Some of the best sailing footage on the net. What you don’t get is the sea sickness in your stomach and a foreboding sense. You have to be there to feel that!
I have sailed a lot on the great lakes in an old 8 meter, with a tall rig and narrow beam on pointy ends. It was always an amazing feeling when one secured the storm jib and cast the tiller to leward. The world seemed to calm right down and the tension would release from both the boat and the crew. Thanks for the video. The job you did with the sound was outstanding in this video. -+
Eek! Looking forward to "enjoying" my retirement, this coming Spring, sailing, and living on my 27' boat. This video is a reminder that getting out in all weathers, before then, might be a good idea.... or maybe I'll just watch you and Erik Anderaa for the storm tips! 👍
Its always good to get out in bad weather when you have a safe harbour and dropping winds. Refine your systems so when you get caught out you are ready for it. How the retirement going?
Good recording. No verbal diarrhea. Thank you for no music. The sound does not matter. At first not running true before the wind. Odd way of trying to heave to such a big boat. Good strong wind with one gust. Nice going with the wind under bare poles after you figured out how to balance the rudder. Thank you. Subscribed.
Yes, it was an unusual way to heave too, but it worked well, and as the wind built was kind of glad we didn't have the deep reefed main up, as she would probably have been a overcanvassed. Having just the storm jib also made it easy to get underway and run off, or forereach when the wind shifted.
I did see the slick on the leeward side of the boat while you guys hove to with the storm sail. Perfect. Exactly what you want to do. My boat is only half the size of yours, but when I take you out every year and one of the first maneuvers, I practice here in Alaska is how to hove to.
Thanks. Glad you could see a glimpse of the wonderful wild southern ocean. Though its also often sunny and pleasant. The contrasts are part of what makes it a special place.
A little sail up is a wonderful thing... Drogues have their place but getting them rigged and ready early is not always possible.. Great pictures - brings back many a memory of the Southern Ocean throwing a mild tantrum
After being out in 52 feet waves in the middle of a hurricane, I've vowed never to be out there again. Kuddos to you guys and thanks for the video. I'll stick close to shore.
@@ESHANABROOK Sorry Eric but 'landlubber' is literally translated as 'fresh water sailor'. Which I consider rather insulting for canal sailors, who have their merits. I meant somebody who only knows earth because refuse to raise his eyes. Infact I am convinced that the difference between a sailor and a 'terricolous' being is that when just out of the door the peasant looks down to the earth, while the sailor looks at the horizon.
@@squalofelice well said! "the difference between a sailor and a 'terricolous' being is that when just out of the door the peasant looks down to the earth, while the sailor looks at the horizon."
Excellent video. Shows running under bare poles well. Shows the effect of heaving to. No fuss, excellent soundtrack which tells things how they are (vs. the ghastly music most others dub their vid with) … thanx for posting. Really >Good boat too, or so it seems. Ready for expedition sailing I gather.
Would you please let me know what you mean by "heaving to"? I have limited training and experience but saw no heaving to in this vid as I learned it. Thanks!
Heaving too, is really any way of using the sails and rudder to stop the boat, typically it is down on modern boats with a backed headsail and a main, and the tiller to leeward, ie steering the boat upwind. but there are lots of variations, Some boats heave too with just a main, square riggers back the fore topsail. In this case we just backed the headsail but dropped the main. the boat doesn't sit with the bow up, but it is a stable attitude.
Thx for the straight coverage of rough sailing conditions while having time to play chess. Cool footage. It keeps you feel alive #bentucker Would like to see more of it.
Thanks Hans, I need to get some sort of half decent editor for this new computer then I will have a look through some of my old footage. it isn't going to happen in any hurry I am afraid.
Just when it was getting good you ended the video, For all it's worth You's guys did a great job safely in some crappy conditions. The wave across the cockpit was one of the best seen on TH-cam ! Congrates
9:34 What my daughter fears most..right there. Glad to see safety harnesses hooked up. That's sailing. What a great life you all have. Thanks for letting me watch and learn
I love how all these numb nuts have a long line tied to bow/stern... IF you fall overboard the forces will snap that line in a heart beat at one end, leaving the other anchored. YOU must use a prussic or equivalent which will GRAB the rope. A biner, shackle etc going around the rope from bow/stern does you NO GOOD AT ALL! You are pretending you are safe.
Simple physics. And sorry, no, I can't find this written up anywhere modern. So, a bit convoluted: Division of forces. smaller the angle, the higher the forces. Why a line from bow to stern and you slipping in the middle is very dangerous as the forces are EXTREMELY high and one end will break. Those who know what they are doing attach that line in the middle/ends. Now you CANNOT use a single biner to slide down the line, you must have 2 so you can go around middle attachment points while still remaining tied in. This is how all catwalk lines are set up or you MUST have a self tending belay device when doing rope work. You WILL slip. Only a question of when. Physics: Lets assume a 200lb(person+gear) person(static), line length of 30ft and fall distance to water ~5 ft. Most boats making ocean passage are longer, so it makes it even worse... Makes a triangle with 15ft by 5 ft. Creates an angle of 18 degrees and a corresponding tensile force of 668lbs X2 for both sides of the angle = static load of 1336lbs. Now add dynamic forces Can easily have 2G which doubles the force + momentum! So static is 2500lbs... no big deal for a normal rope. But what is it tied to? Handrail with small little screws tying into the boat? Most likely. If tied to main cleat, no big deal. Now, lets add momentum. 5ft fall attains a ~5ft/s velocity attaining a momentum of around 250 additional lbs load that must be stopped. The momentum alone more than doubles the force of the static load from just the weight of the person+gear. So, each end of the rope sees over 5000lbs of force... Now, IF you are using a dynamic rope going bow to stern, it will stretch ~30%, massively decreasing momentum force and static force cutting it in half, BUT here is the rub, no one wants a dynamic rope on a boat as they suck for using on sails etc. Boating uses 100% static lines which means elongation due to a class one load is on the order of ~2% ==> 7% depending on the rope in question. Effectively there is no load alleviation. What this means is that the rope in question will see a near instantaneous 5000lbs load at BOTH ends. Now, 1) the Ropes used for what most people consider "low loads" generally this is small. So, lets take a standard ~9mm or1/2" NEW*** line. Its rated breaking strength is rated at ~7000lbs.... BUT, it must be tied to something. Even the best knot, etc to a biner/shackle, etc will remove 30% of its rated strength. Now add that the rope used going forward is also probably old and its breaking strength is NOT like it is new. 7000 - 7000*(0.3) =~ 4500lbs with the additional problem of AGE making the rope brittle, wear(nics etc), UV, and the problem that said rope will also be going over some edges when you fall ..... Is the side of your boat a perfect radius? Or are there some sharpish edges somewhere which will increase the stress locally? Either way... You are going in the drink under a full heal over scenario. Now obviously most people do not slip and go flying, but a 45 degree roll or greater in a massive storm, knockdown? Quite likely. Single line bow to stern is horrifically dangerous but is common practice today. People forget that old sail boats(100+ yrs) during storms used to set up cross hatch of ropes to grab and move along on deck making the distance on a rope to anchor point, SHORT. And sorry, no, I can't find this written up anywhere modern. @@drcalvinmb
brilliant video......great boat.....appears built for it.....videos like this should be reffered to when fitting out......a little reminder that conditions are not always as you wish......
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” - Teddy Roosevelt. So many comments from the sidelines here. Nitpickers, second guessers, inattentive asshats. You show real patience with them Ben Tucker. "Why not do such and such..." "You should have..." "The wind wasn't really that strong.." I would not have had the patience you display. My reply would be ""Cause you weren't there, and you were not the captain of the boat. How many times have you sailed a 64" schooner in the Southern Ocean with freezing hands?! You had no idea what course we were on, the condition of the crew, or any of the other particulars that went into the decision making process. STFU! " Great job, great video. On the other hand, there are some great questions leading to some great discussions of sailing terminology, gear and tactics. I guess I would not realize that video flattens out the look of waves and belies their true voracity, if someone didn't whine "the waves aren't really that big and the wind isn't really that strong".
I hove to once. I was single handing. I did not want to subject the autopilot to the strain and I didn’t want to run in the wrong direction. I was exhausted. I had never done it. It worked miraculously well. I went to sleep. I awoke in a couple of hours in better weather.
