Charlie Morgan wrote:
Donna is safe and sound and headed for Customs to check in.

CWM

I'm happy to hear she made it, but I'm not at all
surprised. I would have been surprised if she did
not make it in after coming so many miles.

Don W.

I just took a look at her web site .. or the Donna Lange web site .. hard to
figure what it is all about.

From the site.

UPDATE
Thursday, April 19 - 15:30 EST
I had the pleasure of talking with Donna for bit. She is getting ready for
her shower and then plans to sleep. She wants everyone to know how greatful
she is for all your prayers and energy. She needed every last bit of it.

Donna said she found herself dosing off moments at a time for last
30-minutes of her journey in. She would dose and correct, dose and
correct... Brian Oatley told Will that she was speaking incoherantly when
they tried to establish radio contact but once they were face to face, she
was fine. Brian towed her in the last stretch and said she must have fallen
asleep as soon as the tow line was established. He had to go below and get
her for the docking. The boat is pretty much in shambles and those are her
words not mine. "The steering vane is damaged, the wind generator is hit
and miss, there's so much work to be done before it can be sailed again.
It's like starting over".

Donna described herself as feeling pummeled. I assume that's a word but if
not, we all know what she means. She knows she will be extremely sore
tomorrow and probably for a couple days to come. But other than needing
rest, she says she's healthy. She scared herself when she looked in a
mirror for the first time. She said her face was bright red and weathered
from the last 36-hours straight of high wind rain. She said "my new friends
from Bermuda won't even know what I look like".

I asked Donna if she wanted to share any thoughts on the days to come. She
thinks she'll be ready for a flight to Rhode Island by Monday. She feels
the need to get a few things arranged on her boat before she leaves.
Tomorrow (Friday) brings another round of storms so she knows she won't get
much done until that passes. Her hope is to spend some relax time tomorrow
catching up on her log and email that she couldn't get to while she was
being pounded. Neil

===============================================


As much as I feel for her ,, we here have been discussing her decision to
sail into a very bad situation.
Look what it has brought her. The boat is about wrecked. She almost didn't
make it. From the writing, it would seem as if she was at the end of her
physical indurance.
It reinforces what we learn in basic sailing and navigation at our Power
Squadron course; plan ahead, watch the weather.

But ,, all's well that ends well. Or something to that effect.

================================================== ======




"Don W" wrote in message
.. .
Charlie Morgan wrote:
Donna is safe and sound and headed for Customs to check in.

CWM

I'm happy to hear she made it, but I'm not at all surprised. I would have
been surprised if she did not make it in after coming so many miles.

Don W.

NE Sailboat wrote:
I just took a look at her web site .. or the Donna Lange web site .. hard to
figure what it is all about.

From the site.

UPDATE
Thursday, April 19 - 15:30 EST
I had the pleasure of talking with Donna for bit. She is getting ready for
her shower and then plans to sleep. She wants everyone to know how greatful
she is for all your prayers and energy. She needed every last bit of it.

Donna said she found herself dosing off moments at a time for last
30-minutes of her journey in. She would dose and correct, dose and
correct... Brian Oatley told Will that she was speaking incoherantly when
they tried to establish radio contact but once they were face to face, she
was fine. Brian towed her in the last stretch and said she must have fallen
asleep as soon as the tow line was established. He had to go below and get
her for the docking. The boat is pretty much in shambles and those are her
words not mine. "The steering vane is damaged, the wind generator is hit
and miss, there's so much work to be done before it can be sailed again.
It's like starting over".

Donna described herself as feeling pummeled. I assume that's a word but if
not, we all know what she means. She knows she will be extremely sore
tomorrow and probably for a couple days to come. But other than needing
rest, she says she's healthy. She scared herself when she looked in a
mirror for the first time. She said her face was bright red and weathered
from the last 36-hours straight of high wind rain. She said "my new friends
from Bermuda won't even know what I look like".

