Conference unifix::sailing

    Prop wash is what a Bertran 44 can accomplish. Folding props are not 
    in this class.  I take it you are coming into the wind and turning
    to port. Is this true?
    
    You could always have your fenders out on port just in case the wind
    catches you and pushes you to leeward.

    
     Yes,  I am going into the wind and then turning to the port side.
    I always place two fenders on the starboard side in case I mess up.  
    If I have enough people on board I also station one or two there 
    to fend off if needed.  So far I havn't needed them..... 
    
    Thanks for the reply, Joe

    
      Ooops in that last reply I meant: "I always place two fenders on 
    the PORT side".  Joe

The scenario you mention is almost identical to the one we have mooring our
Scampi, except that we are on the opposite berth (like the one where the Riffiki
- whatever that is - is moored. ). Our reverse is not only weak, but
intermittant, so we don't rely on it at all. We bring the boat in in the same
way you describe, and in 10 years of doing this, have only dropped one crewman
in ( actually, it was the skipper, and they should never be allowed forward of
the mast ). 

Judging the approach speed right is the critical bit, violent left and right
movements with the rudder slows the boat down a lot.

Chris.

    Maybe you can talk Dave Carter into crewing out there for you. As we
    saw in last year's raft-up, not only does he make an excellant fender,
    he never complains... ;>) ;>)
    
    When the wind is howling and I need to use a slip (ie a wash dock), I
    have both crew at the center or slightly aft. That way I can turn a bit
    to port, kick out the back end, and make up any difference. They know
    to take their time stepping off, but hussle on getting a line around a
    cleat. 
    
       I have calmed down a bit on this since the the first time we
    went to dock and I yelled "Hurry up and get those lines secured" to
    which the crew turned around and yelled back "Who do we look like, Carl
    Lewis??" . I was still about 8 feet from the dock ;>)

    Under ideal conditions you should be able to bring the boat to a halt
    perfectly aligned with the finger pier and be able to simply step off
    an tie up.  Under ideal conditions.  With wind and current working
    against you either alone or combined you need to compensate.  It is
    difficult to time the moment that you lose steerage and current and or
    wind takes over.  These are not ideal conditions.  
    
    It is not unreasonable to expect a crew person to jump off and start 
    securing the boat while still moving slightly.  Is 1 kt. too much?  I 
    don't think so.  You're approach sounds reasonable and it appears you 
    are taking the necessary precautions to insure you do not damage your 
    boat or the one next to you.  Folding props are notoriously inefficient 
    in reverse as stated.  I would however have it in reverse at some point
    in time up until the boat has lost way to insure that the lines (and
    your crew) are not taking the whole burden of stopping 8-10K pounds
    from moving forward.  The timing of when you slip it into reverse, how
    fast your approach is etc. depends upon conditions and how your
    particluar boat handles.  Some will argue that you should be able to
    bring your boat to a halt in the perfect spot regardless of conditions
    so that you could dock it yourself if need be under all conditions. 
    Not a bad skill to have IMO and soemthing that with practice you should
    be able to attain.  
    
    Check out Chapman's for a reference. There are illustrations in there 
    that describe your situation almost down to the graphics.  
    
    Brian

    I have a similar docking problem (wind abeam coming into the "windward"
    side of a two-boat slip with a folding prop). My solution is similar
    but simpler than the one you describe in .0. 

    While I keep stern, bow spring and bow lines ready, I use only a single
    line to dock with initially and it allows a single crew-person (35'
    sloop) to _step_ off the boat at its maximum beam position.

    The single line is an aft spring, run from the stern cleat, forward to
    a snatch block on the rail at the max/beam position and then is used on
    the rear-most dock cleat. You could (even more easily) use a mid-ships
    cleat if you have one available.

    The docking procedure is to make the same approach you are making; have
    the dockline handler step off from the lifeline gate (just aft of the
    maximum beam position) and take a turn around the aft dock cleat with
    the aft spring line. Worst case, the boat is moving slowly enough that
    if the engine (usually already engaged in reverse) conks out when it
    needs to stop the boat, the spring line will effectively stop the boat
    anyway.