Love it -- jack lines, harnesses. Proper anchor rode on a roller (for those tied-ashore anchorages) Hove to, stormsail. This is a world exploration vessel, not a couple motoring on the intracoastal and calling themselves "sailors".
what's an anchor rode like that for and ? why's it so long and how does it work ? and just asking how did they Hove to did they just turn into the wind ?
@@sailingyoumeandjosapea6770 They tacked the boat but not the storm jib. This caused the storm jib to be backed, you then steer the rudder windward lock it in and you are hove to.
Brilliant video.It really takes you right into the situation.The boat is clearly in very professional hands and takes everything in her stride.Storm job looks a good decision to keep some way on her without busting a gut.
heaving to.....saved my life going through mega squalls, thunderstorms and tropical depressions of 60 knots and maybe more. Vital if it hits u during the night
@@gdfggggg Its when you position the rudder to tack, but don’t move the “forward” sail to the other side. This situation “locks” the boat in position, and it starts to drift sideways, with the bow pointed in an angle towards the wind and the incoming waves.
@@gdfggggg I suppose the best description of that, as Lin & Larrey Pardey name it, “safety valve” is their pointed narrative “Storm Tactics” which you can find both as printed book and DVD.
It can get pretty tough out there on the foredeck especially at night. I well remember participating in a night foresail change in similar conditions in the Bay of Biscay after racing to La Rochelle and pretty much fending each other off with boathooks! We left for the Hamble 24 hours later in an already rising force 8 and things got a bit bumpy especially after the battery failed and we had to flash an Aldis at the bridge of a passing tanker off the needles! I was glad of a harness and the life jacket.
For me it was a squall in Biscayne Bay Miami. Thought my Dad was going overboard pulling down the jib. It was dark & i was trying to figure where I would swim to. Knew I was going to Die ! Thank You Jesus
@@GarySmith-up1un The foredeck is certainly a dangerous location especially in heavy weather and changing sails in the dark.Worse still when it gets exhausting and you’re feeling lousy! Life jacket and strong light plus double clipped harness essential!
Well done Ben and crew. Re comments about 'Hove to'. We generally will use the main with a back winded staysail to heave to, however, in wind over 60 kts it doesn't work on our boat. Even with 4th reef there's too much canvas. The main has to come down and we are then 'hove to' under staysail alone. Maybe the technophiles have another word for this but I've never heard it.
Thanks Phil, I'd never hove to like that before, but it worked reasonably well. It seems to me that's it gives you a lot of options, forereach under stormjib, run off under stormjib, or deploy a drogue off the windward quarter and either leave the stormjib set or drop it. the main on blizzard was an awkward think to drop with sticky stainless steel slides (no fancy batcars), and it only had two reefs, so dropping it early was a smart thing to do. The skipper Dave Pryce has a huge number of sea miles in the southern ocean, so It was great learning from him.
Phil Hogg Doesn't 'hove to' literally mean "foresail hove to windward"? By that definition, anytime the foresail is backwinded, you are technically 'hove to'm…
Ben Tucker .l disagree. Recovery over the quarter is tricky, especially if you are using the donk. Rather deploy off the weather bow. Oil, even the cooking variety, helps, in extreme conditions, to reduce the broken water. lovely video, thank you.
@@bentucker5009 bin ein ehemaliger leidenschaftlicher Surfer und möchte nach Jahren des Stresses per Segelboot diese wunderbare rauhe See erleben , leider fehlt mir und meinen Mitstreitern noch die Erfahrung und den anderen der Mut 😉 .....danke für die tollen Einblicke in Ihre Leidenschaft , bitte weitere Videos dieser Art , einfach umwerfend 👍👍👍
@mbholzwurm good luck getting out to a wild sea one day. But hopefully, it's not too bad! At least being a surfer you will be used to the extreme power of the waves. viel Glück, wenn du eines Tages aufs wilde Meer hinausfährst. Aber hoffentlich ist es nicht allzu schlimm! Als Surfer bist du zumindest an die extreme Kraft der Wellen gewöhnt.
I've sailed solo in the roaring 40s in a 28-footer, and I have to admit this brings back some rather mixed emotions. The best of times, the worst of times
The French Legend Bernard Moitessier sailed his 38' twin masted Joshua through the Southern Ocean and around Cape Horn many times. Additionally Robin Knox Johnston who was the first to do a non-stop Global Circumnavigation in his boat Suhaili, a 32' wooden ketch, made several trips through the Southern Ocean and around the Horn. It is very doable for an experienced sailor in much smaller boats.
I sailed my 33 foot steel sloop to antarctica a few years before this trip. See snow petrel down under on youtube for a video of this trip. But it was much more comfortable on the bigger boat. Bernard Motessier is a legend!
Good video and nice boat. Takes me back to some of our Bermuda runs on a CS 36 (except much warmer than you). I like the bare poles technique, but when you raise up even a small canvas to hove to, it obviously exposes you to some of those nasty beam seas. Love the mates playing chess under the dodger! Well done.
That’s not hove to, that’s lying a hull. And that’s why the deck gets swept with waves and the boat practically rolls. Putting up a storm jib doesn’t mean you’re hove to.
nice... could see very well what 'hove to' does to the sea.. nice vid, thanks.. makes me a bit less nervous for my atlantic crossing.. gonna practice that, al lot !
I was just thinking, as you settled down to play chess, I'd never leave the Helm in them conditions, then a great wave swept across the cockpit, in the next shot, someone's back at the Helm... Respect to you Fellas, True and Accomplished Yachtsmen
strake750 The timeline is not very clear in the video. I cant remember for sure but we had been hove too for a few hours before that wave, and we were hove to for a few hours after it as well. We started handsteering once the wind settled down and backed more to the west. Had we been hand steering we may have been able to put the wave more on the stern, but holding position enabled the front to quickly pass over us, and running off would have put us further south. Thanks for the question.
Awesome. I would love to sail in this weather. I used to sail in Florida but now live in Nevada so.... Anyway, I love being outdoors in inclement weather, it makes me feel more alive !
Interesting footage to absorb what lies in wait for my solo circumnavigation. Clearly, I won't be in a 60 footer, but the Southern Ocean doesn't care, so getting prepared! Very enjoyable watch.
Reminds me of a cartoon in an old Yachting magazine years ago. Guy and his somewhat greenpallored wife sitting on the high side in the wind, rain, and spray in their foul weather gear. The guy turned to his wife and said...:"smile honey, or they may never ask us aboard again!" ;-)
Thanks for that- noticed you didn't show the dangerous part of turning the boat broadside to the new position. Reminds me L.I. sound, 10 to 15 K, maneuvering before race start, inexperienced at being at the line at time I hove-to close to the line for an advantage knowing all boats had to give me right of way -- and a number of boats thought i was in trouble, came by to offer assistance. Had 150 jenny and full main. too.
9:05 cross-beam wave, HELLO! I’m also saying thanks for using ambient sound, instead of music. It gets so loud. I’m not a sailor. But was on a charter once in Aegean in Sept caught out in force 9 in a ridiculous motor ketch with actual CANVAS canvas. Even the inter-island ferries were kept in port. If you haven’t seen the horizon shift 180 degrees and heard the sheer volume of the experience, you just can’t know. First you throw up every thing you’ve eaten in the last year. Then you wrap yourself around anything still bolted to the hull and hold on. You go up up up up and sideways, then down like a boulder. The bow slams the trough of a wave, the force of the impact stops you and shoves you back. Up 30 feet, down 30 feet, sideways. And all around you is noise: The wind, the slap of the rigging, the luff of your sails, the spatter of spray. You don’t “realize” you’re powerless and tiny. You wonder what deluded you into thinking you ever had power, or were bigger than an ant. Great upload.
I guess your skipper didn't check the forcast! Sounds like a nasty experience. You have to have been in it to know what it's like, one part exhilarating, one part terrifying, and one part uncomfortable, and yes, it does make you realise how powerful nature is when it wants to be.
@@bentucker5009 Agreed. I was in a 3 day gale on the Flemish Cap one November, on an oceanographic research ship 100 metres in length, and that was crazy enough...to go through a big storm in a small boat would be terrifying and thrilling all at once.
Great sound! Impressive footage!! I wanted to ask: Did You pull a sea-anchor to avoid getting too fast in the downsurf, or is this method only used with smaller boats (10-15m)?
