doris
Well-known member
Odd. Gravity doesn’t change.
How many coastal cruisers have a life raft?
- Thread starter [178529]
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Gary Fox
N/A
Never in the Air Cadets, it was unheard-of in the 70's. In the early 80's I 're-soloed' after a week's course in two-seater glass gliders. No parachutes on the two seaters, K21's, but my solo was on a similar K23 ( single seat version) and a parachute was compulsory, riddle me that?
I think the delicate sports parachutes don't last long in a course environment, are very expensive to maintain, and possibly were seen as making the sport look risky
The BGA ruled with a much lighter touch 40 yrs ago, I am led to believe..
Greenheart
Well-known member
That is inspired! I hadn't even thought of it. ?
If you have to abandon in calm weather, launch the tender which you can row or motor, and from which you can easily see in all directions. And in case of rain later, take that lousy overpriced tent-in-a-box. ?
JumbleDuck
Well-known member
There are possibly better places to rely on a flimsy plastic inflatable that somewhere with pointy rocks and tides strong enough to puncture a GRP hull on them ...
[178529]
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This has been a great thread. I think the learnings I can summarise from it are:
- probably, and this from unscientific hearsay, the numbers of people who coastal cruise who have a liferaft are quite low.
- the chances of needing a plan b, through fire, collision or misadventure are low but catastrophic and a plan b is sensible if going more than just coastal hopping.
- epirbs, plbs and the like do help mitigate the risk
- a tender would be a plan b
- most people think a liferaft a better solution particularly if doing longer passages
- renting seems better solution if doing just a few long sails a year.
So I will use a tender mostly as a plan b but rent a liferaft if going to France or Ireland.
- probably, and this from unscientific hearsay, the numbers of people who coastal cruise who have a liferaft are quite low.
- the chances of needing a plan b, through fire, collision or misadventure are low but catastrophic and a plan b is sensible if going more than just coastal hopping.
- epirbs, plbs and the like do help mitigate the risk
- a tender would be a plan b
- most people think a liferaft a better solution particularly if doing longer passages
- renting seems better solution if doing just a few long sails a year.
So I will use a tender mostly as a plan b but rent a liferaft if going to France or Ireland.
capnsensible
Well-known member
Have you ever rolled a tender in light surf on a fairly calm day in warm water?
capnsensible
Well-known member
Have you ever gone into the wind on a tender in freezing cold rain?
Think about what each is designed to do. A liferaft ballasted and streaming drogues to keep the door downwind will give you a survival chance. A tender will likely invert and cause your demise. Your choice, of course.
capnsensible
Well-known member
Have you ever seen a dinghy on Davits full of rainwater or the effect of a breaking wave dumping masses of seawater into it? Those kind of things make me choose a liferaft. My choice, of course.
But as I said earlier, in fair weather, close to shore or busy areas it's probably not worth it for most people. Fair enough. No problem for me.
Greenheart
Well-known member
JumbleDuck
Well-known member
From memory ... As a very rough guide, it takes 500' to decide to use a chute, 500' to get ready to jump, 500' to jump and 500' for the chute to open and slow you down. There simply is no point in wearing a chute for circuit bashing - particularly in the air cadets where, I was told by AC instructing friends - every flight is following a syllabus and they never go high.
I am sure they are well made, but glider parachutes are lightweight emergency ones, not things you'd jump regularly. They have to be treated and stored with care, and wearing them when a seat back would do just as well is only unnecessary wear and tear.
The BGA certainly had a light touch, but it wasn't very competent. Bitter experience.
Gary Fox
N/A
That all makes sense thanks
dom
Well-known member
True, but the LR could provide time, the value of which would be enhanced by proximity to shore. Time to deploy one's entire armoury of distress beacons in plain sight of land: Epirbs, AIS Distress Beacons, flares/smokes, torch SOSs, VHF, etc.
With its multiple compartments the LR would also provide something to cling to and something for the rescuers to spot.
Could be the best £2k(ish) one has ever spent?
[178529]
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I think arm bands would be useful as well.
