Hey Jonathan (and the rest who replied),

Well the wind direction isn't exact, I rounded it to make it simpler. But
over in Richmond (Marina Bay), the wind somes from the southwest normally
during the summer (I've windsurfed out of the same area for years).
Sometimes more south, sometimes more west, but pretty much southwest
average. The upwind berths are facing in that direction, I rounded it to
South to make things simpler to explain :-)

As to being "beamy" the boat is 10'10" and the slip is 13'. I look like a
big pregnant guppy compared to the other boats around me. It's tight, but
doable.

The problem is that propwalk moves me in the direction oposite the turn I
have to make to pull out so I can leave the marina in a forward direction.
So yes, this is my "bad turn" direction. I thought about the reverse
option, but at the end of my row is the shallow water. The clearance from
the end of my row to the shallow rocks isn't much longer than my boat
length. Plenty of room when it's not crowded, but I think I would have been
a tad nervous backing out the entire length towards the rocks. But another
option to consider.

As to current, the really isn't that much since I am at the end of the water
flow (next to the walls) and at the time of launch, it was near max high
tide. As to the wind, I measured it right before backing out and got 3 - 4
kts. I didn't measure it the first time I had problems, and I think the
wind was stronger that time. It is POSSIBLE that if I had backed out a
little stronger (not in reverse idle) I could have made it this time, but I
thought it would be a good chance to practice backing out using a rear
spring line for when I had stronger winds. The result was a very ugly
picture, lucky for me, it was a Friday and nobody was around.

Although it's been a few years since my ASA Basic Coastal Cruiser course,
docking was the area that I needed the most practice. As long as things are
calm, I never had a problem. But throw in some cross wind, and all bets
were off. The problem I found in the class was I came in to light (in and
out of neutral and idle) and didn't have enough momentum (my instructor told
me this) to overcome any wind or current. Now that I own a boat, I don't
really want to sit around waiting for the wind to be "perfect". And given
the boat's larger size (compared to the slip anyway) it makes it much more
of a challenge.

I agree with the "more practice is needed". It's tough to play around the
dock when the wind is blowing and the bay looks great. But around the
corner from my dock area is the pumpout station and it has a bit more room.
Plus I tend to sail midweek, so I guess I'll have to go practice some :-)

I appreciate the help, from the gist of things, I get that this should be
easily doable, but I need a lot more practice....


--
John Lechmanik

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"JG" wrote in message
...
Comments interspersed....

"John Lechmanik" wrote in message
...
Normal summer wind in the bay comes from NW or W not south. Are you sure
you're not getting some other effect? Where are you located? I have my
boat and the school boats located in Sausalito. We have a Yamaha 30, which
isn't beamy at all, but your Hunter sounds like a nice boat. I'm sure it's
just a matter of practice.

The Marina is surrounded by homes and the wind is usually blocked pretty
well by the wind from the south by other rows of sailboats. However the
wind from the east, west, and north are not that blocked. To make things
more interesting our exit from the slip is to the east, which means I
have to back out of the slip to the right. The boat pulls to port when
in reverse.

It always makes for interesting. g You have to use the prop walk to your
advantage.

You can also mitigate its effect by using the throttle firmly but not for
an extended period. This doesn't mean gunning it excessively. Give some
throttle, then back off and put it in neutral. The prop walk will go away,
but of course, you'll have to put the boat in gear and do it again.

Here is the fun part. During this time of the year, the wind comes from
a variety of directions. When the wind comes from the east (port side of
the boat when in the slip) it's a challenge getting out of the slip. The
first time I backed out under these conditions I was just out of the
slip, and turning the boat to starboard when the wind pushed the bow back
around. No matter what I did, I couldn't get the boat turned into the
wind and was being pushed by the wind down the marina. I finally spotted
an open slip and pulled in. We ran a line off the bow and I backed out
again, but this time had the bow held to the dock. I managed to get the
boat turned into the wind, picked up my partner (2 man crew that day) and
sailed off.

You can also back down the slip area if necessary. Sometimes, we back the
school boat all the way up the line of slips to dock her... usually when
short handed. It works but takes practice. Try practicing backing, etc.,
away from docks to mooring balls or something. This will get you a lot of
practice without doing damage. You should get to the point where you can
back the boat in quite a straight line.

A few days ago, we had the east winds again, but this time with a little
bit of north. After reading up, I tried to run a line off the starboard
stern to pull the stern around as I backed out. This SEEMED to be
working until I tried to pull next to the slip to pick up my partner, and
the north effect of the wind started pushing my starboard into the parked
boats. We managed to finally get some forward momentum and move foward
while fending off the boats. I couldn't pick up my partner and had to
pull around to the downwind side of the berths and pick her up there.
The wind was only about 3 - 4 kts.

My preference would be to leave the dock with the entire crew if at all
possible. Could it be a current issue also? 3-4 kts wind is hardly
anything for a boat that size, especially if you're using the engine
properly.

Jonathan

I know it's been a long explaination, but now I'm wondering how to pull
out under these conditions and pick up my crew before leaving.

Any suggestions???


--
John Lechmanik

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