I am not an expert so the people in the video are surely more experienced, BUT the boat is traveling sown wind. That doesn't look like its "Heaved to". None the less, my compliments to the captain and crew. You look like you know what you are doing.
“There are three sorts of people; those who are alive, those who are dead, and those who are at sea.” - Old Capstan Chantey attributed to Anacharsis, 6th Century BC
Very cool video! Good picture of the slick while hove to. Looks like the boat was still sailing just a bit maybe why you got the breakers. Good stuff, thanks.
You might be right. Though I am not 100% sold on the concept of the slick protecting against all waves. It certainly helps with a lot of them, especially the smaller chop. But I think a bigger breaking wave can still roll through it.
Great video. I filmed a bit of a blow this summer on my boat with winds a bit lower than during your gale, and what struck me as crazy (in my gale) was that birds were still out flying with the wind 35 kts gusting to 47. !! (I even comment with surprise about the birds in my video.) If you look closely at your video right at the end (9:24ish) you will see a bird fly by the stern. Those birds are not phased by anything! Again, bravo for a thought-provoking video.
Your vid ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But i have a question I saw that after your deck hand or any rellative(i dont know) went foreward to ''open'' jib sail why he didn't open and the main sail but of course both of them on reefing position .That i beleive that wiil gave you a better sped But anyway You was there and you saw the conditions ,the wibd fource , the stare of the sea etc . For your information last time when i was sailnig was 40 years a go when i was in the Academy.After that year by year contract by contract i became Captain always on chemical tankers.I never stop love the sails and the yachts with single diesel engine (PAT PAT PATP PAT......)You know what i am talking about but i hate the high sophisticated motor yachts with 2,3,or 4 engines and they use this ''magic '' stick '' controling engines ,bow thruster ,stern thruster .................for mooring God em where is the seamship on that????Now even mt grand Mother can be a CAPTAIN for the.....Sunday
Thanks, I also worked on ships, I was a mate on Container ships (P&O Nedlloyd) and worked on RO-RO's so I know what you mean, used to watch the sea and wish I had some sails set rather than a big 2slow speed two-stroke diesel or steam turbine. We didn't set the main due to the difficulty raising and lowering it, The slides on it were very stiff and if the wind picked up it would have been very difficult to drop.
No we didn't. No real need. If it got significantly worse we may have trailed warps. But Blizzard had previously been through a much worse blow lying a hull. I have towed drogues before on other vessels and like them a lot.
Damn! How I miss being out at sea! Thanks for the awesome video from an old US Navy shellback. Reminded me of being on midwatch during a gale even nastier than this one with 30'+ swells, 60+ kt winds off the Juan De Fuca strait way back in 1979 ... Question-> Did you guys ever consider deploying a sea anchor/drogue while heaving to and bare poled? Might've eased off the listing quite a bit and made you fellas somewhat more comfortable. Hell, even an old wayfaring boatswain like myself sometimes got a little green around the gills during seas like those!
Reminds me of my first night at sea as a Midshipman aboard a US Navy ship in a storm off Cape Hatteras. I had midwatch that night sitting "CONFLAG" watch, locked in a closet-size room by myself with a single porthole overlooking the hangar bay watching for any sign of fire. The choppers were all heaving up and down on their oleos with the ships motion. I don't know how I managed to keep dinner down that night. It was almost as much fun as my days sweating my buns off in the boiler room.
Nice video. It also adds some context to the types of conditions that Shackleton's group endured running 800 miles from Elephant Island to South Georgia Island, except they were forced to use a 22 foot lifeboat 'retrofitted' for open ocean travel.
Shackleton, Shackleton, parrot, parrot, parrot. Lets stop hearing about that failure of a man who's reputation is born of 1st world war propaganda and keep things real!
Not at all ignorant. In fact the opposite; which gives me the knowledge that Shackleton was just another glorious failure. Many others had done "Shackleton's" long before him... Go read about the sealers and whalers who opened up Antarctica and you will find many, many, stories. Then look up expeditions such as that of William Spiers Bruce and others and you will find successful men and successful expeditions.
Hi Chris, hope you are enjoying Christchurch. I love the adventures of Matthew Brisbane and James Weddell on the Beaufoy and the Jane, Amazing voyages in such simple vessels and so forgotten these days.
Thanks for the video. I understand you were just practicing heaving to, but I would like to make a video request. Please could you show all the options in heavy weather. It seems to me that she was rolling heavily under bare poles, whereas if you put up more sail and got her moving faster the motion would have been much more comfortable. BTW I am going to subsciibe. I loved your self-cleaning cockpit!
Thanks Frank, I'd love to make a video series like that but unfortunately I am not particularly good with a videocamera or editing software so It's going to be some time! At some point I might be able to post some more stuff from my Snow petrel trip south. There is some truth about the amount of sail. She was rolling heavily under bare poles, but the storm jib steadied her up a lot. The camera doesn't show it well but the sound gives an idea of the windspeed as the front crossed. She probably didn't need anymore sail at that point.
Good spot! But yes agree is camera, if it wasn't this clip would be a lot different. Spin out on first glance though. For a split second I thought "Oh sh#t" till the brain kicks in.
I have not been successful yet heaving to on our Freedom. Think I will try again but without the mainsail and just back the jib, Seems to work pretty well! Awesme video - thanks for posting!
It would be interesting to hear how you go, I am certainly not 100% sold on heaving too as an ultimate storm technique, I'd rather run off with drogues or forereach, but it has it's place and it is probably one of the more comfortable options.
Ben-- please excuse my naivety-- what are the two spools of rope for above the salon and art deck used for? What are your applications of a spool of at least 300+ft of this? Thank you! Enjoyed the vid sir...
Often we anchor in deep water then pull the stern into a cove and tie off to rocks and trees. in some spots we don't even need the anchor, just shorelines all around.
There definitely is an adaptation process. At that point we had been at sea for about 3 or 4 weeks. Plus most of us onboard had many 1000's of offshore miles under our belts.
The slick to windward when hove to helps a fair bit. I don't think it stops the bigger breaking waves, but it sure flattens down the smaller ones and makes life much more comfortable.
Thanks, it was interesting seeing the slick, though it didn't stop the bigger breakers, I feel the slick reduced the amount of smaller seas that hit us significantly.
I spent three days in a gale that got up to 40 knots on the third day off the coast of California. I had left Santa Cruz two days earlier when the forecast was 15 to 20 knots all day until midnight and then 10 knots after midnight. Not so. Left in 15 knots with one reef in the main and by midnight it was 25 knots. Hove to the first night and then got through the shipping lanes the next day with 30 knot winds and strengthening. Midday the next day with solid 35 and gusting to over 40 knots sailing with a storm jib only and on a broad reach with the tiller tied off. Never touched the tiller the whole time, set it and forget it. I was sailing a boat of my own design and build. 20 foot long over all, 18 foot waterline, 6 foot beam and 5ft waterline beam. Long keel with gaff sloop rig. Sailed itself. I was heading to Hawaii but got my storm in the first 4 days. As the gale started to lessen in the evening of the 4th day, I tacked for the first time in 4 days to the port tack and let "Harvey" tale me back towards Santa Cruz. I got my gale. That's all I wanted. I knew my boat handled as I designed it to.
Here in N.W. MN we only call weather a blizzard if there is a lot of snow in the air. Looks like you had interesting conditions, but without snow in the video. God tur!
Grant Bratrud, yep same down here, I probably dont make it clear, the boat was called blizzard. you are right, at the time there is no blizzard. though during the trip we did have some snow flurries, as we were well south.
Call that a Blizzard? We had worse of a storm striking us having just left the harbour of Almeria at 10 - 11 Beaufort back in 1987 in the usually tranquile Mediterranean. Never will forget that fire extinguisher getting loose behind the Cockpit and sailing right past my left ear, almost struck me, the darn thing (no joke) ... ;-)
Sounds nasty, yeah the med sure can blow. We saw a few nasty times when I worked on container ships. I remember the very short sharp seas. By the way the boat was called Blizzard, we weren't actually in a Blizzard, though we had sailed through a bit of snow a few times during the trip.
What’s amazing is 1/2MV^2 10 to 20Kts has 4 x the power (not 10kts more! From 20 to 30 knots is a great increase, the ten knots increase is more than it sounds if you use force.
Nice condition for a sailor. Why don't the set sails by 1st or 2nd reef? Boat keeps more stability. It is not a motor boat! There is no storm, just 7 Bft maximum. What are they afraid of?
