Canada Powerlines outdated & Sailors get 120,000 Volt
 

http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawac...3-2b2c92639eee

20 ft boat, 40 ft mast? I dont think so.

Joe

Canada Powerlines outdated & Sailors get 120,000 Volt
 

On 4 Aug 2004 08:09:28 -0700, (Joe) wrote:

http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawac...3-2b2c92639eee

20 ft boat, 40 ft mast? I dont think so.

Joe

Ouch. The article didn't say her mast was 40', though. It said the
power lines were *supposed* to provide for 40' of clearance, which
isn't very much. A Sabre 28 needs 41', not including antenna or wind
instruments. Anyway, it would take a brave sailor to sail under a
power line where the clearance was "close":) Anyway, it said her mast
was something along the lines of 23'. Good thing she wasn't sailing a
steel boat:)

Canada Powerlines outdated & Sailors get 120,000 Volt
 

Joe wrote:

http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawac...3-2b2c92639eee

20 ft boat, 40 ft mast? I dont think so.

It says the standard mast for that boat is 7.2m - 23.7'. Allow, say, 3' for
waterline to mast step, and the height of the mast above water is about 27',
max. The only thing I can think of is that the power line was sagging more
than it should have been (I assume the area isn't tidal).


--
Wally
www.artbywally.com
www.wally.myby.co.uk

Canada Powerlines outdated & Sailors get 120,000 Volt
 

Wally wrote:
Joe wrote:

http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawac...3-2b2c92639eee

20 ft boat, 40 ft mast? I dont think so.

It says the standard mast for that boat is 7.2m - 23.7'. Allow, say, 3' for
waterline to mast step, and the height of the mast above water is about 27',
max. The only thing I can think of is that the power line was sagging more
than it should have been (I assume the area isn't tidal).

Well, you don't actually have to contact the wire with your mast to get
electrocuted. At 120,000 volts the EMF is capable of jumping a gap.
That's why you see the big insulators on all high-voltage lines.

That said, take a 7.2 meter mast, add a meter for waterline to mast
step, and add .3 meters for a burgee or windex and you're looking at 8.5
meters above the water, still three and a half meters shy of the
(allegedly) 12 meter power line. Something ain't adding up.

--
//-Walt
//
// http://cagle.slate.msn.com/working/040514/matson.gif

Canada Powerlines outdated & Sailors get 120,000 Volt
 

felton wrote in message



Good thing she wasn't sailing a
steel boat:)

Wrong! If they were on a steel hull the bird cage effect would of
prevented them from getting harmed. RedCloud has been struck by
lighting with us aboard twice and it had no effect besides an arc mark
on top of the mast.

On a plastic boat the least line of resistance is a human body and all
your electronics.

Joe