Stemar
Well-known member
So, after 130-odd posts, there are entrenched opinions on both sides, but what consensus there is seems to be that a tender is OK for inshore sailing, but better to have a raft when going going offshore. For occasional trips, probably better to hire one, which is what I think I'll do if I ever go offshore again.
Just don't do what a friend of mine did. He bought a boat and sailed it around for seven years before I met him and hadn't serviced either lifejackets or raft in that time. Lovely bloke, but "all the gear and no idea". Knowing nothing about the raft, I refused to touch it, but I did look after his LJs.
At least the cartridges in the LJs went off with a satisfying pop when I threw them in a bowl of water.
Just don't do what a friend of mine did. He bought a boat and sailed it around for seven years before I met him and hadn't serviced either lifejackets or raft in that time. Lovely bloke, but "all the gear and no idea". Knowing nothing about the raft, I refused to touch it, but I did look after his LJs.
At least the cartridges in the LJs went off with a satisfying pop when I threw them in a bowl of water.
RupertW
Well-known member
I’m really not convinced about them being stable - just being part of training and righting them worried me enough until seeing footage of under-occupied liferafts in rough weather.
dom
Well-known member
Not trying to change anybody's opinion here, but caution is required with the tender idea: for example my 3.6m tender with big tubes would be swiftly overwhelmed in a big sea. Fair enough a couple of miles miles from land but beyond that, well that's a personal question for those in the sub-13.7m sector.
RupertW
Well-known member
Hmm...you’ve posted lots of times since Thursday but still can’t remember the names of the boats or people involved or the years they happened so we can look up the reports and learn from them. I’m not terribly surprised.
All The Gear No Idea
Member
We have one aboard. I bought it secondhand a few years ago, spent £300 odd getting it serviced two years later (expected half that by being drawn in by the company who did the service’s hollow advert). It was due a yearly after the last one, which was 2.5 years ago. I haven’t bothered, but will keep this one for a few more years before buying a new one.
We realised the importance of a life raft after doing an RYA Sea Survival course. This was compounded by having a need to get into the freezing cold water one spring afternoon (prop wrap). If you do have to go into the water, your chances of survival are limited! Even in a warm swimming pool, being fully clothed makes getting out of the water a big challenge! If you have a life raft, you aim to step up into it as your boat sinks!
With the greatest of respect, those who think an inflatable dinghy will protect them in rough water are deluding themselves! A 2ft wake is enough to overwhelm/flip one of these.
I think a dry suit is something well worth contemplating.
We have an EPIRB, but I read an article recently suggesting that these on their own aren’t enough - you need a satphone to guarantee that you’ll be discovered and picked up.
We realised the importance of a life raft after doing an RYA Sea Survival course. This was compounded by having a need to get into the freezing cold water one spring afternoon (prop wrap). If you do have to go into the water, your chances of survival are limited! Even in a warm swimming pool, being fully clothed makes getting out of the water a big challenge! If you have a life raft, you aim to step up into it as your boat sinks!
With the greatest of respect, those who think an inflatable dinghy will protect them in rough water are deluding themselves! A 2ft wake is enough to overwhelm/flip one of these.
I think a dry suit is something well worth contemplating.
We have an EPIRB, but I read an article recently suggesting that these on their own aren’t enough - you need a satphone to guarantee that you’ll be discovered and picked up.
dom
Well-known member
Okay, so have got all the gear.
The question is, have you got....
........Oops, just read your username ?
Actually I largely agree with you, except for satphone a few miles offshore!
Daydream believer
Well-known member
It is not the tide but a wave dropping a boat on to one that does the damage. But if you do not like that idea, try a sandbank in the Thames estuary punching a fin keel through the hull. Now that is a reality, because there have been a few of those over the years. I recall a brand new 40 ftr being delivered to its home port sinking on Margate sands years ago. I have read reports of sinkings in other places in the Thames.
But to each his own & if one feels happy without one, then that is Ok. It is the skipper's decision. What one has to remember that having one does not guarantee safety, only that it gives just another string to the bow
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