Not sure if it's too late for a reply on this one. On our ketch we heave to by just having the mizzen up and hauled in amidships - reefed if necessary. We are a full keeled yacht with a fairly high bow (windage) and a pretty small mizzen so maybe this wouldn't work so well with your design of boat. If conditions deteriorate while we're hove to, plan B is to put out a parachute sea anchor. Never had to yet but we cross the Indian Ocean next year so........
Richard Thorogood Thats a good appoach for a ketch. At times we used to heave too in a similar way on my parents ketch. I haven't used a parachute anchor. The loads on it scare me a bit, but it seems to have a good track record. On this boat we already had the main down, and setting it would have been a difficult job in those conditions. We wanted to experiment with a few other ideas. Have a great trip across the Indian Ocean, and hopefully the sea anchor will stay in its bag!
We have the additional scariness of a bowsprit. I hate to think what would happen if the bow was thrown upwind and the rode got caught under the bowsprit. We have a bridle set up with a line coming back to the sheet winch to hopefully prevent this happening......... Prepare for the worst, hope for the best!
Richard Thorogood sounds like the Pardy system with a bridle to stabilise the boat. This seems like the best way to use a parachute sea anchor on a yacht. With the mizzen set she should lie nicely. I guess you'd want a good preventer rigged to hold the boom slightly to leeward so it also helps prevent an accidental 'tack'. Sounds like you have a good setup, I've always used drogues, since I have never had a parachute onboard.
Most sailboats I see always have the helm outside exposed to the weather. The person steering the boat is either baking in the hot sun or getting doused with freezing wet water. Why is this helm position so popular with amature boat owners? david
It does give a good view of the sails and a feeling for the wind. But you are right that in nasty weather it is pretty miserable. I like to have a decent spray dodger at least to block the worst of the stuff. Look at how the latest open 60 monohulls in the Vendee Globe have started adding much better shelter to the cockpit layouts.
this is a great question and one of the reasons I'd like to buy an Amel apart from the price or is it much better to handle the boat from the middle back ? I also wonder about center cocput helms ?
Heaving to is probably the most important life saving skill you can master. Look at the 79 Fastnet race. not a single yacht that hove to lost a sailor.
I am in two minds about heaving too, my own favorite technique for survival storms is to run off with a drogue, or even better a series drogue, I probably wouldn't choose to heave to in severe conditions with fully developed waves, although the Pardy meothod seems to have worked very well for them, and I have hove too in some nasty conditions with success, I have always thought it was pretty vulnerable to a large breaking wave strike, as we see at the end of this clip. I'd be interested to hear about the hove too vessels in the fastnet. As I recall most of the larger vessels (40+ foot) actively sailed through the storm successfully, and the smaller vessels got caught in the worst of it due to their slower speed. I didn't think there was much consensus about what worked best for them, though It's been a long time since I read Fastnet force 10.
Ben, from another forum, ""Assent" a Contessa 32 skippered by Alan Ker came out pretty well of the '79 Fastnet race, being the smallest yacht to complete the race unscathed."
Hove to is usually having the jib and main on opposite sides. This looks more like running under bare poles. It’s amazing to think that the windage of the rigging and masts can still drive the boat forward at a good clip sans sails.
Some of the best sailing footage on the net. What you don’t get is the sea sickness in your stomach and a foreboding sense. You have to be there to feel that!
That feeling when you are checking your bag...epirb, yup..water, yup..shark repellant, yup...😅
I have sailed a lot on the great lakes in an old 8 meter, with a tall rig and narrow beam on pointy ends. It was always an amazing feeling when one secured the storm jib and cast the tiller to leward. The world seemed to calm right down and the tension would release from both the boat and the crew. Thanks for the video. The job you did with the sound was outstanding in this video. -+
Thanks. Sounds like fun times. I bet those meter boats would be comfortable in a blow, as long as you didn't mind getting wet, or rolling heavily.
Thanks for not playing a stupid soundtrack. Sound of the wind and rain works best.
And one year later another thank you for skipping the soundtrack. Majestic.
Yes My thoughts exactly. Gosh the awful music people play at times is ridiculous
Oh yes!
Times like this U better believe in your boat ! Time to promise if U get out of this U will be a better person.
Why didnt they set main sail? its not safe or something?
Eek!
Looking forward to "enjoying" my retirement, this coming Spring, sailing, and living on my 27' boat. This video is a reminder that getting out in all weathers, before then, might be a good idea.... or maybe I'll just watch you and Erik Anderaa for the storm tips! 👍
Its always good to get out in bad weather when you have a safe harbour and dropping winds. Refine your systems so when you get caught out you are ready for it. How the retirement going?
Mesmerizing open ocean. Lovely, yet sinister in the way it coils and seethes.
I have done a little sailing in the ocean and that looked "COLD"! Great video...I like the raw video where you feel more like you are there.
Good recording. No verbal diarrhea. Thank you for no music. The sound does not matter. At first not running true before the wind. Odd way of trying to heave to such a big boat. Good strong wind with one gust. Nice going with the wind under bare poles after you figured out how to balance the rudder. Thank you. Subscribed.
Yes, it was an unusual way to heave too, but it worked well, and as the wind built was kind of glad we didn't have the deep reefed main up, as she would probably have been a overcanvassed. Having just the storm jib also made it easy to get underway and run off, or forereach when the wind shifted.
@@bentucker5009 ... it never hurts to give the rudder something to bite on.
I did see the slick on the leeward side of the boat while you guys hove to with the storm sail. Perfect. Exactly what you want to do. My boat is only half the size of yours, but when I take you out every year and one of the first maneuvers, I practice here in Alaska is how to hove to.
My deepest respect. Thats a rough leg allright. You guys and the ship both looked very solid. Great and a little terrifying to watch :)
The skipper Dave Pryce is one of the most experienced sailors I have sailed with. I learnt a lot from him.
Strong wind, but not a storm.
Wow. Amazing video. I’m sure it doesn’t do the southern ocean Justice but it’s closer than most of us will ever get to seeing it. Thank you!
Thanks. Glad you could see a glimpse of the wonderful wild southern ocean. Though its also often sunny and pleasant. The contrasts are part of what makes it a special place.
The Souther Ocean is not always roaring gales. Try it.
This video brought back some memories of when a storm nearly did us in. Respect!
Awwww, this was the best trip we ever did with Blizzard, I think. Thanks for the memories!
It was a brilliant trip. Thanks for making it happen.
I never had a problem like this in my 12 foot sail boat on Lake Calhoun.
You mean lake bede bop?
Yep Petrov's Defence blown wide open!
have you moved since the riots?
Try lake Michigan or superior lol
lol
A little sail up is a wonderful thing... Drogues have their place but getting them rigged and ready early is not always possible.. Great pictures - brings back many a memory of the Southern Ocean throwing a mild tantrum
The immediacy of sound and visuals brings its proper respect for what challenges are faced in such
endeavours.
After being out in 52 feet waves in the middle of a hurricane, I've vowed never to be out there again. Kuddos to you guys and thanks for the video. I'll stick close to shore.
"Running under bare poles" made me shiver. Earthlings will never understand the power of that wind.
just remember fastnet
Not "earthlings" but "landlubbers" will never understand.
@@ESHANABROOK Sorry Eric but 'landlubber' is literally translated as 'fresh water sailor'. Which I consider rather insulting for canal sailors, who have their merits. I meant somebody who only knows earth because refuse to raise his eyes. Infact I am convinced that the difference between a sailor and a 'terricolous' being is that when just out of the door the peasant looks down to the earth, while the sailor looks at the horizon.
@@squalofelice well said! "the difference between a sailor and a 'terricolous' being is that when just out of the door the peasant looks down to the earth, while the sailor looks at the horizon."
Running from a bear through a stand of thin pole saplings.
Excellent video.
Shows running under bare poles well. Shows the effect of heaving to. No fuss, excellent soundtrack which tells things how they are (vs. the ghastly music most others dub their vid with) … thanx for posting. Really
>Good boat too, or so it seems. Ready for expedition sailing I gather.
Would you please let me know what you mean by "heaving to"? I have limited training and experience but saw no heaving to in this vid as I learned it. Thanks!
