Re; too small to sail to France

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ajt

ajt

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Did you see seaside rescue last night?
the one with the two lads that set off from the IOW to sail to Cherbourg on a small cat (Dart 18?) Had to send out the lifeboat and helicopter to tell them to turn back also a ship circled to help pinpoint thier position.
Was this brave or stupid?
 
I did not see it: Did they call for help?

Or has UK now got the same policy as US with the ability to classify someones actions as unsafe.
 
Their mother was worried so she called the CG. They had no lights and the conditions looked like light airs when they were picked up by the lifeboat so it was probably for the best.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I did not see it: Did they call for help?

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't think they did. It was a mother who called the authorities. They were going to Cherbourg from where I do not know and were off course. They had a VHF radio (probably hand held), there was no info on what other equipment/supplies they were carrying, whether they knew they were off course or felt they had a problem.
 
Seems reasonable. Hope mother pays for a few safety lessons for youngsters and some RNLI staff training.
 
If not duffers, then won\'t drown.

[ QUOTE ]
Was this brave or stupid?

[/ QUOTE ]
Probably both, they seem to go hand-in-hand. Personally I subscribe to the Darwinian school of learning, i.e. if it doesn't kill you, it teaches you something. I recall reading Uffa Fox's (auto?)biography when he described sailing his self designed and built planing dinghy to a regatta at, I think it was Bologne, from Cowes. And back again. Not something I would have done, even at his young age, but that doesn't make it wrong.
 
It's not really the size of the craft that should be the issue, but the suitability of the craft and the preparedness and skill of the crew.

I have a friend who crosses the Channel in his wayfarer, but his preparation is always meticulous and he is better equipped than some larger cruising boats that cross the channel.

Many well built boats from yesteryear such as the Hurley 22 almost routinely made offshore passages - even Atlantic crossings (without all the modern navigational electronics of today), so the Channel shouldn't be too much of a problem.
 
Surely the point of that one was....

...that they had become becalmed in very busy waters as night was approaching with no lights. probably a very weak radar paint and no auxiliary means of propulsion. They were, to my mind in a dangerous situation. If they'd have had an outboard with sufficient fuel and lights then I'm sure that nobody would have been worried as their craft was certainly capable of the relatively short voyage.

and..

oh yes,

their mum was worried.

Steve Cronin
 
No.

Uffa Fox made the same trip in an International 14 racing dinghy, back in the 1920's, and crossed to Brittany in a sliding seat canoe in the 1930's. It is quite possible to make that trip in a Wayfarer.

I've crossed the North Sea a couple of times in an 18 footer.
 
Re: Surely the point of that one was....

Relatively short voyage?
Isle of Wight to Cherbourg, must be at least fifty miles.
They did have wet suits, life jackets and a hand held VHF but it is still an open dinghy with no engine, yes I know people used to go around with no engines but was there so much traffic back then and doing the speeds they do these days?
My brother recently bought a Dart 18 and found himself in the path of the QM2 when the wind dropped, panicked paddling saved the day and on another occasion in a force five he said that the waves came up under the trampoline and stopped the boat dead in the water. So maybe not the right craft for the conditions.
Yes there are small boats that have done more challenging crossings but better prepared in my opinion.
 
Re: No.

Seem to remember Frank Dye sat out a gale in his Wayfarer on the way to Iceland or somewhere up there. Never went anywhere in anything larger than a Wayfarer
 
Re: No.

"Or has UK now got the same policy as US with the ability to classify someones actions as unsafe. "

It seems so. A friend recently touched on a sandbank and was waiting a few minutes for the tide to lift him off. An enormous rescue boat appeared from nowhere, and insisted in coming in too close. It was waved away but took no notice, and smashed my friend's counter very badly (1908 Lowerstoft trawler). No one called it - it was just a dangerous nuisance in a situation that was already well under control. There's now a massive insurance liability argument going on.
 
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