blackbeard
Well-Known Member
which, on my little 25' coastal cruiser, are rigged in the normal place, ie along the side decks.
This doesn't seem ideal as, in order to walk along the side decks, my safety line (dog lead) needs to be at least a metre long. More likely, 1.5 m. That's long enough that, if I go over the guardrail wire, I'm suspended above the water and, if I go under it, I'm probably skimming along the surface. As I don't have the arm strength of a gorilla, I can't get back aboard the boat from there. The crew might be able to help, provided I have someone on board with the arm strength of a gorilla - unlikely, especially if sailing single handed.
Yes, I know I'm supposed to go up the windward side of the boat so that if I slip, I fall, so to speak, into the boat rather than into the water. But, in a confused sea, I could fall either way.
So, the jackstays, regarded as an essential safety item, don't do that much for safety.
There's another obvious place to rig the jackstays - on top of the coachroof, one on each side. That doesn't take me as far as the foredeck - there are other solutions, so far as the foredeck is concerned, which include a big cleat (nominally to take the anchor cable) which forms a nice strong point - but I probably wouldn't want to go on the foredeck since the foul-up is likely to be near the mast, and I can reach that easily from a point near the front edge of the coachroof. The coachroof has the major advantage that it's higher than the deck, also slightly further inboard; I can use a shorter dog lead which, attached to the higher point, WILL keep me on board. It will also be easier to clip on to than a stay at deck level.
The proposal is thus to fit a set of jackstays on either side of the coachroof, but keeping the existing ones on the side decks.
Before I start drilling holes in my boat to take the necessary fittings, can anyone see anything wrong with this plan?
This doesn't seem ideal as, in order to walk along the side decks, my safety line (dog lead) needs to be at least a metre long. More likely, 1.5 m. That's long enough that, if I go over the guardrail wire, I'm suspended above the water and, if I go under it, I'm probably skimming along the surface. As I don't have the arm strength of a gorilla, I can't get back aboard the boat from there. The crew might be able to help, provided I have someone on board with the arm strength of a gorilla - unlikely, especially if sailing single handed.
Yes, I know I'm supposed to go up the windward side of the boat so that if I slip, I fall, so to speak, into the boat rather than into the water. But, in a confused sea, I could fall either way.
So, the jackstays, regarded as an essential safety item, don't do that much for safety.
There's another obvious place to rig the jackstays - on top of the coachroof, one on each side. That doesn't take me as far as the foredeck - there are other solutions, so far as the foredeck is concerned, which include a big cleat (nominally to take the anchor cable) which forms a nice strong point - but I probably wouldn't want to go on the foredeck since the foul-up is likely to be near the mast, and I can reach that easily from a point near the front edge of the coachroof. The coachroof has the major advantage that it's higher than the deck, also slightly further inboard; I can use a shorter dog lead which, attached to the higher point, WILL keep me on board. It will also be easier to clip on to than a stay at deck level.
The proposal is thus to fit a set of jackstays on either side of the coachroof, but keeping the existing ones on the side decks.
Before I start drilling holes in my boat to take the necessary fittings, can anyone see anything wrong with this plan?