RIDING THE WVES AND REMAINING STILL
Heaving too, is really any way of using the sails and rudder to stop the boat, typically it is down on modern boats with a backed headsail and a main, and the tiller to leeward, ie steering the boat upwind. but there are lots of variations, Some boats heave too with just a main, square riggers back the fore topsail. In this case we just backed the headsail but dropped the main. the boat doesn't sit with the bow up, but it is a stable attitude.
Thx for the straight coverage of rough sailing conditions while having time to play chess. Cool footage. It keeps you feel alive #bentucker Would like to see more of it.
Thanks Hans, I need to get some sort of half decent editor for this new computer then I will have a look through some of my old footage. it isn't going to happen in any hurry I am afraid.
Away for six weeks, working in Antarctica. So I won't be able to reply to any comments until I am back. Cheers
Just when it was getting good you ended the video, For all it's worth You's guys did a great job safely in some crappy conditions. The wave across the cockpit was one of the best seen on TH-cam ! Congrates
9:34 What my daughter fears most..right there. Glad to see safety harnesses hooked up. That's sailing. What a great life you all have. Thanks for letting me watch and learn
Robert Orzech k
I love how all these numb nuts have a long line tied to bow/stern... IF you fall overboard the forces will snap that line in a heart beat at one end, leaving the other anchored. YOU must use a prussic or equivalent which will GRAB the rope. A biner, shackle etc going around the rope from bow/stern does you NO GOOD AT ALL! You are pretending you are safe.
w8stral can you explain more? Or is there a photo or video of what you mean?
Simple physics. And sorry, no, I can't find this written up anywhere modern. So, a bit convoluted:
Division of forces. smaller the angle, the higher the forces. Why a line from bow to stern and you slipping in the middle is very dangerous as the forces are EXTREMELY high and one end will break. Those who know what they are doing attach that line in the middle/ends. Now you CANNOT use a single biner to slide down the line, you must have 2 so you can go around middle attachment points while still remaining tied in. This is how all catwalk lines are set up or you MUST have a self tending belay device when doing rope work. You WILL slip. Only a question of when.
Physics: Lets assume a 200lb(person+gear) person(static), line length of 30ft and fall distance to water ~5 ft. Most boats making ocean passage are longer, so it makes it even worse... Makes a triangle with 15ft by 5 ft. Creates an angle of 18 degrees and a corresponding tensile force of 668lbs X2 for both sides of the angle = static load of 1336lbs. Now add dynamic forces Can easily have 2G which doubles the force + momentum! So static is 2500lbs... no big deal for a normal rope. But what is it tied to? Handrail with small little screws tying into the boat? Most likely. If tied to main cleat, no big deal. Now, lets add momentum.
5ft fall attains a ~5ft/s velocity attaining a momentum of around 250 additional lbs load that must be stopped. The momentum alone more than doubles the force of the static load from just the weight of the person+gear. So, each end of the rope sees over 5000lbs of force...
Now, IF you are using a dynamic rope going bow to stern, it will stretch ~30%, massively decreasing momentum force and static force cutting it in half, BUT here is the rub, no one wants a dynamic rope on a boat as they suck for using on sails etc. Boating uses 100% static lines which means elongation due to a class one load is on the order of ~2% ==> 7% depending on the rope in question. Effectively there is no load alleviation.
What this means is that the rope in question will see a near instantaneous 5000lbs load at BOTH ends. Now, 1) the Ropes used for what most people consider "low loads" generally this is small. So, lets take a standard ~9mm or1/2" NEW*** line. Its rated breaking strength is rated at ~7000lbs.... BUT, it must be tied to something. Even the best knot, etc to a biner/shackle, etc will remove 30% of its rated strength. Now add that the rope used going forward is also probably old and its breaking strength is NOT like it is new.
7000 - 7000*(0.3) =~ 4500lbs with the additional problem of AGE making the rope brittle, wear(nics etc), UV, and the problem that said rope will also be going over some edges when you fall ..... Is the side of your boat a perfect radius? Or are there some sharpish edges somewhere which will increase the stress locally?
Either way... You are going in the drink under a full heal over scenario. Now obviously most people do not slip and go flying, but a 45 degree roll or greater in a massive storm, knockdown? Quite likely.
Single line bow to stern is horrifically dangerous but is common practice today. People forget that old sail boats(100+ yrs) during storms used to set up cross hatch of ropes to grab and move along on deck making the distance on a rope to anchor point, SHORT.
And sorry, no, I can't find this written up anywhere modern. @@drcalvinmb
Great video. You kept the camera level with the horizon. A+
brilliant video......great boat.....appears built for it.....videos like this should be reffered to when fitting out......a little reminder that conditions are not always as you wish......
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” - Teddy Roosevelt.
So many comments from the sidelines here. Nitpickers, second guessers, inattentive asshats. You show real patience with them Ben Tucker. "Why not do such and such..." "You should have..." "The wind wasn't really that strong.." I would not have had the patience you display. My reply would be ""Cause you weren't there, and you were not the captain of the boat. How many times have you sailed a 64" schooner in the Southern Ocean with freezing hands?! You had no idea what course we were on, the condition of the crew, or any of the other particulars that went into the decision making process. STFU! " Great job, great video. On the other hand, there are some great questions leading to some great discussions of sailing terminology, gear and tactics. I guess I would not realize that video flattens out the look of waves and belies their true voracity, if someone didn't whine "the waves aren't really that big and the wind isn't really that strong".
Thank you David, that's a great quote! I wonder if any of today's leaders are going to be quoted like those of the past? Cheers
Well said David. Well said.
I hove to once. I was single handing. I did not want to subject the autopilot to the strain and I didn’t want to run in the wrong direction. I was exhausted. I had never done it. It worked miraculously well. I went to sleep. I awoke in a couple of hours in better weather.
Well said sir.
Very well said indeed! This is badass.
The wind and rain is so beautiful. Thx 4 bringing it
It must've really ducked in the interim
Love it -- jack lines, harnesses. Proper anchor rode on a roller (for those tied-ashore anchorages) Hove to, stormsail. This is a world exploration vessel, not a couple motoring on the intracoastal and calling themselves "sailors".
what's an anchor rode like that for and ? why's it so long and how does it work ? and just asking how did they Hove to did they just turn into the wind ?
@@sailingyoumeandjosapea6770 They tacked the boat but not the storm jib. This caused the storm jib to be backed, you then steer the rudder windward lock it in and you are hove to.
@Jay lol 🤣 thumbs Up
Ponerse "al pairo" se llama.
Brilliant video.It really takes you right into the situation.The boat is clearly in very professional hands and takes everything in her stride.Storm job looks a good decision to keep some way on her
without busting a gut.
That is one BEAST of a schooner - bare pole sailing at its best!
She is an awesome ship. Always felt 100% safe on her.
Not "sailing" when all sails are furled or bagged. Running before the wind under bare poes is closer to the facts.
Great stuff. Loved the floating (green) lines on big spools as well.
@@willemhaifetz-chen1588 they are very useful in Patagonia and Antarctica for shore lines. I guess we could also tow them as a drogue if needed.
A great video. A real sense of the sea's power.
Rugged craft, and crew. And to think video never does heavy seas any justice. Awesome stuff. Thanks guys.
@darren3908 thanks. She certainly is a tough yacht, and I'd sail with that crew anywhere.
heaving to.....saved my life going through mega squalls, thunderstorms and tropical depressions of 60 knots and maybe more. Vital if it hits u during the night
What’s heaving to? Many thanks
@@gdfggggg Its when you position the rudder to tack, but don’t move the “forward” sail to the other side. This situation “locks” the boat in position, and it starts to drift sideways, with the bow pointed in an angle towards the wind and the incoming waves.
@@gdfggggg I suppose the best description of that, as Lin & Larrey Pardey name it, “safety valve” is their pointed narrative “Storm Tactics” which you can find both as printed book and DVD.
Maniobra "al pairo".
Thank you for showing sailing and not random crap like all the other sailing channels
It can get pretty tough out there on the foredeck especially at night. I well remember participating in a night foresail change in similar conditions in the Bay of Biscay after racing to La Rochelle and pretty much fending each other off with boathooks! We left for the Hamble 24 hours later in an already rising force 8 and things got a bit bumpy especially after the battery failed and we had to flash an Aldis at the bridge of a passing tanker off the needles! I was glad of a harness and the life jacket.
