Yes, it was I...

[Guest]

at Calshot on Thursday late morning in that horrible weather with jib flying wildly out of control. I was actually trying to furl it when the furling line escaped from its captivity within the furling drum and all of the sail came out in the gusting-to-38 knots of wind. A block of falts was closing on me just over my left shoulder. Tack round and head back up Southampton Water to take it down. Noticed half the furling drum was missing. Just by Netley I noticed we were being closely followed by the liferaft which had fallen from its taff-rail mounting cage and was now bobbing along on a 'lead' of white rope. It was pulled gently aboard and I subsequently learned that one more 'jerk' and it would have inflated. Also that three other liferafts had been taken into Ocean Safety that day having gone overboard. The fancy AutoFlug cradle from which the liferaft escaped is still intact on the rail. Strange? Back to the marina and, after the rigger had pronounced the furling gear dead and the liferaft people said the raft will need servicing (at least 4 weeks), and when it had stopped raining, I decided to fold the jib which was tied up in a heap on the foredeck. My mate said that we had better be careful because bad things always come in threes. We manouvered the sail on to the pontoon, stretched it out, made one fold and I stepped back to start the second, overbalanced and fell off the pontoon and into the water. It took three big blokes to haul me out! So that was the third - and then the meal at the restaurant was lousy. Slept well. The unerving thing was not the sail or the liferaft but being in the water. The pontoon was above my head and there was no ladder within easy range and my boots quickly filled with water and a tide wanted to drag me under the pontoon. If alone, and if I were able to get to the back of my yacht, I now notice that I could not reach the line which secures the ladder and prevents the hinged portion from dropping into the water. It is unclimbable, by me anyway, without the ladder dropped. I've now rigged it so it can be reached by a swimmer. Marina water tastes foul.

 

[Guest]

Re: Not on your own I\'ll bet

From personal observation Calshot Spit is the Cape Horn of the Solent. The times you round it surrounded by boats fighting for their lives as they discover that enough canvas for a reach down past Fawley is much to much for a beat down the Thorn. Makes the Spit Buoy like a race mark.

I can sympathise about the furling gear. We lost ours on a particularly unpleasant trip from Holland to Harwich. The flogging pretty soon knackered the genoa, if you saved yours you did well.

Tom

 

[Guest]

Hey Tomg..sounds like a good sail.
Question = why have the liferaft on board.? Now thats a silly question from some one "down under" who doesn't know where you are sailing. It just seems strange to me as we only have rafts on board out in the ocean. Don't take offence, I'm just keen to know the answer, also pleased that 3 big guys were around to pull you out.
Brian J

 

[Guest]

Interesting point. The incident with the jib happened in the Solent-sheltered coastal waters where a call on Channel 16 would bring help in minutes. But the liferaft sits in a locked cradle so that when I go off-shore (often) it is not forgoten. Off come the locks as we wave farewell to the shore. The alternative is to ferry it back and forth between home and boat, which is a nuisance. It can't be stolen,I reasoned, beacause it is locked and it can't be deployed inadvertently by the kids when we are messing about in the Solent, because it is locked. I was in the Solent, not messing about with kids, it was locked - and it went overboard. Foolproof or what!!! But the sail was saved, the liferaft was saved and I was saved. The only thing lost was repair money and my, admittedly fragile, reputation for coolness under all circumstances.

 

[Guest]

Sounds like a bad day!

I arrived at Wicormarine at the top end of Portsmouth Harbour at 8am last Thursday with my dad in tow intending to pop down to Cowes for lunch and then back on the afternoon tide. However, at the end of the pontoon the waves were breaking over the planking and lifejackets and wellies would have been required just to launch the dinghy, which would probably have sunk immediately. Next time I hear the shipping forecast at 0535 predicting a Force 8 I'll believe it and stay in bed! (Went down on Friday morning again and found a complete transformation - so got to Cowes in the end, albeit a day late) Sorry to hear about the costs of your foray out ast Calshot.