Overnight passages

[fireball]

Stretching and breathing exercises when torpor threatens and a walk round the deck; hold the safety line off the deck. Stretching revitalises the muscles and breathing exercises using the full lung capacity revitalises the blood. Google stretching exercises and make up a small routine - its surprisingly effective.

Rubbing cold water into the face and around the whole neck freshens one up when concentration begins to fade.

Cold water trick. Use that one to wake up in the morning.
Ta

 

[Elessar]

Oh the engine is reliable. No alarms

will I ever live that down?????????

 

[fireball]

will I ever live that down?????????

Live what down? Dunno what you're talkin about guv

 

[Plomong]

The first night isn't too bad. A second night is nigh on impossible. The trouble is you start to wake up again as dawn comes up so you can't just crash for a few hours once you arrive. I find that sending SWMBO to bed around 9pm then waking her to spell me for a couple of hours around 2am helps to take the edge off it. Of course I have to fit that to a time when we are well clear of the shipping lanes.

I second that. SWMBO sometimes does a 9-12 watch and then an 8-12 the following morning, allowing me to take 2 short rests, which may or may not include sleeping, depending on my state of rest.

When single-handed, I stay on deck at all times except for short visits below for navigation, food, natural functions, etc.

 

[LadyInBed]

Hmm ... brown sauce ... don't have that onboard - do you think it's important? Would Tomato sauce substitute?

No way!
Egg and Bacon banjo's with a dash or three of Lea & Perrins hits the mark.

As for over nighters, I set the AIS alarm, wrap a blanket round me and have a 10 min shut eye, then a quick look around and down for another 10 mins, I can't call it sleep as I am aware of the feel of the boat.
I am not too bothered about small boat traffic, as there isn't too much of it around over night, AIS picks up the ships, but having said that, my over nighters are mainly x channel.

 

[dancrane]

Nothing like fear, to wake you up and keep you alert, for a while at least. When I woke my dad up with a few carefully-phrased screams, he'd been asleep at the wheel of the car, nudging 160kph on the French autoroute. We had no problem staying alert, for the rest of that trip…

Isn’t there an answer to the original question, in the long experience of the OSTAR and other singlehanded races? I know lots of their miles are in empty waters, but not all. Perhaps they cope because of the pressure of competition? Maybe the old 'reef in the dark' advice isn't wise...the result is safety, which is dangerously similar to a nice pillow...

I'm still hoping to modify an Osprey dinghy for singlehanded cruising, next season. I've seen that I'll be able to find a cheap clip-on masthead tricolour light, so potentially, I may end up pinching myself, halfway across Lyme Bay, around 02:30 on a balmy July night...how will I stay awake? Perhaps the best solution is imminent potential for capsize...

 

[nigelmercier]

But - after a day (or 1/2) at work - then onto the boat - how do you keep yourself awake for the night?

Coke

 

[fireball]

Coke

Is that the stuff that comes in cans and bottles or the stuff that comes in parcels?!

 

[Twister_Ken]

Is that the stuff that comes in cans and bottles or the stuff that comes in parcels?!

From a boiler room, surely?

 

[oldvarnish]

Isn’t there an answer to the original question, in the long experience of the OSTAR and other singlehanded races? I know lots of their miles are in empty waters, but not all. Perhaps they cope because of the pressure of competition?

I've done the OSTAR. I did the twenty minutes sleep at a time caper, often credited to Ellen Macarthur, but first used by Blondie Hasler in the 1968 OSTAR.

It works. By the time it gets to morning, you wake refreshed.

 

[nigelmercier]

Is that the stuff that comes in cans and bottles or the stuff that comes in parcels?!

I'll let you be the judge

 

[mcframe]

Make sure the off watch crew get their heads down straight away and don't enjoy a couple of hours sailing and nattering first.

I'll second that - get the watches out of sync ASAP, and even continue less formal "skeleton watches" during the day. I'll often try to grab 2 hours kip during the day if everyone else is awake and there's not much going on

Some of the old 19:00 Friday start JOG races were bad for that - *everyone* would do the start, then stay up, so by 0200, *everyone* was knackered.

 

[pmagowan]

I've made the mistake on a couple of long passages in the dark to just keep at the tiller from the start. With just me and my sister on board I need to be alert for when approaching port or if anything gets tricky. I would strongly advise anyone to have a strict schedule making sure that the most competant person gets good sleep and is available for when they are needed. I was knackered when we reached port and we had to ancor in an unsheltered spot which made sleeping the rest of the night difficult and I had to get up regularly to check for dragging. We didn't even eat supper as all I wanted to do was crash.

I was motoring at night just a few days ago with my Mum for crew. It was only until midnight and the sea was flat with no wind (hence the motor). We were well fed and my mum went to the bow to check for pot buoys.