For me it was a squall in Biscayne Bay Miami. Thought my Dad was going overboard pulling down the jib. It was dark & i was trying to figure where I would swim to. Knew I was going to Die ! Thank You Jesus
@@GarySmith-up1un The foredeck is certainly a dangerous location especially in heavy weather and changing sails in the dark.Worse still when it gets exhausting and you’re feeling lousy! Life jacket and strong light plus double clipped harness essential!
Well done Ben and crew. Re comments about 'Hove to'. We generally will use the main with a back winded staysail to heave to, however, in wind over 60 kts it doesn't work on our boat. Even with 4th reef there's too much canvas. The main has to come down and we are then 'hove to' under staysail alone. Maybe the technophiles have another word for this but I've never heard it.
Thanks Phil, I'd never hove to like that before, but it worked reasonably well. It seems to me that's it gives you a lot of options, forereach under stormjib, run off under stormjib, or deploy a drogue off the windward quarter and either leave the stormjib set or drop it. the main on blizzard was an awkward think to drop with sticky stainless steel slides (no fancy batcars), and it only had two reefs, so dropping it early was a smart thing to do. The skipper Dave Pryce has a huge number of sea miles in the southern ocean, so It was great learning from him.
Phil Hogg Doesn't 'hove to' literally mean "foresail hove to windward"? By that definition, anytime the foresail is backwinded, you are technically 'hove to'm…
Ben Tucker .l disagree. Recovery over the quarter is tricky, especially if you are using the donk. Rather deploy off the weather bow. Oil, even the cooking variety, helps, in extreme conditions, to reduce the broken water. lovely video, thank you.
never in the super yacht videos. thank you!!
👍 Das erste Video für mich hier , das die Schönheit und wüste See so herrlich zeigt .
Respekt vor euren Fähigkeiten 👍
Thank you, yes the wild ocean is harsh, but also beautiful.
Danke, ja, der wilde Ozean ist rau, aber auch wunderschön.
@@bentucker5009 bin ein ehemaliger leidenschaftlicher Surfer und möchte nach Jahren des Stresses per Segelboot diese wunderbare rauhe See erleben , leider fehlt mir und meinen Mitstreitern noch die Erfahrung und den anderen der Mut 😉 .....danke für die tollen Einblicke in Ihre Leidenschaft , bitte weitere Videos dieser Art , einfach umwerfend 👍👍👍
@mbholzwurm good luck getting out to a wild sea one day. But hopefully, it's not too bad! At least being a surfer you will be used to the extreme power of the waves.
viel Glück, wenn du eines Tages aufs wilde Meer hinausfährst. Aber hoffentlich ist es nicht allzu schlimm! Als Surfer bist du zumindest an die extreme Kraft der Wellen gewöhnt.
I've sailed solo in the roaring 40s in a 28-footer, and I have to admit this brings back some rather mixed emotions. The best of times, the worst of times
nerve wracking just thinking about it.
Calm and efficient crew, well found boat taking it in her stride...they'll be fine !
Thanks. Certainly David Pryce ran a very organised and safe yacht.
64 feet and you wouldn't want it any smaller! Seems like a very capable craft!
The French Legend Bernard Moitessier sailed his 38' twin masted Joshua through the Southern Ocean and around Cape Horn many times. Additionally Robin Knox Johnston who was the first to do a non-stop Global Circumnavigation in his boat Suhaili, a 32' wooden ketch, made several trips through the Southern Ocean and around the Horn. It is very doable for an experienced sailor in much smaller boats.
I sailed my 33 foot steel sloop to antarctica a few years before this trip. See snow petrel down under on youtube for a video of this trip.
But it was much more comfortable on the bigger boat. Bernard Motessier is a legend!
@@Reaper-cm4jr yeah, doable but in those winds, given the choice....
Good video and nice boat. Takes me back to some of our Bermuda runs on a CS 36 (except much warmer than you). I like the bare poles technique, but when you raise up even a small canvas to hove to, it obviously exposes you to some of those nasty beam seas. Love the mates playing chess under the dodger! Well done.
Very true, I am not sure about heaving to as an ultimate storm technique, but it is a comfortable way to hold station and park up.
Where was the hove to?
7:05 and onwards
That’s not hove to, that’s lying a hull. And that’s why the deck gets swept with waves and the boat practically rolls. Putting up a storm jib doesn’t mean you’re hove to.
nice... could see very well what 'hove to' does to the sea.. nice vid, thanks.. makes me a bit less nervous for my atlantic crossing.. gonna practice that, al lot !
I was just thinking, as you settled down to play chess, I'd never leave the Helm in them conditions, then a great wave swept across the cockpit, in the next shot, someone's back at the Helm... Respect to you Fellas, True and Accomplished Yachtsmen
strake750 The timeline is not very clear in the video. I cant remember for sure but we had been hove too for a few hours before that wave, and we were hove to for a few hours after it as well. We started handsteering once the wind settled down and backed more to the west. Had we been hand steering we may have been able to put the wave more on the stern, but holding position enabled the front to quickly pass over us, and running off would have put us further south. Thanks for the question.
just last night finished reading your dads book of you trip to antartica... then im watching this completely by accident ... all the very best to you!
Glad you enjoyed the trip, that was the year before this trip. All the best to you to!
Awesome. I would love to sail in this weather. I used to sail in Florida but now live in Nevada so.... Anyway, I love being outdoors in inclement weather, it makes me feel more alive !
Ever thought of land sailing in the flats? They do it with trikes w/windsurfing rigs
Interesting footage to absorb what lies in wait for my solo circumnavigation. Clearly, I won't be in a 60 footer, but the Southern Ocean doesn't care, so getting prepared! Very enjoyable watch.
Joseph Quinn wow that’s great .
When that wave hit I said several expletives out loud, now I also have the odd urge to sail the ocean?
I am 63 and at the age where....I have lived a good life of service and would take on something as this. If fate had it that I be lost...so be it.
Reminds me of a cartoon in an old Yachting magazine years ago. Guy and his somewhat greenpallored wife sitting on the high side in the wind, rain, and spray in their foul weather gear. The guy turned to his wife and said...:"smile honey, or they may never ask us aboard again!" ;-)
Nice view port side of the slick created after the storm jib was set and wheel lashed.
Saint777 Martyrdom Thanks. I tried to film it and it certainly helped calm the smaller seas. But it did nothing to stop the bigger breakers.
Thanks for that- noticed you didn't show the dangerous part of turning the boat broadside to the new position. Reminds me L.I. sound, 10 to 15 K, maneuvering before race start, inexperienced at being at the line at time I hove-to close to the line for an advantage knowing all boats had to give me right of way -- and a number of boats thought i was in trouble, came by to offer assistance. Had 150 jenny and full main. too.
9:05 cross-beam wave, HELLO! I’m also saying thanks for using ambient sound, instead of music. It gets so loud. I’m not a sailor. But was on a charter once in Aegean in Sept caught out in force 9 in a ridiculous motor ketch with actual CANVAS canvas. Even the inter-island ferries were kept in port. If you haven’t seen the horizon shift 180 degrees and heard the sheer volume of the experience, you just can’t know. First you throw up every thing you’ve eaten in the last year. Then you wrap yourself around anything still bolted to the hull and hold on. You go up up up up and sideways, then down like a boulder. The bow slams the trough of a wave, the force of the impact stops you and shoves you back. Up 30 feet, down 30 feet, sideways. And all around you is noise: The wind, the slap of the rigging, the luff of your sails, the spatter of spray. You don’t “realize” you’re powerless and tiny. You wonder what deluded you into thinking you ever had power, or were bigger than an ant. Great upload.
I guess your skipper didn't check the forcast!
Sounds like a nasty experience. You have to have been in it to know what it's like, one part exhilarating, one part terrifying, and one part uncomfortable, and yes, it does make you realise how powerful nature is when it wants to be.
@@bentucker5009 Agreed. I was in a 3 day gale on the Flemish Cap one November, on an oceanographic research ship 100 metres in length, and that was crazy enough...to go through a big storm in a small boat would be terrifying and thrilling all at once.
Harbour Geezer that’s not a very small boat maybe 50 feet
@@endallbeall1211 All things being relative, 50 foot in the vast open wastes of the Roaring Forties is pretty small. I'd do it in a second though.
Harbour Geezer I’m sailing the ocean on 30 feet bro........
Great video, calm and as realistic as you can get it when you're just sitting in front of your screen instead of being out there.:) Thanks
Great sound! Impressive footage!!
