CG assist on a rockbound lee shore cliff (youtube)

[rbgarr]

A neighbor lost his leg below the knee when his leg was caught between the hull and rocks in a situation like this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6i-HtlQa2I0&feature=related

[skuthorp]

At least he seems to have water under him, I presume his motor was not useable. I was thinking of the noise of rock on boat and the owners blood pressure!

[Figment]

I read something about this one. It was an occasion of additive errors. sheets fouled the propellor, they couldn't anchor for some reason, couldn't sail off the lee shore because the sheets were fouled in the propellor.... something like that.

[BrianW]

As a large part of my summer job is teaching volunteers how to drive boats (up to 42ft) I'm reminded of one of my favorite bits of safety advice...

The soft spongy things that go between the boat and the dock (rocks) are called fenders, not arms or legs.

...it's not original, I've heard it somewhere before. But I often hear the students repeating it among themselves during docking practice, as it's just funny enough to stick in the brain.

Watching the video, it looks like a fairly nice day with small waves. If it had been rougher, the Coastie boat may have needed to run the tow line down one side of it's wheelhouse and turn around prior to pulling the boat away from the rocks. Which side depends on winds and current, and which of those is affecting the tow boat the most at the time.

Last comment, and it's a good one for sail boat folks... Just look at the mast swing in relatively small seas. That's why helo crews cringe when the alarm goes off, and the pipe relays that it's a sail boat in trouble. Much more likely to jump in the water, to get to the rescue basket, when in a sail boat as compared to a power boat.

[willmarsh3]

I had an experience a short while after getting my first boat - a Catalina 25. I was motoring out of Rockhold Creek in Deale, MD to go for a sail. A somewhat bigger sailboat ahead of me in the channel suddenly slowed down. As I pulled past the skipper said his engine quit. I offered to tow him and he accepted. The Catalina had an outboard that was mounted off center to port. I tied the tow line on the stern cleat on the starboard side. I didn't have a lot of experience then with towing. At the low speed and high pull this created unexpected problems keeping the boat straight. I tried various tiller and outboard maneuvers without success. I let go of the tow. The next thing I saw was that my boat was headed directly to the breakwater and was about two seconds from hitting it. I slid down over the port side as the boat was rocking and bumping into the rocks and pushed the boat away while standing on the breakwater. It continued on in gear but at low speed. I swam and caught up with it and then climbed aboard. Looking back I see how a series of fluky events almost lead to disaster.
Lessons learned:
1) Use a towing bridle
2) Don't ever stick any part of my body between the boat and a hard place

[BrianW]

It's natural to tie off a tow line opposite the outboard, in order to keep the line clear of the engine. But, both of those factors reduced your maneuverability. Tyeing off that far back on the stern also makes it hard for your boat to turn, as the drag of the load tends to keep the stern centered towards the load. That's why commercial tows use a tow bit mounted farther forward, toward the center of the boat. Then the boat can pivot around the tow bit, and change course.

Very nice of you to offer to help!

[George Ray]

willmarsh3,
Very nice of you to try to help another boater ...... and congratulations on surviving a tough situation in a very scary dangerous way and then sharing it with us.

[willmarsh3]

Folks, you are most welcome.

I've noticed this too on boats that do a lot of towing such as ski boats and Sea Tow. I suppose that the tie off point is very near the natural pivot point of the boat to minimize the turning arm?