I asked Donna if she wanted to share any thoughts on the days to come. She
thinks she'll be ready for a flight to Rhode Island by Monday. She feels
the need to get a few things arranged on her boat before she leaves.
Tomorrow (Friday) brings another round of storms so she knows she won't get
much done until that passes. Her hope is to spend some relax time tomorrow
catching up on her log and email that she couldn't get to while she was
being pounded. Neil

===============================================


As much as I feel for her ,, we here have been discussing her decision to
sail into a very bad situation.
Look what it has brought her. The boat is about wrecked. She almost didn't
make it. From the writing, it would seem as if she was at the end of her
physical indurance.
It reinforces what we learn in basic sailing and navigation at our Power
Squadron course; plan ahead, watch the weather.

But ,, all's well that ends well. Or something to that effect.

Her experience is certainly a sharp contrast to those who have to be
rescued if they lose their autopilot.

--
Peggie
----------
Peggie Hall
Specializing in marine sanitation since 1987
Author "Get Rid of Boat Odors - A Guide To Marine Sanitation Systems and
Other Sources of Aggravation and Odor"
http://shop.sailboatowners.com/books...ku=90&cat=1304

I wish I had an auto pilot!

======================
"Peggie Hall" wrote in message
t...
NE Sailboat wrote:
I just took a look at her web site .. or the Donna Lange web site .. hard
to figure what it is all about.

From the site.

UPDATE
Thursday, April 19 - 15:30 EST
I had the pleasure of talking with Donna for bit. She is getting ready
for her shower and then plans to sleep. She wants everyone to know how
greatful she is for all your prayers and energy. She needed every last
bit of it.

Donna said she found herself dosing off moments at a time for last
30-minutes of her journey in. She would dose and correct, dose and
correct... Brian Oatley told Will that she was speaking incoherantly
when they tried to establish radio contact but once they were face to
face, she was fine. Brian towed her in the last stretch and said she
must have fallen asleep as soon as the tow line was established. He had
to go below and get her for the docking. The boat is pretty much in
shambles and those are her words not mine. "The steering vane is
damaged, the wind generator is hit and miss, there's so much work to be
done before it can be sailed again. It's like starting over".

Donna described herself as feeling pummeled. I assume that's a word but
if not, we all know what she means. She knows she will be extremely sore
tomorrow and probably for a couple days to come. But other than needing
rest, she says she's healthy. She scared herself when she looked in a
mirror for the first time. She said her face was bright red and
weathered from the last 36-hours straight of high wind rain. She said
"my new friends from Bermuda won't even know what I look like".

I asked Donna if she wanted to share any thoughts on the days to come.
She thinks she'll be ready for a flight to Rhode Island by Monday. She
feels the need to get a few things arranged on her boat before she
leaves. Tomorrow (Friday) brings another round of storms so she knows she
won't get much done until that passes. Her hope is to spend some relax
time tomorrow catching up on her log and email that she couldn't get to
while she was being pounded. Neil

===============================================


As much as I feel for her ,, we here have been discussing her decision to
sail into a very bad situation.
Look what it has brought her. The boat is about wrecked. She almost
didn't make it. From the writing, it would seem as if she was at the end
of her physical indurance.
It reinforces what we learn in basic sailing and navigation at our Power
Squadron course; plan ahead, watch the weather.

But ,, all's well that ends well. Or something to that effect.

Her experience is certainly a sharp contrast to those who have to be
rescued if they lose their autopilot.

--
Peggie
----------
Peggie Hall
Specializing in marine sanitation since 1987
Author "Get Rid of Boat Odors - A Guide To Marine Sanitation Systems and
Other Sources of Aggravation and Odor"
http://shop.sailboatowners.com/books...ku=90&cat=1304

On Fri, 20 Apr 2007 01:44:16 GMT, "NE Sailboat"
wrote:

I wish I had an auto pilot!

======================

If you do a lot of single handing you will find an autopilot, even a
small tillerpilot, to be one of the best investments you ever make for
the boat.