    Stopping, without the bow hitting is not your biggest worry though. The
    bow, offering greater windage than the stern, tends to blow off in a
    big hurry unless you can get a bow line secured quickly. The single
    dockline handler just ain't quick enough to (1) secure the aft spring
    and then (2) rush towards the bow, grab that line and secure it before
    the boat drifts down onto its none-to-happy slip-mate. The solution is
    to MOTOR AHEAD against the aft spring line! We have the line marked so
    that once a turn has been taken around the aft dock cleat, I can motor
    ahead at half throttle if needed and have the dockline handler ease the
    spring line until the mark reaches a known position on the dock cleat.
    This places the boat as deep into the slip as I want to be. Using the
    rudder, I can steer the bow under power to precisely place it where I
    want in the slip, lock the helm, and step off to gather the bow and
    stern lines without having to rush. 

    The mind-bender is that the heavier the cross wind, the MORE power you
    need to apply against the aft spring to pull the boat sideways against
    the dock and keep it there. As long as you mark the aft spring line so
    that you know exactly where to ease it to, and place your mid-ships
    cleat or snatch block at the same location every time, docking changes
    from a knee-shaking experience to something approaching a cake walk.

    Clearly, from a crew safety point of view, having your dockline handler
    step off amidships places him/her closest to the dock. They can hang on
    to shrouds (Freedom owners better use lifelines!) or step through a
    gate in the lifelines if that is available. Also, by making use of the
    aft dock cleat, the line handler is OFF the boat when the boat is no
    more than halfway into the slip which increases the time in which they
    have to do their thing. And -- the handler is stepping off right where
    they need to be on the dock; no running for bow!

    The method seems to work great for my wife and me. She is especially
    happy with it as it seriously reduces the trauma she used to experience
    while worrying about jumping onto the rocking dock and having to run
    with two lines to secure.

The reply in .7 is definitely the way an experienced shorthanded crew would
handle this. However, this method can be a hair-raising experience with novices
handling the dock lines, since they can't be trusted to cleat the stern line
promptly and properly. The procedure in .0 is not as graceful, but it is better
for inexperienced crew, especially if there are two people available to handle
the lines.

The important thing is to have your line handlers step off from amidships,
where they will be closest to the dock. It's good to make your entry with
a large arc and entry parallel to the finger, so that your line handlers can
step off near the end of the finger. This gives them an extra 2-3 seconds 
to get their act together on the finger. If you reverse throttle at the right
time to stop the boat, nothing bad can happen, except possibly drifting into
your slip neighbor. Your fenders on that side will prevent that from causing any
damage.

--RS

    
    Thanks for all te replys....   One thing I am still not sure of though.
    Is it possible, under the conditions that I described, to hold the boat
    next to the dock with just the motor and no dock lines?
    
    Thanks,  Joe

re .9

>>    Is it possible, under the conditions that I described, to hold the boat
>>    next to the dock with just the motor and no dock lines?
    
Only if you reverse the wind direction!

--RS

I once chartered an immaculate Freedom 40 ketch from a nice fellow in Maryland.
This boat was this guy's entire life. He and his wife were chartering it out
and working full time jobs to accumulate enough money to sail off into the sunset.

The boat was moored between pilings in a very tight spot. I expressed apprehension
about maneuvering this gorgeous boat back into its spot without plowing into the
pilings.

He showed me how to do it, involving a generous burst from the 50 hp diesel to
swing the stern around. But he also told me not to worry about it, since "that's
what rub rails are for". 

Since that time, I've concluded that if nothing is broken and no one is injured
during a docking maneuver, it must have been the right way to do it.

--RS

P.S. I didn't even touch the pilings on the way in. First and only time in my
life I docked a boat without embarrasment :-)

re .11:

Yup, rubrails are really nice. We have them, and they've suffered many 
dings and gouges (mostly from other boats bouncing off us while on our 
mooring) but our topsides are still unscathed.