"Greg Jaynes" wrote in message
...
On Mar 11, 2:47 pm, "Wilbur Hubbard"
wrote:
Tsunami damage . . .
http://www.ktvu.com/slideshow/news/27162990/detail.html
I say these dock rats asked for it. Real sailors are out sailing or moored
in an uncluttered area.
Wilbur Hubbard
I agree completely. I have many similar pictures of what hurricane Ike
did to Marina Landings
in Galveston. I left my Coranado 25 to go to Dallas not expecting the
direct hit that we got. If I had
expected it, I would have anchored out in the Bayou. Still I made
preparation for a storm surge
which saved my boat while the ones around me got smashed, sunk or
deposited upland.
I backed my boat out of the slip and laid a spread of two anchors
astern. I had seventy yards of clearance.
Then I tied off two differing length dock lines from the bow to the
dock pilings. Plus I dropped a pig of balled up chain astern.
(this may be why my engine got dunked)
My engine got dunked and I had to use my oars to reposition her when I
got back but she was unharmed.
Here's what I learned and photographed.
1.) Dont trust dock pilings.
You can never tell their integrity. Just because you can't move it
doesn't mean a boat can't.
2.) Dont trust risers
These things pop off like toys.
3.) Dont trust docklines
If the slip isn't sized right, you simply cannot tie them off
effectively due to the surge.
They'll chaffe and break or hold your boat down while the surge sinks
her.
4.) Don't underestimate storm surge
Pilings that were generally taller that boats in good times went thru
the bottoms
of the hulls and sank them after the surge hit.
5.) Don't trust others to tie their boats safely.
Many of the boats had too tight of dock lines. Either the lines broke
or the cleats got pulled out or the risers got pulled off.
In all cases where the dock lines were too tight something bad
happend. The dockline that didn't somehow come loose
sank many boats. I have pictures of all this. Almost all these boats
were too big for the slips they were in.
My friend anchored his 32' Allmand out in the bayou and she never got
a scratch. I was horrified when he described his
anchoring technique against only one direction but it worked this
time.
A sailboat is best suited to a mooring or a set of anchors. She will
be in harmony with the universe as she lines up with and does not
resist wind or current. Not to mention, it's less likely some other
boat will smash into her. I suppose this goes for motorboats too. But
as I think of it, I can't remember any motoryachts at all that didn't
goedown in the marina. Maybe 15 sailboats survived.
Marina Landings never opened again.
====================[reply]====================
Hi Greg. It's nice to hear you're still alive and kicking and still have
your fine Coronado 25 and take good care of her. We Coronado owners are sure
proud of our worthy vessels and rightly so.
You must have been pretty close to the area where Joe was. I think Joe
bought one of those old, storm damaged, derelict motorboats to restore.
As usual, your opinions are worth their weight in gold as you are a real and
practical sailor who takes pride in what he does. This is as it should be.
Would that there were more of us. Your valid points about the dangers of
pilings and the dock environment in general should be taken to heart by all
sailors who value their boats and those of their neighbors but, as usual,
there are a lot of ignorant people at docks who don't even prepare for a
storm. These are the people who don't even go to the dock and prepare and
when asked say, "Oh, that's what insurance is for," and, in the meantime,
their ill-prepared and inadequately tied up boats wreck others in the
process. For that reason alone smart sailors will seek the shelter of the
bayou and little rivers. I've ridden out a few hurricanes aboard up the
Little Shark River in the Everglades. No damage and the worst that happened
was the boat was covered with shredded vegetation that stained but bleach
took care of it. This happened in the core of one of the hurricanes. That
locomotive noise is real but I'd liken it more to a roar of a jet plane.
Sort of a deep rumble and a scream at the same time. Tall mangrove trees
were snapping off about thirty or forty feet above the water. The water rose
a full ten feet and the little creek we were in was gone. The water was
flowing sideways at about three knots. The boat was tied spider-webbed to
stout tree trunks all around. I slept through a couple hours of the storm
just because it got old after a while.
As for an outboard engine getting dunked that's easily avoided. Remove it
and stow it below in the accommodation. It's not going to be worth a lick in
a storm anyway.
Wilbur Hubbard aka Capt. Neal