail twice to Hawaii and back by hoping for the best. One sails knowing they're prepared to manage the unknown and quite possibly with the unexpected.

So belt and suspenders for me, when ever we set off to sea...

Max

I use exactly the same set up as Christian. I should- I copied what he uses. Who am I to question a crew member of the boat that not only survived 1979 Fastnet race but won it?

I sail mostly single handed and have the jack strap on the stbd side of the mast, like his, and have practiced doing all work from that side. Only once in the past 3 years have I had to do something on the port side.

I use only a harness- not the inflating kind- I read a fella who said it's hard to get back on the boat with a harness and even harder with an inflated thing.

I also wear a Mad Dog key fob remote for the Autohelm. It is water proof and if I were hanging over the life line it would be possible to head up or perhaps even heave to.

Practice falling overboard? Nope. The name of the game, as I see it, is not to. I keep the tether short enough to accomplish this (doubling it when on the jackline).

The only time I don't wear the harness is...maybe if there is another competent sailor aboard. Someone said: "Should I just wear a seatbelt when I drive on the freeway?"

A question, I have read that webbing like the kind used for Jacklines are degraded by UV. Do you rig the jackline every time or leave it on board in the sun. Also, I have a dodger so attaching the jackline to the cabin top is not possible easily. Can I use the rear cleat just aft the jib winch? That would allow me to clip in even in the cockpit.

I leave them on all the time and change the jacklines every 18 months or so (UV).

Currently using West Marine jacklines, which are robust and claim UV resistance. They may last longer.

I think the secure points are whatever works. The important thing is that the jackline not permit us to trail behind the boat, which is why stern cleats are not suitable.

Hand held radio

I sail solo often on the Chesapeake Bay out of Annapolis. One of the advantages (and sometimes disadvantage) is that there are usually a fair amount of boats about, more or less, along with some ears listening on shore. I wear an auto-inflatable life jacket, with "D" rings that I use with my jack lines. But I also clip on a submersible hand held radio. My thoughts are if I do somehow go off the boat, possibly injured in someway, the vest will inflate and then I can use the hand held to call for help. Of course this probably wouldn't be as effective in the areas where Christian sails, the ocean. I think you just have to figure out what works best for you and how you sail.

Life is full of chaos but taking responsibility for yourself and your crew helps to keep chaos at a minimum most of the time.

great point about not using stern cleats. I do have a cleat just aft of my jib sheet winch but that is also probably too far aft. I need to look for another tie point more forward. My wife and I both wear inflatable PFD's that have harness rings so that is already there. I will check out West Marine and Sailrite for UV resistant webbing, do you use 1 inch wide material and is there a special rating or thickness of such webbing?

Here's where I got the best price on UV strap:
http://www.strapworks.com/default.asp

Belay my last
Here is where I got 1" strap:

http://www.uscargocontrol.com/Webbing/1-Inch-Polyester-Webbing/CUS-WEB14500LtBLU_2

4500lb breaking strength

I am curious, for those of you who wear the PSD harness, if it's also necessary to wear a crotch strap?

One well-documented problem with the inflatable vests is that if they are not cinched quite tightly, the vest will pull off over the wearer's head if you are trying to winch them aboard. Spinlock has a built-in (but nicely tucked-away) crotch strap.

I had a crew overboard last year while still in the harbor. Once inflated, the vest renders the wearer pretty useless in swimming over to the boat. All she could do was a weak paddle backwards. I was like, hey girlfriend, take that stupid thing off and swim over here. (Just kidding, sort of...) Ultimately, I backed up the boat and we picked her up. Which reminds me, unless your overboard person is young and strong then you need some kind of line for them to help haul themselves up the ladder.

So, Christian, have you ever tried to haul yourself back aboard without the bottom strap?

Great video - looks like good crew that day (!)...

Bolo said:

But I also clip on a submersible hand held radio. My thoughts are if I do somehow go off the boat, possibly injured in someway, the vest will inflate and then I can use the hand held to call for help.

Click to expand...

I also (generally) have a handheld VHF on me, but note that VHF is line-of-sight, and line-of-sight isn't very far when in the water.

less power (typically 5w) plus crappy/short "rubber duck" antenna plus line-of-sight limitations plus (likely) interference from waves, etc... effective range is probably on the order of a mile or two.

So I look at the handheld as a "nice to have", but I (personally) don't bet my life on being sure I'll be heard through a handheld in an emergency situation.

Just food for thought...
Bruce

Yes, it was a good crew that day. (The brief clip of Max and Billie is from our forum sail last year).

There is no way I am wearing a crotch strap on a sailboat. Someone may decide it is necessary. Just no way.

I am occasionally told I will be dragged to death instantly if tossed over the side with my system, and by persons who are very certain of it, but have in fact never been dragged to death themselves. However, even at 74 I can easily pull myself back aboard with my rig. With the lifelines in easy reach, anybody can do it.

In a bad seaway, gale, or mishap when there are wind and waves, in fact it might be easier to get back aboard, because the boat rolls and the seas lift you. There are several instances of the man overboard being washed back aboard.

There is no need for agreement on any of this, only for skepticism and thinking it though our own way.

MOB / PIW drills

billie williams said:

I am curious, for those of you who wear the PSD harness, if it's also necessary to wear a crotch strap?

