WNS December

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timbartlett

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October and November have already flown by, and September is but a distant memory.
So now, here on planet MBY, is December's "What Now, Skip?" ... with the usual introduction:-
* The idea is to offer a nautical puzzle, which experienced skippers will (hopefully) find interesting or entertaining, from which the less experienced may be able to learn something, and from which we can all pick up ideas.
* The WNS skipper is a fictional character. Any resemblance to a real individual is purely accidental, except that he occasionally makes mistakes, and he is not able to make time run backwards. So having got into a situation, he can't get out of it by wishing that he had done something different.
* WNS is not a competition to see who can match some hidden but predetermined solution. Of course I have an answer in mind (you wouldn't like it if I gave you an impossible situation, would you?) But mine may not be the best or only answer.
* If you think I've missed something or given confusing information please ask for clarification.
* Attributed extracts from selected posts will appear in the next issue of MBY.

Our hero and his wife have arrived at their overnight stopover in their 50ft flybridge cruiser.

It's not the sort of place they would usually choose: a once-busy commercial port, with a locked basin housing what is left of the local fishing fleet, and a rather over-optimistic attempt at a marina development.

But with a gusty wind that is rapidly freshening towards gale force, and the fuel gauges plummetting towards the red, they have little option.

The fuel berth turns out to be a short length of rough stone wall,less than 20 metres long, only just inside the lock but set back from it -- tricky, in a boat whose bows tend to blow away in a strong head wind, but manageable with the bow thruster. (see illustration)

Leaving the lock, the wind catches the bow, so our hero gives a nudge of bow thruster to straighten up. There's a clunk from somewhere down below, and frantic gesturing from Mrs Hero on the foredeck. It seems that they have gained part of a tarpaulin, but lost the use of the bow thruster.

What now, skip?
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Forget the fuel berth for now and moor the boat up somewhere easier using the engines only. If he's not confident without the bowthruster, then choose somewhere where the wind is directly on the bow or stern (ie. not a cross wind). Get fuel later when he's got the tarpaulin freed.
 
He should've got the rope cutter installed on his bow thruster shouldn't he! Now he feels like a twerp! ;)

I believe someone very knowledgable on here said that you didn't need a bow thruster if you've got twin drives - how far that scales up I don't know - but surely the priority now he's inside the marina is to berth somewhere temporarily, then remove the tarp.
My only addition to the above would be a quick call back to the marina staff to tell them what's gone on as they may have a work boat out that they can use as a temporary bow thruster or other aid should the tarp come free and wrap around the main props!

Acutally - thinking about it - a quick burst of bow thruster the oposite direction may just disengage the tarp - it'll certainly sort out if it will float free or not and therefore if it becomes a significant danger to the main drives.
 
benjenbav said:
The illustration which you mention would be nice.
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I'm sorry, but for some reason that I don't pretend to understand, the system seemed to have decided that my diagram has to be referred to a moderator.
I've tried attaching it to this post: I hope it works.
If not, I can only suggest looking back tomorrow.
 
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I'm confused - why can't he just go a bit further into the basin and do a 180? The wind would help him round and the only risk he's got is blowing on to the lock if he can't get round quick enough. I don't see the point in fighting the wind when you can let it help you hold it straight.
 
Which way did the bow blow? Towards or away from the wall?
From the diagram, I d have though this was quite an easy berthing.. use the wind to ferry glide onto the wall, and use those always-to-be-used-in-WNS ropes to slide the boat back in. Is he trying to turn the boat around 180 degrees for some reason?
I d also pop out the I-phone and book a Powerboat 1+2 course. And maybe buy a rib instead.
 
The diagram suggests with the wind on the nose that's a straight forward berthing maneuver for any twin skipper, no need for a bow thruster :confused: The wind can be used to assist with the berthing. It would be different if the wind was blowing him off, but still manageable if blowing him on.
 
While this looks like ferry gliding in would be the answer, with the wind rising towards a gale 8 once the bow starts to go, it will go with a vengeance and the bow thruster may not have been able to hold it anyway.

Two solutions spring to mind. Firstly, just go and moor up. Even if you refuel immediately, you 're not going out again so why not settle down and go for a meal as it looks like you'll be stuck in this fish dock for a day or two if the wind is that bad. Fuel up when the weather is calmer and you've cleared the thruster.

Second, if you must fuel up now, go ahead into the dock and let the wind spin you through 180*. You can now find the balance point and let the boat sit stern to wind, holding position with (mostly) one engine. With the bow stabilised, you can now gently motor ahead to the fuel dock.
 
Weeelllllll, we practised this doing YM prep stuff up the Medina one Sunday a couple of years back. It was a little wild (the website the following day showed a peak gust to F11!) and once the bow started to swing with the wind, even with the engines crossed we couldn't hold it.

Leastways, that's the scenario I asuume that Tim is driving at, otherwise it's a bit of a no-brainer.
 
:confused: Fairly rudamentary twin boat handling, still don't see the problem. No current, twin props, twin rudders, wind on the nose what more do we need for good control. :confused:
 
High windage soapdish and an F8 on the nose to catch the bows. Once she starts to go sideways, that wind will whip her round before you can react. The key would (for me) to be to come out of the lock with a decent bit of way on, get into some open water and let the wind spin her so I'm blunt end on. Then the boat is already weathercocked and the wind will tend to keep her pointing in one direction while I can concentrate on moving her where I want her.
 
Agree with Wiggo. Once the wind catches the bow it will spin the boat round very quickly. My answer is to get some manoeuvring space, let the wind spin the bow round then assess directional control for a downwind approach, keeping stern into the wind. It should be reasonably easy to stay more or less stationary using engines astern. Take your time, sort out fendering on port side, wait for fuel berth attendant to be ready to take and secure a long bow line. When that's done, motor astern against it on outboard engine to bring stern onto dock.
 
Tim, thanks for the diagram. I agree with Wiggo and Observer that ferry gliding in is high risk. Somehow I can hear the bursting of fenders and the crunch of grp against concrete as the bow whips round too fast.

Maybe the best alternative though is not to attempt the fuel dock at all; instead find a more sheltered berth and wait for the wind to drop before refueling. After all you're going to be stuck there for a while. No point in buying £Xk's worth of fuel before you need it. Keep the money in the bank for a few extra days!
 
Is anyone else having problems seeing my diagram?
I've posted it twice, but I can't see either version until I log on ... and then I see two of it (one large and one small).
 
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