Before night sailing check your nav and steaming lights. Make sure a torch is to hand (red one preferably, headtorches are good). Dim your instruments. And if alone on watch clip on. Don't have a pee off the back of the pushpit!

 

[dancrane]

Good advice, but weird - I can't imagine sailing seriously, with my mum or sis. They both scare easily. At least, when I'm in charge...

 

[pmagowan]

My mum is very experienced and a good sailor. My sister is the least experienced but manages well and is responsible for down below. The boat belongs to my sister and I (28 foot wooden honeybee). I have stripped her right down and built her back up with help from my family so I know her inside out (there isn't a single part of her that my hand hasn't touched at least a dozen times. sanding )
On the first journey we were sailing but the wind and sea got up as we approached land and I had to go forward and struggled to get the sail down as my sister had difficulty getting her to point into the wind with the large waves. I should have come back and told her to put more welly on the engine to get better steerage but I was a bit commited by then. Anyway, you learn by experience and she and I are getting better all the time.

 

[dancrane]

That sounds terrific, I envy you. My family never came anything near as mad about sailing as I.

My sis is petrified by the boat heeling, and by waves, and by some un-named aura of danger - probably based quite reasonably on her own not knowing what to do, or where to steer, or how to stop the sails flapping.

My mother's just the same - I only have to mention a half-hour helming a mate's boat on a fine day, and in her eyes I regress to being a helpless eight-year-old who hasn't learned to swim yet.

My dad was in the navy, many, many decades ago, so he doesn't scare irrationally. Much easier to discuss sailing, with.

 

[GrahamM376]

So - forums learned opinions please..


You lot seem to have had (or are on) your summer hols - but mine is yet to come ...
Planning an overnight trip to get her into the locality where we'd like to cruise - so it's "delivery crew" (or just an excuse for a bluddy good sail hopefully!) time ...

But - after a day (or 1/2) at work - then onto the boat - how do you keep yourself awake for the night?

My normal bedtime being around 1-2am I don't have a problem doing the first night watch until SWMBO takes over around 5-6am. Sailing or motoring, the radar is always on standby and powered up (usually 12 mile range) every 20 mins or so. Well away from the coast, night vision isn't so important so I kill time reading. Long passages on engine can sometimes be like watching paint dry - utterly boring.

For overnight, have snacks and cup-a-soups out and ready, some butties pre-made. Things like Cornish pasties can easily be warmed in the oven (wish we could get them here!) During the day, depending on conditions, we tend to stick to normal mealtimes, cooking as dictated by sea state.

We tend not to stick to fixed watches, when one's tired she/I turn in, often for a good 8 hours. Once into the second night, watch & sleep patterns fall into routine and, it's not unusual to arrive somewhere and go out on the town.

 

[Lee_Shaw]

Why?

The main reasons I think motoring at night is a recipe for disaster are, firstly, the coastal seas are littered with lobster pots, which means that there needs to be a hand on the tiller and a person up in the bows keeping a watch, crew at the bows, hollering back to the cockpit ruins any chance of a snooze, everyone is getting tireder.

Secondly, the noise from the engine seems really loud at night and ruins any chance of a snooze, and means everyone has to use there eyes, ears are rendered useless.

Thirdly crew going overboard at night is a far more serious matter than one in the day but yet there has to be a member of crew at the bows hollering back and forth to the tiller.

The boat will also invariably be a give way vesssel and will be travelling at a speed that requires a level of watch that is draining.

Everyone is knackered and peeed off by the time the boat arrrives at port.

The main problem is the lobster pots, snagging one at night is a major concern, and the fact that everyone is tired and hypnotised by the engine, making them rubbbish at at looking for lobster pots and keeping up the onorous watch required from motoring, make it a no-no. IMO.

But we make our own decisions. A rope cutter might alleviate the disasterous scenarios, but everyone will still have had a rubbish night and be knackered come the morning, unless the boat ios so large that the engine and hollering between bows and tiller do not ruin their snooze.

Sail, get some kip, listen to the boat, is what I prefer.

 

[Beadle]

Plenty of good ideas - but don't forget the weather will always have the last word.

Two people is fairly straight forward provided both can get a few hours sleep. Thrown in a surprise F6-7 and the best laid plans can go down the tubes.

All too easy for you mate, instead of having a few hours sleep then spelling you to be incapacitated by seasickness - and you becoming increasingly exhausted, and the weather getting worse.

Similarly if you throw in a gear failure or some other breakage then your 24 -30 hour trip can become a 40 - 48 hour one

Always worthwhile having a few contingency plans for this sort of thing.

 

[fireball]

Always worthwhile having a few contingency plans for this sort of thing.

Oh yes. Contingency is probably change of departure point to Gatwick.