I wanted to ask: Did You pull a sea-anchor to avoid getting too fast in the downsurf, or is this method only used with smaller boats (10-15m)?
I second this question. I doubt they did though since they were hove to.
Original sound of rain and heavy sea natural wind sounds feels so good and beautiful , and that times good for remembering of God
Great video....thanks much for sharing your awesome experience.
I am not an expert so the people in the video are surely more experienced, BUT the boat is traveling sown wind. That doesn't look like its "Heaved to". None the less, my compliments to the captain and crew. You look like you know what you are doing.
Wrong, see from minute 6.00 on.
Even though its technically not a heave to, reefed main or trisail missing, but nevertheless good seamanship. Boat well under control.
“There are three sorts of people; those who are alive, those who are dead, and those who are at sea.”
- Old Capstan Chantey attributed to Anacharsis, 6th Century BC
Very cool video! Good picture of the slick while hove to. Looks like the boat was still sailing just a bit maybe why you got the breakers. Good stuff, thanks.
You might be right. Though I am not 100% sold on the concept of the slick protecting against all waves. It certainly helps with a lot of them, especially the smaller chop. But I think a bigger breaking wave can still roll through it.
Great video! Not an easy time to be working the camera but sure glad you did!
The sound of the ocean is all I needed to hear. Thanks
Great video. I filmed a bit of a blow this summer on my boat with winds a bit lower than during your gale, and what struck me as crazy (in my gale) was that birds were still out flying with the wind 35 kts gusting to 47. !! (I even comment with surprise about the birds in my video.) If you look closely at your video right at the end (9:24ish) you will see a bird fly by the stern. Those birds are not phased by anything! Again, bravo for a thought-provoking video.
I watched it 15 times didn’t see anything than again about 10 times because I was pissed.
@@thebear6529you didn't see the bird? Do you wear glasses? 😂
@@SailingSarah i wear glasses, have them off, even i saw the bird, thought for a second it was a drone cause of the noise of the wind generator.
When I saw bare poles, I started yelling " storm jib ".... nice work fellers !
Your vid ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But i have a question I saw that after your deck hand or any rellative(i dont know) went foreward to ''open'' jib sail why he didn't open and the main sail but of course both of them on reefing position .That i beleive that wiil gave you a better sped But anyway You was there and you saw the conditions ,the wibd fource , the stare of the sea etc . For your information last time when i was sailnig was 40 years a go when i was in the Academy.After that year by year contract by contract i became Captain always on chemical tankers.I never stop love the sails and the yachts with single diesel engine (PAT PAT PATP PAT......)You know what i am talking about but i hate the high sophisticated motor yachts with 2,3,or 4 engines and they use this ''magic '' stick '' controling engines ,bow thruster ,stern thruster .................for mooring God em where is the seamship on that????Now even mt grand Mother can be a CAPTAIN for the.....Sunday
Thanks, I also worked on ships, I was a mate on Container ships (P&O Nedlloyd) and worked on RO-RO's so I know what you mean, used to watch the sea and wish I had some sails set rather than a big 2slow speed two-stroke diesel or steam turbine.
We didn't set the main due to the difficulty raising and lowering it, The slides on it were very stiff and if the wind picked up it would have been very difficult to drop.
Maybe someone already commented about this previously but did you guys have a sea anchor out and if not, why not.
No we didn't. No real need. If it got significantly worse we may have trailed warps. But Blizzard had previously been through a much worse blow lying a hull.
I have towed drogues before on other vessels and like them a lot.
Damn! How I miss being out at sea! Thanks for the awesome video from an old US Navy shellback. Reminded me of being on midwatch during a gale even nastier than this one with 30'+ swells, 60+ kt winds off the Juan De Fuca strait way back in 1979 ... Question-> Did you guys ever consider deploying a sea anchor/drogue while heaving to and bare poled? Might've eased off the listing quite a bit and made you fellas somewhat more comfortable. Hell, even an old wayfaring boatswain like myself sometimes got a little green around the gills during seas like those!
Reminds me of my first night at sea as a Midshipman aboard a US Navy ship in a storm off Cape Hatteras. I had midwatch that night sitting "CONFLAG" watch, locked in a closet-size room by myself with a single porthole overlooking the hangar bay watching for any sign of fire. The choppers were all heaving up and down on their oleos with the ships motion. I don't know how I managed to keep dinner down that night. It was almost as much fun as my days sweating my buns off in the boiler room.
Ualll WTF!!!! I love it!!! first time here and subscribed!!!! amazing!!!
9:23 Anybody else see that crazy bird passing astern? YOLO!
It thought about resting a while on their slight (though trusty) boat then thought better of it and flew on . . .
Nice video. It also adds some context to the types of conditions that Shackleton's group endured running 800 miles from Elephant Island to South Georgia Island, except they were forced to use a 22 foot lifeboat 'retrofitted' for open ocean travel.
Shackleton, Shackleton, parrot, parrot, parrot. Lets stop hearing about that failure of a man who's reputation is born of 1st world war propaganda and keep things real!
+Chris Harris You are either ignorant of the Shackleton expedition or just a troll.
Not at all ignorant. In fact the opposite; which gives me the knowledge that Shackleton was just another glorious failure. Many others had done "Shackleton's" long before him... Go read about the sealers and whalers who opened up Antarctica and you will find many, many, stories. Then look up expeditions such as that of William Spiers Bruce and others and you will find successful men and successful expeditions.
Hi Chris, hope you are enjoying Christchurch. I love the adventures of Matthew Brisbane and James Weddell on the Beaufoy and the Jane, Amazing voyages in such simple vessels and so forgotten these days.
Ha, Chris Is trolling a little as normal!
Thanks for the video. I understand you were just practicing heaving to, but I would like to make a video request. Please could you show all the options in heavy weather. It seems to me that she was rolling heavily under bare poles, whereas if you put up more sail and got her moving faster the motion would have been much more comfortable. BTW I am going to subsciibe. I loved your self-cleaning cockpit!
Thanks Frank, I'd love to make a video series like that but unfortunately I am not particularly good with a videocamera or editing software so It's going to be some time! At some point I might be able to post some more stuff from my Snow petrel trip south.
There is some truth about the amount of sail. She was rolling heavily under bare poles, but the storm jib steadied her up a lot. The camera doesn't show it well but the sound gives an idea of the windspeed as the front crossed. She probably didn't need anymore sail at that point.
Enjoyed the sound and vision of the sea that boat rocking
The waves going high and the wind are cry. Thank you for the vid
Since no sails are up, do they use the engine to stay on course?
No, there was enough wind and speed just from the windage of the bare masts and riggine to have control without the engine. It was not used at all.
is it just me or perhaps video illusion, that the bow seemed to have lifted almost bending at time index 3:07.
that's probably the camera ... I hope. I guess some hulls could "flex" in heavy seas.
Good spot! But yes agree is camera, if it wasn't this clip would be a lot different. Spin out on first glance though. For a split second I thought "Oh sh#t" till the brain kicks in.
Had to go back and look. The boat turns rubber for a couple of seconds. lol
loll if I would of seen this with my own eyes on that boat, i'd be wanting off ASAP
I think that must be an artefact from the video anti shake software effect. She was aluminium and always felt very solid with minimal flex.
I have not been successful yet heaving to on our Freedom. Think I will try again but without the mainsail and just back the jib, Seems to work pretty well! Awesme video - thanks for posting!
It would be interesting to hear how you go, I am certainly not 100% sold on heaving too as an ultimate storm technique, I'd rather run off with drogues or forereach, but it has it's place and it is probably one of the more comfortable options.
The one part of sailing that always got me was taking the beating hour after hour. No escape.
Dark well. Totally agree, and you can't feel that on a video....tenacity
Is invisible..namaste
Wow! Some big balls on the crew of that jigger. Respect !
Ben-- please excuse my naivety-- what are the two spools of rope for above the salon and art deck used for? What are your applications of a spool of at least 300+ft of this? Thank you! Enjoyed the vid sir...
Sternlines are often used in places like Patagonia or Fiordland
Gottenhimfella --- So they are for anchoring in locations too deep then, and used for securing the boat to a land object??
Nailed it, that's exactly what they are for. She was set up for Patagonia and the Antarctic peninsular, where easy to run shorelines are very handy.
