"News f2s" wrote in news:drngvt$f79$1
@news.freedom2surf.net:

They
started rigging a hoist system,

There's another screwup I've seen in the harbor retrieving someone. They
always try to hoist the guy by hand....when not 3 ft away is the end of a
halyard that leads down to a two-speed winch big enough to lift half the
boat....80% up the mast.

While Lionheart is coming about to retrieve, I'm mast furling the mizzen,
then fixing one of the mizzen halyards to the outhaul with a block off
the end of the boom secured by a line I can release from the mast, which
makes a great sea painter for the dingy, by the way. The boom is tied
out by a preventer to the solid handrail, either side.

To this halyard, the life ring is attached to throw to the victim, as we
passes slowly by him/her. Now hanging onto the life ring (or hopefully
tethered to it by their Sospenders, the victim is simply wound close
aboard to the mizzen "sea painter", the line released from the block and
the victim hauled up the side of the boat by the halyard and one of the
many winches in the cockpit at the base of her mizzen.

Once the victim has clipped the halyard clip to the Sospenders, the
victim no longer needs to be strong enough to haul themselves anywhere.
Crew aboard does the hauling. If the victim appears unable to do that, a
crewmember can be deployed on the halyard, jump off the mizzen boom and
swim it to the victim, maybe with a harness if necessary and it only
takes one crew member to haul BOTH of them back aboard with the winch's
power.

This grappling over the side to grab someone by hand is crazy in a
sailboat full of winches and halyards.