With all the recent discussion about wind and wave estimates, I have to pass
along this experience.

It's blowing hard here in Maine today. I went out to the airport to check my
plane and was glad I did. The cabin cover had come loose and was beating
against the sides. The heavy, insulated engine cover had blown right over
the nose and let the oil door pop open. The plane had walked forward even
though chocked. Pushing it back against the wind took real effort. When the
tie downs slacked as I pushed it back, the plane started dancing and
bouncing hard against the ropes. I put a second tie down rope on the tail
and noticed that just the distraction of the wind in my face made it hard to
untangle the line and tie a knot as efficiently as normal.

It was pretty sobering to watch the control surfaces slating and moving even
though they are all secured with gust locks. The tie down area sounded like
a bunch of elves were banging tin cans flat as the rudders of the many
planes with casual owners slammed back and forth in the wind. As I walked
back, the wind was strong enough that I had to lean forward slightly and
push against it. I realized that I will be sailing again in a few short
months and thought, Wow! This was all happening on firm, solid, asphalt.

When I got back inside, I got out my cell phone and dialed the weather
number in the control tower. "22 gusting to 32" and this is measured 50 to
60 feet up in the clear air above the wind gradient. I'll bet there are a
lot of sailors, probably some in this newsgroup, who have never seen 30
knots of wind while out on the water.

--

Roger Long

"Roger Long" wrote in message
...
When I got back inside, I got out my cell phone and dialed the weather
number in the control tower. "22 gusting to 32" and this is measured 50 to
60 feet up in the clear air above the wind gradient. I'll bet there are a
lot of sailors, probably some in this newsgroup, who have never seen 30
knots of wind while out on the water.




Really? It happens regularly here in NZ. It's not hard to manage in
coastal waters but with a swell it gets nasty. Reef down big time and hold
on tight.

Dan

I said, "a lot"; not "most". I would agree that anyone who sails regularly
or cruises any distance has probably seen 30 or higher. A lot of people who
daysail occasionally and pick their weather may think they have seen 30 but
probably haven't.

I realized today that I've forgotten just how strong 22 gusting 32 feels and
how easy it would be to thing it was much more, especially if you were
banging around in a boat. I've spent most of the last decade flying and I
mostly stay in when it gets over 20.

I know I've seen more. I remember trying to head out in a catboat when I
was really young and foolish. Two reefs weren't enough so I put in the
third which put about 18 inches between the tack and throat, basically just
the peak of the gaff as a storm sail. I couldn't make any progress to
windward so I dropped the sail and started running back into Tenants Harbor
under the bare pole.

I started the engine and couldn't seem to get it to go into gear. It just
kept racing like the prop wasn't engaged. I was in a panic because the end
of the harbor was coming up fast and I had no power. I realized just in
time that the boat was going so fast under the mast alone that the prop was
being pulled through the water faster than the engine usually pushed the
boat.

The engine took hold when I rounded up fast to grab a mooring. It wouldn't
push the boat to windward but it held it long enough for me to run forward
and grab the buoy. Otherwise, I would have been on the beach. I have no
idea what it was blowing that day but, just before I turned around, the
splume blowing across the surface looked just like snow blowing across a
road, not streaks on the water but streams of spray blowing at wind speed.

BTW the airport says it's 22 gusting 45 now. It's a dark and stormy night
for sure.

--

Roger Long



"Max Mustermann" wrote in message
age.info...
On Thu, 23 Dec 2004, "Roger Long" wrote:

Snipped

When I got back inside, I got out my cell phone and dialed the weather
number in the control tower. "22 gusting to 32" and this is measured 50 to
60 feet up in the clear air above the wind gradient. I'll bet there are a
lot of sailors, probably some in this newsgroup, who have never seen 30
knots of wind while out on the water.

--

Roger Long


Roger, you have to get out more. You're referring to a barely Fresh
breeze.
Have a look at the following link:

http://www.world-of-islands.com/Info...eaufort_en.htm

I would have to say most of us regular boaters have been on the water in a
30+ breeze. Might not have liked it, but dealt with it OK.

****. It really is a bad night. The airport just called to tell me that
the big twin on the next tie down jumped its chocks and blew into our plane.
I'm waiting for a damage report.

--

Roger Long

Exhaust pipe flattened and cowl dented. Doesn't sound like much but cowls
go for fifteen grand and everything down to the manifold and mounts will
have to be disassembled and checked for cracks.

Who would have thought? The plane that hit us was on the side and the wind
was directly on the tail. The twin jumped one chock and pivoted around over
90 degrees on either the wing tie down or the other chock and its nose came
up and hit ours from the downwind side.

--

Roger Long



"Max Mustermann" wrote in message
age.info...
On Fri, 24 Dec 2004, "Roger Long" wrote:
****. It really is a bad night. The airport just called to tell me that
the big twin on the next tie down jumped its chocks and blew into our
plane.
I'm waiting for a damage report.

