Fender location is critical to sailboats because of the curved shape. If I tie to a floating dock, I found I can get away with using two big fenders at max beam, one at the gate and the other at the stanchion 5 ft forward of the gate, and keep a round ball handy if I need to protect the bow or stern to spring off of something.
IMHO Too many skippers approach a slip, or a fuel dock without any lines or fenders rigged. I learned long ago (the hard way of course) to prerig fenders and docklines ahead of time. What works best for us, is to rig a bow and stern line long enough that it can be coiled at the side gate so myself or a crew member can step onto the dock with both lines. On my 35 footer, the bow lines are 40 ft long and the stern lines 25 ft. If someone is on the dock, we can also hand them a line, but I learned the hard way to not give them the bowline, but give them a spring line, and we tie our own dock lines ourselves. Before coming into the fairway, I rig the fenders and lines to the side I expect to tie to. I open the gate and hang the short coil of line on the lifelines. I also rig a 25 footer to my midship cleat as my emergency line and lay that coil on deck so I can reach it from the dock. I then approach the dock, stopping with the engine, so when the fenders kiss the dock, I step thru the gate w both bow and stern in hand, get the shorter stern line on a cleat, then bow. Sometimes I control the bow with that longer line, wrapping it round a dock cleat forward while tying the stern line to a cleat further aft. The tail of the bow line is usually long enough that after cleating, I can take it to my midship cleat as a spring. My emergency line rigged to the midship cleat is sometimes handy to grab and pull tight to the dock to control the boat, like in a river when current is a factor, or winds blowing off the dock. That line eventually gets rigged as the other spring. Using cleats; Two horn method; wrapping the line around two horns without tying the line, you can easily stop your boat and/or ease a line very gracefully. Some say you can hold an aircraft carrier. I just know it is something you need to try and see to believe and I try to show people whenever I can. Next time the wind is up and you want to tension a line, use the two horn method. Untie the knot but keep tension on the line over two horns with one hand. Then with the other hand, pull the line going to your boat at a sideways angle. This gives you a 30:1 mechanical advantage. Take up the slack with the first hand and maintain tension on the tail going round two horns. I've shown this to veteran cruisers who didn't know this little trick. It will save your back. Chuck Resolute 1990 C&C 34R Broad Creek, Magothy River, Md > On October 27, 2016 at 10:25 PM Dave via CnC-List <cnc-list@cnc-list.com> > wrote: > > Was going to say this, for docking, you can just tie a breastline to the > toerail... > I have a line run from bow cleat, tied to toerail beside the cockpit with > enough slack that I can drop it over the cleat at my slip when docking > singlehanded. I then turn the helm slightly away from the dock, put the boat > back in gear and just leave it idling. The boat takes up the slack and > snuggles itself against the dock, bow gently trying to turn away, and idles > there while I step ashore to secure things. I have a length of plastic > tubing over the line to stiffen it and make it easy to drop over the cleat > while drifting by. Watched a neighbour do that a few years back and copied > him. very simple. > > Dave. > > Message: 5 > Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2016 01:47:50 +0000 > From: Josh Muckley <muckl...@gmail.com mailto:muckl...@gmail.com > > To: cnc-list@cnc-list.com mailto:cnc-list@cnc-list.com > Subject: Re: Stus-List Boat Handling Skill > Message-ID: > <ca+zacrahaqozxvxwrcahjgbdjoa+8mj+nfjitaj4ass+e+8...@mail.gmail.com > mailto:ca+zacrahaqozxvxwrcahjgbdjoa+8mj+nfjitaj4ass+e+8...@mail.gmail.com > > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > Funny you should mention a midships cleat. My wife has been begging me > for > a midships cleat/solution of some sort. I finally had some time and made > some amsteel loops that I luggage tagged onto the toe rail at the midships > position. I tie my mooring line to it with a sheet bend. The amsteel is > rated at ~9000 pounds and the loop doubled over quadruples the number of > fibers carrying the load so I feel very confident that the loop is not the > weak point in the system. When I'm done using the loops they just live > there on the rail until next time. > > Josh Muckley > S/V Sea Hawk > 1989 C&C 37+ > Solomons, M > > Sent from my iPad > > _______________________________________________ > > 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!
