knives and helmets ?

Safest thing is to stay on the sailboat

Have there been instances of sailors struck and injured by a competitors centreboards after going overboard in a pitchpole? Some boards seem to be razor thin and hitting anyone at 20 knots would do real damage.

I coach high school sailing in Boston and the helmet issue has been a major point of discussion at the last couple league meetings. Many schools are making helmets mandatory for their sailors because they have been losing one or two players to concussions every season. I think with the current attention TBIs are getting in football, hockey, etc. we are going to see a strong movement towards helmets in Jr. Sailing.

At MIT, Fran (sailing master) is also very concerned about the head injuries and has bought helmets for his sailors. They are optional to wear, and Fran is also trying to solve the problem by switching to carbon booms on the FJs and raising the gooseneck. We've also gone to Gnav vangs to eliminate extra purchases flying across the ****.

In general, I have found kids are more likely to get hit in light air when they aren't paying attention, than in heavy breeze when they gybe with a hand on the vang, etc.

I am glad to see helmets at the High School level being pressed. That will make it easier for us as time goes on for the younger sailors to adapt helmets as a necessary item, like the harness of life jacket.

Most kids today grow up wearing helmets on bikes, most of us did not. I think the kids will be the easy sell.

Mike

I tested Karl's old N20 daggarboard with my face once. The board is pretty strong.

and we're talking about helmets and knives, right?

What about a Helmet WITH knives?

and frickin' laser beams.

Sounds ripe for

here, hold my beer

moments

We just ordered 30 Shred Ready SESH helmets for our junior team and sailing classes. Retail is about $47. We got them for $26.50.

mea culpa for my tightwad post..hope I can still post here,

My teen age daughter & I went out in 18 - 20 with a chase boat following us..stuffed the leeward bow hard on a port tack..stood straight up & popped back up but we were all off balance..then we got blown over..I landed in the sail but she hit the mast with the side of her head..got her on the chase boat and shes all right we're getting helmets for the windy rides..dont know if I'll get her back out in anything over 10 mph..ps I had trouble getting back on after righting..little tired..anyone use handgrabs or rope ladder tied to front beam to assist?

Forward sailing has impact vests and helmets.


Both highly recommended and used on the M32, and extreme 40 I was on.

don't worry, most people are tightwads here one time or another

yes big issue. discussed in detail here, try searching

but from my exp, rope ladders don't work as well as you would think (or need lots of practice) becuase they simply push under the beam and are not much help, plus need special storage

righting line with knots are a little help but not all that helpful

I have found location location location is key (where on the boat you try to get back on from)

front beam - almost impossible on my boat, saps all my remaining strenght

rear beam - impossible

solution for me on my boat ... aft of the shrouds, I

jump

up a little and grab my trap handle. use this to anchor and lift a foot/feet up near the rear beam (least freeboard area) and then lift my waist / torso up using my feet and hands (still on trap handle)

in a pinch, if you can get to it your jib sheet can assist too

This is what I do too and I'm 52 and sail an F18 and I can get on the boat easily and in short order. The key thing to remember is to move your a$$. If you have a self tacking jib and don't have a quick release system the jib will pull the boat off the wind relatively quickly and the boat will take off like a rocket.

Rich, Source for the helmet and vest? Thanks!

Dave

Dave.... you make a key point

If you have a self tacking jib and don't have a quick release system the jib will pull the boat off the wind relatively quickly and the boat will take off like a rocket.

How do you get there? swim under hull.... go forward and around the bow? go aft under the tramp... around the rudders and forward to the shroud... trap handle?

Do you have a quick release on your jib's clew? (and let it flog when you right the boat....) then reattach the sheets and off you go...

What does your quick release look like?

Final point.... Who needs to move their butt... you or your quicker and more nimble crew who can ride the boat up... climb over the beam and get to the rudders to park the boat ASAP?

I've been wearing a helmet this season due to a concussion I got skiing in March. It was a minor concussion that lingered for 2.5 months- very annoying.

On the F18 I've been wearing a kiteboarding helmet Tripp let me borrow. On the Moth I've worn a Bern helmet that MIT provides at the sailing pavilion. I haven't really noticed having either of them on.

Unfortunately I tore a ligament in my hand during the statue race, so the helmet hasn't been needed for a while!

I don't have a jib quick release on my boat and there isn't one on my skippers boat. I've seen quick release systems that use a snap shackle or simple S hook at the clew.

When I'm sailing on my skippers boat I can pretty much right the boat on my own and she just rolls up on deck as the boat comes up. I always have a plan B just in case something doesn't go as planned, which is for me to high tail it to the stern holding onto the righting line until I've got a firm grip on the foot strap. From there I pull myself forward until I can reach the skippers trap and I use it to help pull myself on the boat. Plan B is always in motion because the sooner I can get on the boat the sooner we are back to racing and I hate when she says... waiting on you grandpa. The quicker you're on the boat the less likely it's going to get away from you. It is something we practiced and I think it was time well spent.

http://www.forward-sailing.com/technical-sailing-clothing?zenid=b607c30cd6a3b5a9712020c4d8480f77
They have a lot of sailing gear and other things like snuffer covers ect.

I know a feller' that is starting to bring these into the US. My crew is having a little brain surgery on Friday so we're tossing around the idea of these for F18 nationals....although, they match very poorly with my green color scheme. <img src="<>/wink.gif" alt="wink" title="wink" height="15" width="15" />

http://www.vaikobi.com/products/vaikobi-performance-water-helmet-ce-1385-approved

dont you know someone who does vinyl wraps?

Yeah, but that is a different guy.

Perhaps using the blow-torch technique to get the wrap to fit on the helmet while being worn is not considered a

best practice

?

Ding hit the nail right on the head: Practice!!!

Capsizing and swiiming near your boat are probably the last things anyone wants to do with their sailing time, but there is probably nothing more valuable.

Mike

How will a helmet help you if the other sailors start throwing knives at each other? Maybe a shield like captain America would be better.

A funny thing a hockey player said;

I wear a cup and not a helmet because I can always get someone to do my thinking for me.

Luckily I'm the mf-ing master of capsizing.

What's the difference between these and any of the Whitewater kayak helmets available?

Only because I've taken a partial hiatus from racing. I've capsized a Wave...

Mike

That's talent you can't teach right there.