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 20 Apr 2007 01:44:16 GMT, "NE Sailboat"
wrote:

I wish I had an auto pilot!

======================

If you do a lot of single handing you will find an autopilot, even a
small tillerpilot, to be one of the best investments you ever make for
the boat.



Definitely. I have an ST4000 and a remote control. Works great, especially
if I'm away from the cockpit and need to make a change.

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com

On Thu, 19 Apr 2007 21:56:58 -0400, Wayne.B
wrote:

On Fri, 20 Apr 2007 01:44:16 GMT, "NE Sailboat"
wrote:

I wish I had an auto pilot!

======================

If you do a lot of single handing you will find an autopilot, even a
small tillerpilot, to be one of the best investments you ever make for
the boat.

There may some instances where they will capsize your catamaran.
Here's an interesting article by Cliff Biddick in the Cruisers &
Sailing forum about a 42' Atlantic.
http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ntic-5486.html
The post containing the article is down a bit, but doing a find on
Biddick will get you right to it. I didn't feel comfortable copying
the article here.
Another puzzle, but certainly a caution about leaving a cat's sails
untended.

--Vic

"Vic Smith" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 19 Apr 2007 21:56:58 -0400, Wayne.B
wrote:

On Fri, 20 Apr 2007 01:44:16 GMT, "NE Sailboat"
wrote:

I wish I had an auto pilot!

======================

If you do a lot of single handing you will find an autopilot, even a
small tillerpilot, to be one of the best investments you ever make for
the boat.

There may some instances where they will capsize your catamaran.
Here's an interesting article by Cliff Biddick in the Cruisers &
Sailing forum about a 42' Atlantic.
http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ntic-5486.html
The post containing the article is down a bit, but doing a find on
Biddick will get you right to it. I didn't feel comfortable copying
the article here.
Another puzzle, but certainly a caution about leaving a cat's sails
untended.

--Vic


Interesting. I wouldn't not by a cat because of this, but it is interesting.


--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com

Vic Smith wrote:

On Fri, 20 Apr 2007 01:44:16 GMT, "NE Sailboat"
wrote:
I wish I had an auto pilot!

There may some instances where they will capsize your catamaran.
Here's an interesting article by Cliff Biddick in the Cruisers &
Sailing forum about a 42' Atlantic.
http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ntic-5486.html
The post containing the article is down a bit, but doing a find on
Biddick will get you right to it. snip

Fascinating story. Good work by Cliff and his
salvage team on the recovery.

Don W.

Catamaran Capsizes on Little Traverse Bay
by Cliff Biddick

Tuesday, October 19th was much like a lot of
others in the fall in Northern Michigan. The East
wind blew up Lake Charlevoix creating a sea that
gently, but relentlessly, rocked the tug “Heather
B” when my cell phone rang.
Jeff Pulaski, the Service Manager of our Harbor
Springs yard was on the other end. “Are you in the
middle of anything?” he asked. After 35 years in
the boatyard business, I have come to expect the
unexpected on a regular basis. “We have a customer
who has capsized his 42’ Atlantic catamaran in the
middle of Little Traverse Bay,” he said. The Coast
Guard has taken him and his two friends to shore
and they are fine, but the boat is drifting,
pushed by the East wind out of the bay. Can you
help him?

That’s the way another adventure in the towing and
salvage business started. Andy Hellstrom and I
began the preparations for finding the boat and
recovering it. Our instructions were fairly
straightforward; the owner was attempting to
locate divers. Andy and I, with the “Heather B”,
were to proceed to Bay Harbor where we would take
the owner and the divers aboard. The Coast Guard
was monitoring the vessels drift by using the
EPIRB that was still signaling its location from
within the cabin of the inverted boat.

