JJS54
New Member
Just thought I'd post to register my appreciation for the guys who responded to our Pan Pan last Tuesday when we were adrift half way across Lyme Bay. I've obviously contacted them direct as well, but it's always good to let others know when people are so generous with their time and expertise.
We'd left Weymouth at 0430 to get the best conditions for the race on the inshore passage round Portland Bill. No problems at all round the Bill, so I opened up the throttles as far as the slightly lumpy conditions would allow to cross Lyme Bay to Brixham by the direct route. Half way across, the starboard engine suddenly dropped revs alarmingly, and within 10 seconds died altogether. To make matters worse, I then discovered the wheel wouldn't turn to port at all - it was somehow jammed. Normally I would have been able to limp somewhere on the port engine, but without being able to compensate with the steering, I was just going round and round in a circle.
A quick survey of the engines failed to turn anything up, so with the swell increasing with the wind, waves beginning to build up higher, and my wife becoming increasingly seasick, despite efforts to keep the bow into the waves using the bowthruster, I resorted to the VHF. The Solent Coastguard relayed the Pan Pan, and almost immediately a 60 foot UK Sailing Academy yacht out of Cowes - UKSA Whirlwind II - responded. Despite reservations from the coastguard that he'd be able to help us, the skipper, Richard Grimwood, confirmed that he would tow us to Brixham. After lowering his sails and fixing up a bridle, he expertly manoeuvred back to our bows, where at the second attempt I caught his line, and rather less expertly attached it to my own makeshift bridle. He then towed us at 5 knots for the three and a half hour trip to Brixham.
Incidentally, the engineers diagnosed an airlock in the fuel system as the cause of the engine failure, while the loss of steering was apparently caused by two bolts on the autohelm linkage shearing completely. I've been told this might have been caused by the sudden change of torque between the two outdrives (I'm no engineer). Whatever, it resulted in the link jamming itself against the steering mechanism, and preventing the wheel turning to port.
So with the boat now safely in her new berth in Falmouth, I just wanted to publicly recognise Richard and his crew for giving up a superb sailing day to help us out. They immediately set off for Dartmouth, so we couldn’t offer more than a shouted thanks across the water, but a donation to the UKSA charity is already on its way.
We'd left Weymouth at 0430 to get the best conditions for the race on the inshore passage round Portland Bill. No problems at all round the Bill, so I opened up the throttles as far as the slightly lumpy conditions would allow to cross Lyme Bay to Brixham by the direct route. Half way across, the starboard engine suddenly dropped revs alarmingly, and within 10 seconds died altogether. To make matters worse, I then discovered the wheel wouldn't turn to port at all - it was somehow jammed. Normally I would have been able to limp somewhere on the port engine, but without being able to compensate with the steering, I was just going round and round in a circle.
A quick survey of the engines failed to turn anything up, so with the swell increasing with the wind, waves beginning to build up higher, and my wife becoming increasingly seasick, despite efforts to keep the bow into the waves using the bowthruster, I resorted to the VHF. The Solent Coastguard relayed the Pan Pan, and almost immediately a 60 foot UK Sailing Academy yacht out of Cowes - UKSA Whirlwind II - responded. Despite reservations from the coastguard that he'd be able to help us, the skipper, Richard Grimwood, confirmed that he would tow us to Brixham. After lowering his sails and fixing up a bridle, he expertly manoeuvred back to our bows, where at the second attempt I caught his line, and rather less expertly attached it to my own makeshift bridle. He then towed us at 5 knots for the three and a half hour trip to Brixham.
Incidentally, the engineers diagnosed an airlock in the fuel system as the cause of the engine failure, while the loss of steering was apparently caused by two bolts on the autohelm linkage shearing completely. I've been told this might have been caused by the sudden change of torque between the two outdrives (I'm no engineer). Whatever, it resulted in the link jamming itself against the steering mechanism, and preventing the wheel turning to port.
So with the boat now safely in her new berth in Falmouth, I just wanted to publicly recognise Richard and his crew for giving up a superb sailing day to help us out. They immediately set off for Dartmouth, so we couldn’t offer more than a shouted thanks across the water, but a donation to the UKSA charity is already on its way.
