Hang on Tight!
Moving aft from the foredeck on a windy day, have you noticed a sort of no-man’s land between the mid-deck where coachroof grabrails keep crew safe, and the cockpit where all one’s troubles should be left behind? Clambering around the spray hood can present a challenge, especially if, by some oversight, you’ve somehow ended up on the “downhill” side of the boat. A pal of mine came up with a truly seamanlike solution to this. He had his cover-maker leave a pair of gaps where the main sprayhood frame loops over the bridge deck and welded grab handles to the metalwork. I look forward to some enlightened boatbuilder doing the same.
A Winch in a Pinch
Rather than lay down hard and fast rules concerning seamanship, I’m more comfortable letting each situation speak for itself. However, I do feel strongly that, when securing alongside, a guideline of “one rope, one cleat, one job” makes for greater happiness than stuffing one rope on top of another. There’s only one problem with this ideal world. Many a modern yacht doesn’t have enough securing points. The simple answer if you’re running out of cleats is to use a winch instead. It certainly won’t pull out of the deck, and so long as you can make fast using a self-tailing jammer, or secure it with a tugboat hitch which will never lock up, you’ve won at least two more cleats for nothing. There’s just one thing: If you see some hapless crew clapping a clove hitch onto the barrel, stop their rum ration immediately.
May 2025
