BoatBanter.com - Can a 45' sailboat survive a 50' wave ?

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Can a 45' sailboat survive a 50' wave ?

I saw the news earlier this week about the 591' ship
Explorer with 681 college students on board getting
hit by a 50' wave.

What will happen if a 45' sailboat gets hit by the
same wave ?

Does it make a difference which way the boat is facing
when it gets hit by a wave this big ? If it does then
which way is the best way ?

I was told that a good boat can correct itself even if
a big wave turns it upside down. So can you just strap
yourself to your bed and go to sleep ?

Are the windows likely to break and let the water in
so that the boat can sink after getting hit many times ?

What else do you think can happen ?

Thanks for your help.

Questions like these have always given me a good chuckle ;-) Anyone that
has spent any amount of time at sea or on the waterfront will have plenty of
stories that relate to this. I'll spare you from hearing all of my "sea
stories"...

Having driven one ship in an Atlantic hurricane, another in a Pacific
hurricane, a research ship off the coasts of Washington and Oregon during
the entire months of November and December (first time I "lost my cookies"
in over 30 years at sea), and numerous yachts and ships in gales, I have two
bits of wisdom to pass on:

1. Nearly every ship (and most yachts for that matter) can withstand a heck
of alot more lousey weather than the crew aboard her can. I know personally
of numerous stories of people abandoning their yacht because the weather was
just "too bad", only to have their yacht later found completely intact
without a bit of damage.

2. If you're on a 45 foot yacht and the weather is severe enough for 50
foot seas... you ain't gonna be sleeping much... ;-)

--
Paul

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What will happen to a 45ft. boat being hit by a 50 ft. wave ...... Not
much if the wave isnt steep as the boat will simply lift over the wave.
The *steepness* of the wave is important; and, It all depends o n the
posiition of the boat vs. the oncoming wave, with being broadside to
the wave and steepness of the wave (and whether its breaking or not.)
that is thw worst case. Breaking waves (the tops of the waves sliding
down the front of the wave in a big 'show' of air filled foam are the
'nasties' that break boats. If the boat is moving, the expertise of the
helmsman (able to dodge breaking waves by steering around them, etc. is
vitally important as is the 'stability' or sea-worthniness of the boat.
A 50 foot wave is no big deal if it isnt a 'steep wave'. An
approximate 25-30 ft. wave if steep enough can easily roll a 45ft boat
- depends on if its broadside, etc.

The inbuilt stabilty is the factor of how a boat survives adverse
waves; a lightweight broad beam boat will tend to be vastly more
unstable than a heavy, deep, narrow boat ... the lightweight boat
having sometimes the advantage of being able to sail away from bad
weather faster than a heavy boat.

When the sea state is dangerous there are techniques that can be used
to survive --- such as using a parachute anchor and holding the bow
about 45 degrees to the oncoming waves. The boat will 'slip' slightly
backwards and the turbulance of the slip on the surface will cause the
waves to 'break' before they hit the boat, etc.

Its not the height of the waves but the steepness of the waves and
especially if the wave is so steep that the top of wave is 'breaking'
that is so dangerous.

hope this helps.

. net,
wrote:

I saw the news earlier this week about the 591' ship
Explorer with 681 college students on board getting
hit by a 50' wave.

What will happen if a 45' sailboat gets hit by the
same wave ?

Does it make a difference which way the boat is facing
when it gets hit by a wave this big ? If it does then
which way is the best way ?

I was told that a good boat can correct itself even if
a big wave turns it upside down. So can you just strap
yourself to your bed and go to sleep ?

Are the windows likely to break and let the water in
so that the boat can sink after getting hit many times ?

What else do you think can happen ?

Thanks for your help.

, a research ship off the coasts of Washington and Oregon during the
entire months of November and December (first time I "lost my
cookies" in over 30 years at sea), and numerous yachts and ships in
gales, I have two bits of wisdom to pass on:

Was that the "Cayuse"? I've heard more people say that was the only
ship they ever got sick on than any other. She was here in Maine for
a while but I don't know where she is now.

--

Roger Long

Was that the "Cayuse"? I've heard more people say that was the only ship
they ever got sick on than any other. She was here in Maine for a while
but I don't know where she is now.

Hi Roger,

I'm guessing your asking why one ship might be more prone to causing
seasickness than another?

There are alot of determining factors, to name a few (I'm sure there are
others, these are the ones that come to mind):

Seas - The most obvious reason. The seas off the Washington / Oregon coast
during the winter is about as bad as it gets. Gales hit every three days
(like clockwork) and the seas are big and steep. I've been in bigger seas,
but these seemed more uncomfortable.

