A couple of weeks ago in this column I recounted a story from a friend who had fallen overboard while singlehanding offshore who was attached to the boat’s jacklines with his safety harness. He was being dragged behind the boat and only with a feat of hyper-adrenaline effort managed to haul himself to the boat and back on board. I offered some thoughts from my own experienced and asked readers to chime in with theirs. Here are a few of many responses and many thanks to you all for taking the time to share your experiences with us all.
From Kevin Wellington: A nice write-up. Scary. I just can’t imagine how the doctor could have pulled himself back on-board at 6 Kts. I hope he also had a PLB and some means of cutting free of the tether. (A guy got drowned in the ’97 Sydney Hobart because he was held underwater by his harness.)
On our 42-footer we also have a jack-line in the cockpit. The side jack-lines are cleated off on solid pad-eyes towards the front of the cockpit. However they are still in reach from in the cockpit so one could make a minimal risk switch. About 2+ meters from the stern. But I still wouldn’t like to have to climb back on board.
From Bill Giles: I read somewhere of a cunning device which when there was sufficient pull on the jackline the autopilot would trip the wheel to a hove to position. I am not sure that I would necessarily trust a ‘cunning device’ but wondered if a loop of light line hanging over each side of the stern when pulled would disengage the autopilot. Just need to be careful when berthing to remove the tripping line so it does not engage the prop.
From Rob & Linda Jones, SV Catnabout currently in La Paz, Mexico: I have preached to people about this for years. We sail a Gemini catamaran and have one Jackline. It’s right in the center of the boat and our tethers are short enough to work but will not allow you to go overboard. Almost every boat spends money on their MOB setup but the key is preventing that. Our jackline is a stainless cable with shackles. Most everyone we know could not pull themselves back on a moving boat. The person was lucky.
From Rick Brass, Washington, NC:
The jacklines used on my C&C 38 terminate at pad eyes located inside the cockpit above the ends of the bridge deck mounted traveler. The pad eyes are about 6” below the top of the cockpit combing, so there is room for crew going forward to clip on before leaving the cockpit.
Because the jacklines end several feet forward of the transom and pedestal, I have also installed four Wichard folding pad eyes; two are on the sides of the cockpit forward of the wheel and down low, and the other two are in the area aft of the wheel and on either side of the helm.
I encourage everyone who brings their own tether to have one with two legs, and that is what I provide if crew are using my tethers. Two legs on the tether and the location of the various pad eye let crew clip into a new pad eye before unclipping from the old one, and also facilitate moving around the wheel when changing helmsmen.