Our trip to Bay Harbor was uneventful as the heavy
tug plowed through the head sea from the East.
When we arrived at the dock, the owner and two
divers, with their gear were awaiting us. We
loaded quickly and immediately headed Northwest to
the position the Coast Guard had provided to us.
We found the “Starry Night” easily in the late
afternoon light and went right to work. Our first
concern was debris and lines trailing from the
boat but this did not prove to be a problem. All
lines just hung downward and the boat was
'aground' on its’ masthead in 68’ of water.

One diver went into the water and attempted to get
the sails under control. After a couple of hours,
the diver had not been able to get the mainsail
'up' and under control and had only one line on
the headsail, the boom still hung straight down,
and many cut lines added to his challenge. The
dinghy, still in davits, was righted and tied
alongside the tug. In diminishing light we made
our first attempt at righting her. Unfortunately,
the sails were still hampering the 'tow ability',
causing the big cat to pull hard off our starboard
side. With the daylight now totally gone, we
elected to tow the inverted boat bow first, eight
miles into Harbor Springs, while still upside
down. This meant staying in about 100 feet of
water. We did not wish to cause additional damage
to the boat and although plenty of horsepower was
available, we towed at 1.7 to 1.9 knots for 8
miles and arrived in the harbor about 1:00 am. We
anchored it in 100’ of water with a strobe light
marking it as a navigation hazard.

The next morning we returned to the boat. In a
matter of a few hours, the diver had the sails
'up' and the mainsail furled, the two 200 foot
anchor lines wrapped around the dagger boards and
the towing bridle re-rigged. The boat was ready
for the righting.

The process involved rigging a bridle from the
forward cross arm brought to an apex aft of the
boat on center where it was tied to our 1-1/2” x
600’ Dacron towline. The knot consisted of a
bowline together with two half hitches to secure
the bitter end. I mention this because we actually
pulled it right out of the line, twice, in the
righting process. Neither line broke but the knot
was non-existent after letting go. On the third
attempt the boat tracked straight aft, 'tripped'
over its’ own sterns, the bows rose and over it
came, slowly and gently until it floated once
again, albeit low in the water.

We immediately put two 1” electric pumps and a 4”
gas pump into her. While the owner, the diver and
Andy started the re-organization process, the tug
took her gently in tow into the dock at Irish Boat
Shop. With the help of the boat shop crew, the
“Starry Night” is being dried out and preserved
awaiting a surveyor’s inspection and determination
of her future.

Why the catamaran capsized remains a mystery. The
owner and his two companions had been sailing
several hours in 15 to 18 knots of wind. They were
inside the cabin with the boat on autopilot. In
what can only be considered a 'microburst', it
went over in less time than it took the owner to
shut off the autopilot. He and the crew simply
'walked' up the wall and onto the ceiling where
they remained dry for an hour and a half until the
rescue divers from the Emmet County dive team
arrived. The owner actually called the Coast Guard
using his cell phone as his masthead antenna was
70’ under water.

....
There may some instances where they will capsize your catamaran.
Here's an interesting article by Cliff Biddick in the Cruisers &
Sailing forum about a 42' Atlantic.http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...oled-atlantic-...
....

Very interesting. I wish there were more details on the capsize
itself. I have sailed an Atlantic 42 all over the Pacific. I've seen
some pretty unpleasant weather. Certainly more difficult weather than
is reported for this capsize. This last trip up from New Zealand to
Hawaii, which we did non-stop, we spent something like a week beating
into gale force winds. The auto pilot sailed 99.9% of the time.
I've had the boat up to just under 20 knots power reaching with full
sail in about 20 true and I've never gotten a hull out of the water.
So, it astonishes me that they were able to flip their boat in a
moderate breeze. I suppose they were lighter than we are since they
weren't carrying a live aboard load and they were in fresh water so
they had less reserve buoyancy but... I just have to believe that
they had at least 20-25 knots of true wind and a boat speed in excess
of 10 knots to do this and I can't imagine sitting below under auto-
pilot with full sail in those conditions. What were they thinking?

-- Tom.