"Vic Smith" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 8 May 2007 07:23:16 -0700, "Capt. JG"
wrote:

"Vic Smith" wrote in message
. ..
http://www.wvec.com/news/local/stori...642a3b1 .html

Anybody know if this storm was well-predicted?
A fluke?
How would a Mac 26M fare in these situations?
If the boat isn't sinking, when would you send the distress signal?

--Vic


You'd be dead in short order. Have any idea what it like to exist inside a
washing machine, only with drawers and shop objects flying around?

No, never tried that. Are the drawers just dungarees or the wooden
kind that slide into cabinets? Are the shop objects rags or drill
presses and bench grinders? These are compelling questions.

--Vic


Yes, I'm sure they are for some people. Best of luck with your Mac.

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

On May 8, 7:09�am, Vic Smith wrote:
On Tue, 08 May 2007 09:21:52 -0400, Wayne.B





wrote:
On Tue, 08 May 2007 07:06:46 -0500, Vic Smith
wrote:

http://www.wvec.com/news/local/stori...0707_uscg_resc...

Anybody know if this storm was well-predicted?
A fluke?

As of Friday morning, May 4, it was forecasted as a developing low
pressure system with sustained winds over 30 kts. *Hardly a surprise
to anyone who was paying attention.

How would a Mac 26M fare in these situations?

Your guess is as good as anyone else. *No one in their right mind
would go off shore in a boat not designed for that kind of use.

If the boat isn't sinking, when would you send the distress signal?

If you have people seriously injured there isn't much choice. *Boats
are usually tougher than people, and broken ribs, dehydration, or
hypothermia can all be life threatning.

There were broken ribs in one case here. *And the seas were pretty
vicious from all accounts. *I guess I asked this because I've seen
accounts where some ride it out while others decide - with no injuries
- to pack it in, leaving their vessels for salvors.
Probably too individual a thing to answer unless you've gone through
it.
And maybe, despite all efforts, I could get caught in a similar
situation, and I'm thinking that there are some measures of
preparedness that could help ride it out. *Sea anchors, harnesses,
topside liferafts that would deploy if the boat sank, personal
EPIRB's, etc. *Could be that preparedness would lessen the urge
to abandon.
Just hate the thought of abandoning a boat and putting the coasties at
risk when it's not a vital need.

--Vic- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

The primary plan should be avoiding that type of situation in the
first place.
I never leave the dock without first listening to the weather forecast
on the VHF.
It takes about 3-4 minutes to listen to the latest prerecorded update,
which is a perfect amount of time to warm up the engine.

Also, every boat should have a barometer, placed where it will be seen
frequently.
I have a clock and barometer on the aft bulkhead of the main cabin,
with the barometer mounted above the companionway leading aft. I see
it all the time, and consciously look at it 2-3 times a day. If the
forecast is favorable but the barometer suddenly starts to plummet, I
believe the barometer and not the forecast.

A Mac 26 would not do well in hurricane force winds, nor would the
majority of small sailboats. There are very good reasons why most
sensible boaters won't venture out in a near gale, let alone the winds
described in the news item.

On 8 May 2007 08:08:18 -0700, Chuck Gould
wrote:



Also, every boat should have a barometer, placed where it will be seen
frequently.
I have a clock and barometer on the aft bulkhead of the main cabin,
with the barometer mounted above the companionway leading aft. I see
it all the time, and consciously look at it 2-3 times a day. If the
forecast is favorable but the barometer suddenly starts to plummet, I
believe the barometer and not the forecast.

Thanks for that barometer tip. I added it to my "needed gear" list.

--Vic

On Tue, 8 May 2007 08:05:32 -0700, "Capt. JG"
wrote:



Yes, I'm sure they are for some people. Best of luck with your Mac.

Haven't yet decided to get a Mac, but thanks for your kind wishes.

--Vic

They joined the Navy.

"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...
On May 8, 5:44 am, Larry wrote:
Vic Smith wrote
:

Anybody know if this storm was well-predicted?

It's been going on for days and is very well reported, here in
Charleston. Trucks are being warned to stay off the high bridges. Winds
were 50 mph here, yesterday and about the same, today.

A front off New England is pushing this low backwards down the East
Coast. Seas offshore of Charleston are over 30 feet high, according to a
local radio station, this morning. Airplanes are landing with big crab
angles at the airport as it's blowing between runway headings. The sky
is clear, but 50% pop tonight and tomorrow as it approaches us.

They had no business being out there, even in clear weather! This
statement from the webpage says it all:

"a couple in their 70's and a 40-year-old woman who were stranded 200
miles out to sea."