Vessel Motion - A vessel's size, obviously, has a big effect on it's motion
at sea. Additionally, a more stable vessel will roll faster, thus making
the motion more uncomfortable. The further you go from the vessel's center
of gravity, the more motion you'll be subjected to. Yes, some ships are
just more uncomfortable in a seaway than others, and the research ship I was
on had a reputation for being a "puking machine". Since most of my waking
hours were spent on the bridge, some 30-40 feet above sea level, it was a
pretty "fun" ride. Below decks (in my bunk), it didn't seem quite as bad.
The Irony was that our mission was to count whales, but because the weather
was so bad, most of the scientists never left their bunks. Incidently, most
cruise ships have "roll stabilizers" and "bilge keels". These usually do
alot to reduce the vessel's roll.

Health - If you're otherwise ill (or tired), sea sickness will definitely
hit you faster. In my case, I had recently recovered from an inner ear
infection, which I'm sure had alot to do with why I became sick.

Smells - I know certain noxious smells trigger sea sickness in some people.

Psychology - I am one of those that believe that if you think about it too
much (or watch other folks that are sick) eventually you will get sick.
Consequently, I do everything I can -not- to think about it.

I know nothing about the circumstances with the cruise ship and students
that everyone is talking about. I only caught a few seconds of the video
that appeared on TV, so I'm in no position to judge or criticize, so I won't
even try. The last I heard, she was docked here in Honolulu.

Two other points on seasickness that are worth mentioning:

One is that the seasickness pills I took while working off Oregon (Dramamine
I think) worked like wonders for me.

The other is that extended seasickness can be a -very- dangerous medical
condition. If you (or one of your crew) should become sick, proper rest,
meals and lots of fluids are -crucial-.

Here's wishing everyone fair winds and following seas!

--
Paul

=-----------------------------------=
renewontime dot com
FREE email reminder service for licensed mariners
http://www.renewontime.com
=-----------------------------------=

No, I was asking which particular ship you were referring to. I'm
primarily involved with oceanographic vessel design so I get to deal
with motion and comfort questions a lot. I also hear lots of
scuttlebutt and that particular vessel was legendary. Even after she
came to Maine, people said the same thing about her.

--

Roger Long

"renewontime dot com" wrote in message
...
Was that the "Cayuse"? I've heard more people say that was the
only ship they ever got sick on than any other. She was here in
Maine for a while but I don't know where she is now.

Hi Roger,

I'm guessing your asking why one ship might be more prone to causing
seasickness than another?

There are alot of determining factors, to name a few (I'm sure there
are others, these are the ones that come to mind):

Seas - The most obvious reason. The seas off the Washington /
Oregon coast during the winter is about as bad as it gets. Gales
hit every three days (like clockwork) and the seas are big and
steep. I've been in bigger seas, but these seemed more
uncomfortable.

Vessel Motion - A vessel's size, obviously, has a big effect on it's
motion at sea. Additionally, a more stable vessel will roll faster,
thus making the motion more uncomfortable. The further you go from
the vessel's center of gravity, the more motion you'll be subjected
to. Yes, some ships are just more uncomfortable in a seaway than
others, and the research ship I was on had a reputation for being a
"puking machine". Since most of my waking hours were spent on the
bridge, some 30-40 feet above sea level, it was a pretty "fun" ride.
Below decks (in my bunk), it didn't seem quite as bad. The Irony was
that our mission was to count whales, but because the weather was so
bad, most of the scientists never left their bunks. Incidently,
most cruise ships have "roll stabilizers" and "bilge keels". These
usually do alot to reduce the vessel's roll.

Health - If you're otherwise ill (or tired), sea sickness will
definitely hit you faster. In my case, I had recently recovered
from an inner ear infection, which I'm sure had alot to do with why
I became sick.

Smells - I know certain noxious smells trigger sea sickness in some
people.

Psychology - I am one of those that believe that if you think about
it too much (or watch other folks that are sick) eventually you will
get sick. Consequently, I do everything I can -not- to think about
it.

I know nothing about the circumstances with the cruise ship and
students that everyone is talking about. I only caught a few
seconds of the video that appeared on TV, so I'm in no position to
judge or criticize, so I won't even try. The last I heard, she was
docked here in Honolulu.

Two other points on seasickness that are worth mentioning:

One is that the seasickness pills I took while working off Oregon
(Dramamine I think) worked like wonders for me.

The other is that extended seasickness can be a -very- dangerous
medical condition. If you (or one of your crew) should become sick,
proper rest, meals and lots of fluids are -crucial-.

Here's wishing everyone fair winds and following seas!

--
Paul

=-----------------------------------=
renewontime dot com
FREE email reminder service for licensed mariners
http://www.renewontime.com
=-----------------------------------=

No, I was asking which particular ship you were referring to.

Sorry Roger, I missunderstood.

The ship I was on was the NOAA ship McArthur.

--
Paul

=-----------------------------------=
renewontime dot com
FREE email reminder service for licensed mariners
http://www.renewontime.com
=-----------------------------------=