Chuck:
I agree with you.....backing in does provide more control, especially
for the bow. I have done this a few times over the past month or so as
I have had to move my boat from one slip to another and I chose to back
in so I did not have to change my lines and fenders from one side to the
other.....it was far less stressful than I had thought.
It makes leaving the slip a lot easier as well.
Rob Abbott
AZURA
C&C 32 - 84
Halifax, N.S.
On 2016-10-21 9:55 PM, Chuck S via CnC-List wrote:
I'm lucky to have gotten a very good slip. It's a goofy slip no one
else wanted, with the dock on an angle, the two rear piling are on an
angle. There is a pair of bow piling, 30 feet out from the nearest
rear one and another pair another 20 feet out. The previous boat was
a 50 footer. Everyone backs in at my marina cause the finger docks
are short and it's the only way on and off the boat. The piling
spacing allows me to lay my boat against two piling most of the time.
But the angled dock means I must lay my boat's stern on one piling.
If I go in too far, the bow can swing past the forward piling and
into my neighbor's boat, so I'm careful not to do that.
I learned to back in effortlessly solo using short pulses of power.
I'm sure others use this method. I approach the marina bow first with
my engine at idle and shift to neutral and try to coast to a position
where I line up the boat well out from the slip, like twoo boat
lengths, and come to a full stop, Sometimes I use reverse to stop the
boat, then I walk around in front of the wheel so I'm facing aft, the
wheel and the direction of travel. Now I have a great view of the
slip and key reference points; the rudder head and backstay mark my
boat's centerline; the stern rails mark the sides of the boat. I
center the wheel, marked with white tape, and give a short burst of
power to start the boat moving backward. Once it's moving backward
toward the slip, I shift to neutral and steer to keep the boat aiming
always for the centerline of the slip. The engine is idling and I
steer and operate the shifter only, into reverse to keep her moving
slow. I find the bow follows the keel and the keel follows the
rudder, and I come into my slip with the engine at idle, then shift to
forward for a short burst to stop my boat so the stern quarter can
rest against the rear piling and I can reach the landlubber line
between pilings to grab my springline and tie it to a midship cleat.
One more dockline and she's safely in the slip. Two lines are all
that's needed if you get the right two. Then I grab the boat hook and
fetch all the rest till I have 6 lines securing the boat.
This method requires you to mark the wheel to center the rudder, and
mark the docklines so the length is the same each time. I use red and
green tape to mark the docklines, but a sharpie would work as well.
Why back in? I used to bow in to the dock for privacy, but if the bow
gets blown off the course, there is no way to check it without a bow
thruster. You really have more control backing in. You're closer to
the end of the boat as it approaches the dock and have easier
judgement and better control of the engine and the bow is less
suceptable to crosswinds this way.
Chuck
Resolute
1990 C&C 34R Broad Creek, Magothy River, Md
On October 21, 2016 at 9:17 AM Michael Crombie via CnC-List
<cnc-list@cnc-list.com> wrote:
I single hand a lot and prefer the slip on my port. I come in bow
first so I pull towards the slip when i go into reverse to stop
the boat (as I'm returning to the slip.) It is a slight hassle
departing, but i just give the stern a bit of a push off as I step
aboard.
I also made sure that i picked a slip that faces into the
prevailing wind...this makes docking easier if you ever need to
sail into your slip. I just turn into the slip and the wind stops me.
I agree with a previous lister that you want to avoid slips with
the prevailing wind pushing you off the slip. This situation
causes the most problems at my marina, even for boats with lots of
crew.
Mike
Atacama 33mkii
Toronto
Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau
de Bell.
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_______________________________________________
This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you wish to
make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to:
https://www.paypal.me/stumurray
All Contributions are greatly appreciated!
_______________________________________________
This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you wish to
make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to:
https://www.paypal.me/stumurray
All Contributions are greatly appreciated!
