In article ,
"Roger Long" wrote:

The captain in this case was being more his wife's husband than the master
of the vessel. The crew was more wife than watchstander. This may sound like
soft and fuzzy stuff but, when you get fatigued and stressed, the tendency
is to fall back on your underlying role. This is why pilots and others
engaged in hazardous activities practice so many drills, so that when
stressed, they will fall back on the drill instead of their normal selves.
snip
This has also driven home something I've know but realize now that I've
observed more in talk than actual vessel management. Make fatigue part of
all your planning. The navigator's mental acuity is the most important
resource aboard. When evaluating your ability to transit a difficult area,
look forward to your likely condition, not your underlying ability. Could
you do it staggering drunk? If not, maybe it's not the appropriate ending
for a challenging leg.

I'm not preaching. I'll be sailing my own boat differently next summer as a
result of what I've learned from the "Flying Pig" grounding.

Some very good points here, particularly that after not too many hours
in those conditions, most will be "staggering drunk" and should include
that condition in their deliberations. Heck, just returning to the slip
after a full day of sailing on a hot day often demonstrates diminished
capacity.

Pat and I drill just about everything, sailing into and out of harbors
and marinas, turning around to pick up that piece of driftwood that
struck our fancy, backing around the marina, making a game out of the
exercises. We've been accused of hot-dogging, but when we had to do
those things in earnest, the necessary actions were second nature.

Still, I think we might have been caught up in that chain of events, so
we'll be trying to figure out what the drill should be. So far, the
only thing that comes to mind is "stop"; heave to, anchor or something,
get some rest or at least slow things down. We've waited out a few
Chesapeake squall lines anchored out in the middle of everywhere. Not
my first choice, but it's far from my last.

--
Jere Lull
Xan-a-Deux ('73 Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD)
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