rhys wrote:
Great story, by the way, particularly for this time of year when half
of us are on the hard!


Thank you, glad yoou enjoyed it.

What kind of preventers and jacklines did you have rigged?


Preventers... none. IMHO a preventer might have saved the traveler (but
then it might not) and probably would have resulted in a shredded main
much sooner and possibly a serious (ie flooding) knockdown. One reason
we didn't rig a preventer to the main boom was that there was no place
to secure one, other than the mooring cleats.

What kind of tethers and harnesses did the crew have, or did the
owner or skipper provide them?


I have a wide poly webbing harness with a shock absorber; the captain
brought two harnesses & long tethers; two of the crew bought SOSpenders
the day before departure.

The jacklines were galvanized cable put on by the delivery captain;
these proved a bit troublesome in that they definitely interfere with
footing and also bang up the deck. However I don't doubt that they would
have functioned to keep a person from getting lost overboard.

The biggest problem is accessibility. With an afterthought jackline, not
fitted to the boat, much of the time you can't be hooked on while
working. For example, the biggest risk we had of a person going
overboard was when unrigging the bimini... involving two people standing
up on the coaming, at the height of the squall, wrestling with the
thing... unhooked to jackline of course. Later, when working at the
mast, I had to unhook too. It slows you down and makes it more risky IMHO.

What kind of foul weather gear did you have, and did it work well
enough in the conditions? (I know it wasn't freezing, but I bet it got
pretty damn chilly in spots with that 40-50 knot wind).


I didn't notice the chill until later. Foul weather gear varied... I had
a one-piece Gill dinghy racing suit, which was great until I wore out
the knees crawling on the deck (it was old anyway). After a change into
dry socks, I was comfy. I plan to get another one-piece racing suit, as
I think it's more limber & more waterproof than bibs & jacket. I've also
worn my dinghy racing neoprene booties offshore and find them better
than "offshore" gear... your feet get wet but stay warm. As long as you
have a place to stow the wet stuff, and don't run out of dry towels,
it's the way to go.

Fresh Breezes- Doug King