Badly tied up boats...

StellaGirl

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How many people get very irritated walking down a pontoon and seeing the many, many boats that are just tied up badly? I mean 3 wraps around a cleat is plenty but the people who put so many wraps you cant even see the cleat anymore drive me nuts!
Also mooring lines scattered over the pontoon....why not take them back to your boat and keep the pontoons clear (and safer)..
Am I the only one who hates this?

<hr width=100% size=1>Its 11.59am - lets open the beers...
 
Hello StellaGirl

I often wrap the loose ends of my lines round the cleat rather than have them lying loose around the pontoon. Seemed a good and considerate idea at the time but would be grateful for others views as I seldom use pontoons and marinas

Regards

Cameron


<hr width=100% size=1>Work to live, live to sail
 
Nope! one of my sailing friends kicks all warps left as a trip hazard in the water, his opinion is they will soon learn to take them back on board??
I must say we have watched and it does work, seems people don’t like dealing with wet lines especially if they have been there for a week or so………. /forums/images/icons/shocked.gif


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I wish I'd been born rich instead of good looking ?
 
The tidiest way is to just have a loop around/through the cleat on the pontoon, and have the loose end of the line on deck.

<hr width=100% size=1>Rich

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.marineinteriors.co.uk>Marine Interiors - Beautiful Marine Upholstery</A>
 
Some people dont consider others when tying up ands using all the cleat. If you are rafted alongside someone and they have used up all the cleat you then have to redo their boat before you can tie your own up. I think bowlines in this scenario are much better - easier to undo when you want to leave as well - especially if you are the inside boat!

Same goes for long pontoons when you come along behind someone. Happened to me before - being blown off, strong tide and whoever was doing the bow line really struggled as there was so much s**te on the cleat he needed. He had to hold boat alongside while someone sorted cleat out. (they should have had more cleats though!)

<hr width=100% size=1>Its 11.59am - lets open the beers...
 
my least favourite was walking along a pontoon to the visitors' area at night and finding black warps tied to cleats on the opposite side of the pontoon so catching me at knee level. the offenders were princess demonstrators at mayflower in plymouth.

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Ouch. Were the cleats to which they were tied next to the "Visitors Will Be Persecuted" sign?

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If everybody uses a bowline and feeds there's up through all the others and onto the cleat anybody can leave in any order and not have to undo a single knot.


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The Folly, on the Medina, has to be the worst visitors pontoon for this offence, any other contenders? The only (considerate) way to tie a warp to a pontoon cleat is with a bowline, take the rest of the string back to your own boat, that will give other visitors half a chance of getting a shore line on. Some weekends the cleats at the Folly are just a mass of warps going round and round and round!

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Good seamanship would be to put a soft eye or bowline around the pontoon cleat then all the spare line left on deck of your boat.....On my berth at home I have made fixed lengths of breast line and springs, these have small length of chain with 14mm polyester spliced in with soft eye at other end. The short lenght of chain is shackled to the pontoon cleat and the soft eye put on cleats aboard. The chain prevents any chaffe on pontoon cleat...........I often wonder how people will tie up their pride and joy, often in eccess of £100,000 with bits of old genoa sheets, climbing rope and british Telecom pull through line!!!!!!

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May be a sign would help?

Tie_your_boat_down_2003.jpg


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Badly tied up boats..and general ignorance.

Todays beginer, middle manager with early retirement and a new 40 footer has no idea that there are right and wrong ways to secure a boat. 'It's just rope, how hard could it be?' Wouldn't occur to him to ask... he's a Manager.
Same with navigation post decca and Gps, old fasioned, no need, didn't work anyway,,,,,,,,
Now 'everyone' has a chart plotter the correct use of a pencil sharpener is ancient trade craft.
I wonder if they enjoy it at all?

IanW

<hr width=100% size=1>Vertue 203, Patience
 
Lets shout about it everywhere! Long live the bowline on the cleat and slack on board. Worst of all are those who tie to the opposite side of finger pontoons!

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