IN THEIR 70'S?! COME ON! How stupid is that, offshore 200 miles with NO
YOUNG, STRONG BACKS ABOARD?!!

As long as rich stupids like these are buying boats, I still say
LICENSING should be mandatory. You want to sail...fine. You take the
course, TAKE THE PHYSICAL TO SEE IF YOU REALLY BELONG OUT THERE (no
matter what YOU think), then, if you pass all the REQUIREMENTS....then,
we issue you a LICENSE, we can revoke when you are too old, to PREVENT
YOU from endangering the lives of young rescue swimmers, helo crews and
boat crews just because you are too stupid and pig headed to see you are
too old to go "out there" without enough MUSCLE and ENDURANCE for that
worst case scenario you should be REQUIRED to be prepared for.

NOONE IN THEIR 70'S NEED APPLY! They should be PASSENGERS of ABLE
SEAMEN!

Larry
--
This spammer called my cellphone:
First American Payment
10101 E Arapaho Rd
Richardson, TX 75081
972-301-3766
They were nasty when I politely said I wasn't interested....(c;

There's no absolute age when you no longer belong on the water.

One of the saltiest and most capable boaters I ever knew was cruising
his 38-footer until a week before he died. In fact, we were with him
when he started having chest pains one evening at the Silverdale town
dock. We took him to a hospital to get checked out. That was the
beginning of the end for him, he didn't survive the angioplasty
operation the following week. He was 83 or 84, and his wife a couple
of years younger.

Two other friends of mine are enroute to Alaska right this minute
aboard their 48-foot DeFever. He's 81 and runs the boat, she's 62 or
63. They are running a blog called Big Brivet's Big Adventure ("Big
Brivet" is the name of their boat).

On the other hand, my father is in his late 70's. He would have no
business aboard a boat, even as a passenger. He's got a leg and hip
that was messed up pretty badly in an auto accident 30-40 years ago
and he thought he would
just "tough it out" rather than get it fixed. He limped for a long
time, but now he can't get around without a walker.



My father in law was still sailing when in his late 70's. Had downsized to
a 30' Islander from a Bermuda 32. Only thing that stopped him sailing was
death by cancer.

Larry wrote:

NOONE IN THEIR 70'S NEED APPLY! They should be PASSENGERS of ABLE
SEAMEN!

almost no one. this guy might cut it

http://www.runnersweb.com/running/rw...40927_TWM.html

They had no business being out there, even in clear weather! This
statement from the webpage says it all:

"a couple in their 70's and a 40-year-old woman who were stranded 200
miles out to sea."

IN THEIR 70'S?! COME ON! How stupid is that, offshore 200 miles with NO
YOUNG, STRONG BACKS ABOARD?!!

Wait something is missing from the story. The first paragraph says 6
people were peulled from the boat. They only said that two were in
thier 70's and one was over 40. Maybe they did have some young people
on board. Maybe the other 3 were were regular sailors. The story
doesn't say anything about who owned the boat or that they wer rich.
maybe they went out for a charter and were too stupid to realize it
wasn't a good idea and the crew figured they would tough it out.

"KLC Lewis" wrote in
et:

Well, that's the Nanny State solution, sure. The Free Citizen solution
would be more along the lines of, "Go and do what you want. But if you
get into a world of hurt and want to be rescued, you will receive a
bill for our services."

Nah, can't have that. Too much freedom.



That would be fine BUT your unlicensed stupids' actions would STILL
endanger everyone else....like it does now...on any waterway.

It's not about the rescue. It's about a certain level of expertise to
operate the equipment....EXACTLY like every other moving form of
transportation you use.

Larry
--

Chuck Gould wrote in
ups.com:

One of the saltiest and most capable boaters I ever knew was cruising
his 38-footer until a week before he died. In fact, we were with him
when he started having chest pains one evening at the Silverdale town
dock. We took him to a hospital to get checked out. That was the
beginning of the end for him, he didn't survive the angioplasty
operation the following week. He was 83 or 84, and his wife a couple
of years younger.


What a bunch of nonsense. NOONE you'll ever meet on the dock over 60
years old should be allowed to be the primary muscle on any boat going
out of the harbor, out of sight of land. I don't give a damn how many
years him and his wife got away with it. An 80+ year old man CANNOT do
the physical work of a much younger man (or woman), required to handle
such emergencies in such conditions. Hell, the 20-somethings are
overwhelmed by a lot of it.

Doesn't wash, no matter how many years they got away with it.

Larry
--