--

Roger Long

Sorry to hear that. Let us know when you find out.

Good Luck!

On Friday 24 December 2004 12:08 pm in rec.boats.cruising Roger Long wrote:

Exhaust pipe flattened and cowl dented. Doesn't sound like much but cowls
go for fifteen grand and everything down to the manifold and mounts will
have to be disassembled and checked for cracks.

Who would have thought? The plane that hit us was on the side and the
wind was directly on the tail. The twin jumped one chock and pivoted
around over 90 degrees on either the wing tie down or the other chock and
its nose came up and hit ours from the downwind side.

The twin was obviously not tied down properly.
Time to call a landshark^Wlawyer and start a negligence
claim.

--
My real address is crn (at) netunix (dot) com
WARNING all messages containing attachments or html will be silently
deleted. Send only plain text.

Most wind to date: 55k southwester. Double reefed main, reefed staysail,
beam reach, boom dragging in the water. Euphoria. In a Westsail 32. (Wet,
all right, but no snail that time.)


"Roger Long" wrote in message
...
With all the recent discussion about wind and wave estimates, I have to
pass along this experience.

It's blowing hard here in Maine today. I went out to the airport to check
my plane and was glad I did. The cabin cover had come loose and was
beating against the sides. The heavy, insulated engine cover had blown
right over the nose and let the oil door pop open. The plane had walked
forward even though chocked. Pushing it back against the wind took real
effort. When the tie downs slacked as I pushed it back, the plane started
dancing and bouncing hard against the ropes. I put a second tie down rope
on the tail and noticed that just the distraction of the wind in my face
made it hard to untangle the line and tie a knot as efficiently as normal.

It was pretty sobering to watch the control surfaces slating and moving
even though they are all secured with gust locks. The tie down area
sounded like a bunch of elves were banging tin cans flat as the rudders of
the many planes with casual owners slammed back and forth in the wind. As
I walked back, the wind was strong enough that I had to lean forward
slightly and push against it. I realized that I will be sailing again in a
few short months and thought, Wow! This was all happening on firm, solid,
asphalt.

When I got back inside, I got out my cell phone and dialed the weather
number in the control tower. "22 gusting to 32" and this is measured 50 to
60 feet up in the clear air above the wind gradient. I'll bet there are a
lot of sailors, probably some in this newsgroup, who have never seen 30
knots of wind while out on the water.

--

Roger Long

Bummer. Sorry about the damage to your airplane.



"Roger Long" wrote in message
...
Exhaust pipe flattened and cowl dented. Doesn't sound like much but cowls
go for fifteen grand and everything down to the manifold and mounts will
have to be disassembled and checked for cracks.

Who would have thought? The plane that hit us was on the side and the
wind was directly on the tail. The twin jumped one chock and pivoted
around over 90 degrees on either the wing tie down or the other chock and
its nose came up and hit ours from the downwind side.

--

Roger Long



"Max Mustermann" wrote in message
age.info...
On Fri, 24 Dec 2004, "Roger Long" wrote:
****. It really is a bad night. The airport just called to tell me that
the big twin on the next tie down jumped its chocks and blew into our
plane.
I'm waiting for a damage report.

--

Roger Long

Sorry to hear that. Let us know when you find out.

Good Luck!

The twin was obviously not tied down properly.
Time to call a landshark^Wlawyer and start a negligence
claim.


Tie what?

Any of you sailors who haven't spent any time around small planes and need a
laugh should go out to your local GA airport and look at what passes for
ropes and knots. On the way back from securing my plane, I walked by a .3
million dollar, all glass cockpit (all computer screen display), brand new
182 Skylane. It was tied with 5/16 inch clothesline using the most popular
aviation knot which is two half hitches but with about six inches between
the ring and first and another six inches to the second. We stopped and
told the plane's owner about it but it was tied exactly the same way this
morning. Of course, it didn't go anywhere so maybe he knows something that
generations of sailors haven't learned yet.

The twin didn't have any ropes at all.

--

Roger Long



"Chris Newport" wrote in message
news:1121543.jmOm3aoO7D@callisto...

On Fri, 24 Dec 2004 09:17:42 -0800, "R.W. Behan"
wrote:

Most wind to date: 55k southwester. Double reefed main, reefed staysail,
beam reach, boom dragging in the water. Euphoria. In a Westsail 32. (Wet,
all right, but no snail that time.)

Hey, don't they start to move properly at that windspeed? G

Just kidding: I have great respect for a boat that Ferenc Mate can't
insult and that survived The Perfect Storm without a crew (google
"Perfect Storm and Katana" for the REAL story...never leave the boat
except to step up into the liferaft!)

R.