Often we anchor in deep water then pull the stern into a cove and tie off to rocks and trees. in some spots we don't even need the anchor, just shorelines all around.
SY Explorar Conmigo stern ties, comes in handy.
Dam gentleman that is off the hook . I didn't see any of the crew scared, I was
There definitely is an adaptation process. At that point we had been at sea for about 3 or 4 weeks. Plus most of us onboard had many 1000's of offshore miles under our belts.
I just walk up to the bow spirit and shout "Peace, be still"
Curly Joe did it with a couple of squirts of lubricating oil out a porthole, from an oil can. (Three Stooges)
It raises memories of last year, as we run through a cyclone in the Bay of Bengal: pitch black night and air and water mixed well ....
Good job with the Video. I have been there and it really shows what it can be like out there.
Marilyn Cook They were on bare poles,notbear poles
Such a good video nice to see that swell the boat creates… safest way to go 😅
The slick to windward when hove to helps a fair bit. I don't think it stops the bigger breaking waves, but it sure flattens down the smaller ones and makes life much more comfortable.
7:47 What a perfect example of the sideways *slick* caused by heaving-to
Thanks, it was interesting seeing the slick, though it didn't stop the bigger breakers, I feel the slick reduced the amount of smaller seas that hit us significantly.
The slicks technical name is *Von Karman Vortex street*
I spent three days in a gale that got up to 40 knots on the third day off the coast of California. I had left Santa Cruz two days earlier when the forecast was 15 to 20 knots all day until midnight and then 10 knots after midnight. Not so. Left in 15 knots with one reef in the main and by midnight it was 25 knots. Hove to the first night and then got through the shipping lanes the next day with 30 knot winds and strengthening. Midday the next day with solid 35 and gusting to over 40 knots sailing with a storm jib only and on a broad reach with the tiller tied off. Never touched the tiller the whole time, set it and forget it. I was sailing a boat of my own design and build. 20 foot long over all, 18 foot waterline, 6 foot beam and 5ft waterline beam. Long keel with gaff sloop rig. Sailed itself. I was heading to Hawaii but got my storm in the first 4 days. As the gale started to lessen in the evening of the 4th day, I tacked for the first time in 4 days to the port tack and let "Harvey" tale me back towards Santa Cruz. I got my gale. That's all I wanted. I knew my boat handled as I designed it to.
I enjoy watching this.
Yes, that's the way it is. Great seamanship, great safety. well done.
Thank you.
09:00 OMG, cold my heart!
I have watched this video three times now. Very exciting. Looks dangerous and I have been there.
beautifully Raw video.
impressive.
me likey
!!🤗
Here in N.W. MN we only call weather a blizzard if there is a lot of snow in the air. Looks like you had interesting conditions, but without snow in the video. God tur!
Grant Bratrud, yep same down here, I probably dont make it clear, the boat was called blizzard. you are right, at the time there is no blizzard. though during the trip we did have some snow flurries, as we were well south.
What's the old mariner's advice to a young man? If the young man wanted to learn how to pray, then " go to sea."
mnpd3
Agreed
More atheists get religion in a storm at sea than anywhere else.
Call that a Blizzard? We had worse of a storm striking us having just left the harbour of Almeria at 10 - 11 Beaufort back in 1987 in the usually tranquile Mediterranean. Never will forget that fire extinguisher getting loose behind the Cockpit and sailing right past my left ear, almost struck me, the darn thing (no joke) ...
;-)
Sounds nasty, yeah the med sure can blow. We saw a few nasty times when I worked on container ships. I remember the very short sharp seas.
By the way the boat was called Blizzard, we weren't actually in a Blizzard, though we had sailed through a bit of snow a few times during the trip.
Hi Ben. Please take no offense, I was merely kidding. It does seem like it was a rough patch of weather. Thanks fir your answer. Kind regards.
It always amazes me the difference between 30 knots and 40knots
I checked it three times, it's 10 knots. Amazing.
What’s amazing is 1/2MV^2
10 to 20Kts has 4 x the power (not 10kts more!
From 20 to 30 knots is a great increase, the ten knots increase is more than it sounds if you use force.
Great footage, thank you for sharing. Agree with Greg B - so much better with just the wind and the rain.
Thanks, at one stage the wind was really starting to howl in the rigging. Fortunately it eased quickly enough after about an hour or so.
Nice condition for a sailor. Why don't the set sails by 1st or 2nd reef? Boat keeps more stability. It is not a motor boat! There is no storm, just 7 Bft maximum. What are they afraid of?
If you read description, you would find out that they were going through force 9, force 10. What would I give to see you setting 1 or 2 reefs on that.
"....through force 9, force 10" ???!!! where?!! I'm agree with C Brown but 1st reef for sure not 2nd.
40 knots, at times 50
www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/beaufort.html
the video hardly ever makes justice of the true conditions...
+dovla666
Wind is 25/30 knots max. Sorry, but it's so.
Not sure if it's too late for a reply on this one. On our ketch we heave to by just having the mizzen up and hauled in amidships - reefed if necessary. We are a full keeled yacht with a fairly high bow (windage) and a pretty small mizzen so maybe this wouldn't work so well with your design of boat. If conditions deteriorate while we're hove to, plan B is to put out a parachute sea anchor. Never had to yet but we cross the Indian Ocean next year so........
Richard Thorogood Thats a good appoach for a ketch. At times we used to heave too in a similar way on my parents ketch. I haven't used a parachute anchor. The loads on it scare me a bit, but it seems to have a good track record.
On this boat we already had the main down, and setting it would have been a difficult job in those conditions. We wanted to experiment with a few other ideas. Have a great trip across the Indian Ocean, and hopefully the sea anchor will stay in its bag!
We have the additional scariness of a bowsprit. I hate to think what would happen if the bow was thrown upwind and the rode got caught under the bowsprit. We have a bridle set up with a line coming back to the sheet winch to hopefully prevent this happening......... Prepare for the worst, hope for the best!
Richard Thorogood sounds like the Pardy system with a bridle to stabilise the boat. This seems like the best way to use a parachute sea anchor on a yacht. With the mizzen set she should lie nicely.
I guess you'd want a good preventer rigged to hold the boom slightly to leeward so it also helps prevent an accidental 'tack'.
Sounds like you have a good setup, I've always used drogues, since I have never had a parachute onboard.
Most sailboats I see always have the helm outside exposed to the weather. The person steering the boat is either baking in the hot sun or getting doused with freezing wet water. Why is this helm position so popular with amature boat owners?
david
It does give a good view of the sails and a feeling for the wind. But you are right that in nasty weather it is pretty miserable. I like to have a decent spray dodger at least to block the worst of the stuff. Look at how the latest open 60 monohulls in the Vendee Globe have started adding much better shelter to the cockpit layouts.
That's why the Antares 44i and the Exquisite X5 (even though they're cats) have great helms for bad wx. Are great for weather like this
@@chartphred1
Rapier 550 or Dix DH-550 is better)
ah wet water!!
this is a great question and one of the reasons I'd like to buy an Amel apart from the price or is it much better to handle the boat from the middle back ? I also wonder about center cocput helms ?
Awesome foredeck crew stowin and foldin that sailind in that sea. Awesome.
Dave Pryce is a legend. I would have just stuffed the sail down the hatch. He folded it!
Heaving to is probably the most important life saving skill you can master. Look at the 79 Fastnet race. not a single yacht that hove to lost a sailor.
I am in two minds about heaving too, my own favorite technique for survival storms is to run off with a drogue, or even better a series drogue, I probably wouldn't choose to heave to in severe conditions with fully developed waves, although the Pardy meothod seems to have worked very well for them, and I have hove too in some nasty conditions with success, I have always thought it was pretty vulnerable to a large breaking wave strike, as we see at the end of this clip.
I'd be interested to hear about the hove too vessels in the fastnet. As I recall most of the larger vessels (40+ foot) actively sailed through the storm successfully, and the smaller vessels got caught in the worst of it due to their slower speed. I didn't think there was much consensus about what worked best for them, though It's been a long time since I read Fastnet force 10.
Ben, from another forum, ""Assent" a Contessa 32 skippered by Alan Ker came out pretty well of the '79 Fastnet race, being the smallest yacht to complete the race unscathed."
Hove to is usually having the jib and main on opposite sides. This looks more like running under bare poles. It’s amazing to think that the windage of the rigging and masts can still drive the boat forward at a good clip sans sails.