One well-documented problem with the inflatable vests is that if they are not cinched quite tightly, the vest will pull off over the wearer's head if you are trying to winch them aboard. Spinlock has a built-in (but nicely tucked-away) crotch strap.

I had a crew overboard last year while still in the harbor. Once inflated, the vest renders the wearer pretty useless in swimming over to the boat. All she could do was a weak paddle backwards. I was like, hey girlfriend, take that stupid thing off and swim over here. (Just kidding, sort of...) Ultimately, I backed up the boat and we picked her up. Which reminds me, unless your overboard person is young and strong then you need some kind of line for them to help haul themselves up the ladder.

So, Christian, have you ever tried to haul yourself back aboard without the bottom strap?

Great video - looks like good crew that day (!)...

Click to expand...

In addition to being prepared with jacklines and (inflatable?) PFDs, it would be good to practice a MOB (now renamed, Person In Water) drill if you sail with with at least one crew.
It's easy in nice weather, mild winds and flat seas to douse sails and motor back to a PIW, but as conditions get worse (which increase the MOB/PIW likelihood), or if you foul your prop, it's good to have practiced one of the two easiest and safest PIW rescue procedures under sail (Quick Stop and Figure-8). And, to have already thought about how an injured PIW can be brought back on board - this is really hard to do, by the way.

Inflatable PFDs with crotch straps

billie williams said:

I am curious, for those of you who wear the PSD harness, if it's also necessary to wear a crotch strap?

One well-documented problem with the inflatable vests is that if they are not cinched quite tightly, the vest will pull off over the wearer's head if you are trying to winch them aboard. Spinlock has a built-in (but nicely tucked-away) crotch strap.

I had a crew overboard last year while still in the harbor. Once inflated, the vest renders the wearer pretty useless in swimming over to the boat. All she could do was a weak paddle backwards. I was like, hey girlfriend, take that stupid thing off and swim over here. (Just kidding, sort of...) Ultimately, I backed up the boat and we picked her up. Which reminds me, unless your overboard person is young and strong then you need some kind of line for them to help haul themselves up the ladder.

So, Christian, have you ever tried to haul yourself back aboard without the bottom strap?

Great video - looks like good crew that day (!)...

Click to expand...

I think it depends partly on the design of the PFD (crotch straps would be completely useless on a plain harness like Christian's, of course).
My Spinco PFD has an integral harness and it has crotch straps. I wore it the first time with the crotch straps tucked up out of the way, thinking they were a nuisance. But another sailor said after the race that Spinco 'requires' the straps be 'deployed' - the reason is that this PFD design lets the inflated bladders ride up very high, smothering the wearer in bulging bladders. The crotch straps hold them down so the wearer can operate the light, whistle, knife, etc, and can see out. So, I wore the straps the next few times out, thinking they'd surely catch on all sorts of boat hardware - but, they did not.

just a generic question on jacklines. the website shows polyethelene as best for UV resistance but I never thought polyethelene was very strong. What material, width, thickness do you all recommend?

Leslie Newman said:

I use 1" nylon tubular webbing from REI as my jack line material. Same webbing I used rock climbing. I have an industrial sewing machine and can sew my own loops.

Click to expand...

I use this from REI, tied between the forward cleats and traveler bridge with waterknots:
[h=1] BlueWater 1" Climb-Spec Tubular Webbing - 30 ft.[/h]

Crotch Strap

While I respect the experience of some of the people who posted they would not use a crotch strap I strongly disagree. The straps are not uncomfortable if adjusted right. We've happily worn them every single minute we've been on deck while underway for almost 20,000 miles now. It is easy to slip out of a harness (or PFD) without a strap. Maybe not so much if you're well rested, in settled conditions, warm, etc but injured, unconscious, cold, etc you would be surprised how easy it is to slip out of an otherwise properly adjusted harness. All for lack of wanting to click a simple piece of webbing between your legs...

We have done experiments at anchor and underway to "test" this fact. We cover it in our YouTube video "Overboard" and there is an excellent discussion of this on the Single Handed Podcast (Episode 14) at http://singlehandedsailing.libsyn.com/

If you're interested we use Spinlock Deckvest PFDs (that have built in harness and crotch straps).

With regards to the original topic we run the West Marine jacklines and remove them whenever we are at anchor. They have lasted with little signs of deterioration for almost 4 years now in the tropics. We run them from a D-ring we installed just ahead of the cabin on the foredeck to a hardpoint mounted on the aft end of the inboard headsail track. While underway we leave tethers permanently mounted to the jacklines on both sides of the boat so it is easy to unclip from a cockpit tether (with one tether "leg") to the jackline tether that has 2 "legs" so you can move around obstructions without being detached (or double click for extra safety).

The biggest issue is getting back aboard. It is hard to impossible to simply pull yourself over the rail, especially if you have a long-ish tether. We cover this in Overboard with a few examples of options for double handed boats or while in difficult conditions.

I strongly agree with the post that mentioned the Spinlock PFDs. They have built in lifting straps in addition to being light and comfortable. Plus they have self-activating strobe on a pylon that holds it above the waves, a clear spray hood so you can cover your face in strong winds and breathe more easily, and other very smart functional safety features. Not cheap but the price fairly reflects the quality, comfort, and function.