Avoiding small boats

[Gerry]

Can anyone advise what the correct thing to do would be in the following scenario?
I was recently leaving a marina under power,having just refuelled. The entrance through the jettys is very narrow and busy with incoming and outgoing traffic.Just as I had enough revs on to manoevure the boat(40' cutter) around a dozen small kids sailing-well learning- a fleet of Optimists decided to zig zag back and forth across the channel under the guidance of their rib mounted instructor.
Well I tried to go astern and avoid them but that just caused consternation from the 72' gin palace racing up behind me so after gesticulating to the non english speaking man in charge I just cut a swathe tthrough them all and prayed loudly that I wouldn't sink any!
Got out in one piece with no screaming kids left behind but feel there should have been more I could do........!

'I love kids but couldn't eat a whole one....'

 

[MedMan]

An all too common problem. I suspect that most of us would have done the same as you did. Trying to avoid first one only to end up ramming another is a non-starter. Perhaps we should hoist the signal for a vessel constrained by her draught - which in a narrow channel a yacht most certainly is - and put the onus firmly on the Oppies to keep out our way.

 

[gus]

Under the circumstances you describe, there is probably not much more you could have done at the time. Teaching kids to sail in a narrow busy channel is a bit like teaching a bunch of kids to ride a bike on a busy high street - totally irresponsible. 5 short blasts with a loud horn might create enough of the brown stuff to make them think twice about doing it in future. A notification to the local coastguard might also be worthwhile for the last thing they want is an avoidable incident on their doorstep - likewise the marina.

 

[ccscott49]

5 blasts on the horn followed by as many more as is required to atract attention from the idiot in charge, like giving babies plastic explosive to play with, teaching kids to sail in an obviously busy channel!