for you all that can appreciate the videos for what they are: there are more on his page.
that day continued to prove very challenging for this new sailor.
he learned the valuable lesson that the jib halyard attachment point needs to be on the bottom of the mast prior to mast stepping or you will need to a. flip the boat over on it's side to retrieve it, or b. take the mast down
his next vid shows us flipping the boat in the water
the rest of the day continued to test his patience with the main sail not hooking and needing to flip the boat again and then his hulls flooding and needing to pump them dry while parked on an island
he had a great attitude all day long and was laughing about it all.
i would have been so frustrated i would have probably scuttled the boat
I missed all that. How awesome he shared it! Its good to commiserate, dang! And I thought I was the only one to fly that jib halyard! That's a giant Doh! moment you have to laugh at. A couple weeks ago, my friend and I went sailing- 75 degrees, 68 degree water, decent winds, why not? Well, after sewing the jib in the field because the zipper broke, we felt pretty good on the water.... "Want to try sailing to Redfish (from Texas City dike)?". Why not... Well, when the wind shifts, it's straight upwind to now get back and the sun is setting is why not... Even with a shorty wet suit I got a light case of hypothermia and a rather ticked wife...got on sand about 8:30 pm and de-rigged in essentially pitch black. That was an exercise in lessons...
Point is the same-failures have a ton of lessons in them.
As a long time sailor with not a lot of beach cat experience I find the this thread very interesting. While the OP was about selecting a first beach cat it seems there has been somewhat of a shift to how to raise the mast on a beach cat. Truth be told my biggest shock was figuring out how to raise the mast on my Prindle 18-2. While I have raised and lowered the mast I am still not sure I have come up with the final solution. I do use a ladder, but not a six foot one; my ladder is ten feet tall. That extra four feet really makes a difference. I also have not raised the mast solo. I have a friend position the ladder somewhat close to the end of the mast and while I am on the tramp lifting the mast he puts the ladder under the mast to support it. Then I lift the mast a little more and he moves the ladder closer to the boat as the mast gets higher. At some point he leaves the ladder, climbs up on the tramp and the two of us complete getting the mast up. Then one of us attaches the stays while the other one stabilizes the mast. I also leave the straps that secure the boat to the trailer in place till the mast is raised. To lower the mast I make sure the straps attaching the boat to the trailer are in place. Then I move the ladder in front of the trailer and use a winch (actually a come along) attached to the forestay and run over the top of the ladder to lower the mast while one of us stays on the boat to stabilize the mast as it is lowered.
I would point out there is an online vid https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lz3hbRmy-7w I sorta based this method on. The difference in my method and the one in the vid is the guy in the vid is a 6'4" 250lb off shore oil worker with the strength to do things my old tired body can't; which is why I need the help of a friend. But it shows how helpful a ladder can be in raising a mast. It also shows how a well designed system of stays and trap lines makes things a lot easier and safer.
The point is that for me at least sailing was the easy part, getting the boat rigged and off the trailer and into the water was the hard part.
I concur 100%. In fact, in case anyone's uncertain, I'm the king of dumb shit. Do it all the time. Never taken out persons or property with a falling mast, but just about everything else. Buy me a beer sometime and ask me about standing next to my truck out on the highway with the front end on the ground and both front wheels splayed out like in a cartoon after an "experiment" with the bearings - that one's a total knee-slapper. The difference is in my approach to dealing with it after the smoke has cleared. I'm not a pathological videographer, so I don't have anything to squirt up on youtube before the minute hand has ticked with a "my new fail, d00dz!" caption. Instead, I think about it for a good long time, then write it up (e.g. on my blog) so as to maximize both the value of the lesson and the humour - which is invariably self-deprecating - because unless you make it funny as well as educational, it's more likely to come off as preachy and not an entertaining read. Call me "old school".
No. Please. Bill, you're out of line with that little summary, because it's a gross mischaracterization of what I said. I was commenting on a single, specific case. I did not draw any such broad generalization, and it's absolutely not how I feel.
Edited by jonathan162 on Dec 17, 2019 - 11:31 AM.
-- Southern Alberta and all over the damn place.
*
1981 SuperCat 20 "Roberts' Rockets"
1983 SuperCat 19
TriFoiler #23 "Unfair Advantage"
Mystere 17
Unicorn A-Class (probably made by Trowbridge) that I couldn't resist rescuing at auction.
H18 & Zygal (classic) Tornado - stolen and destroyed - very unpleasant story.
Invitation and Mistral and Sunflower and windsurfers w/ Harken hydrofoils and god knows what else... --
And I note that this operation was recorded from a distance so one can see what went on rather than more of that head-mounted stuff. Buddy's a quick study.
I can't say that looked or sounds bad enough to set fire to and walk away from - been through worse. But you certainly can't fault him for digging in and working through it.
After watching his others vids, I added a comment to the "discussion" section. It is left as an exercise to the reader to determine whether I'm being positive and supportive or still just being a dick.
And was that you passing him for a handoff on the Mystere 5.5?
Edited by jonathan162 on Dec 17, 2019 - 11:11 AM.
-- Southern Alberta and all over the damn place.
*
1981 SuperCat 20 "Roberts' Rockets"
1983 SuperCat 19
TriFoiler #23 "Unfair Advantage"
Mystere 17
Unicorn A-Class (probably made by Trowbridge) that I couldn't resist rescuing at auction.
H18 & Zygal (classic) Tornado - stolen and destroyed - very unpleasant story.
Invitation and Mistral and Sunflower and windsurfers w/ Harken hydrofoils and god knows what else... --
for you all that can appreciate the videos for what they are: there are more on his page.
that day continued to prove very challenging for this new sailor.
he learned the valuable lesson that the jib halyard attachment point needs to be on the bottom of the mast prior to mast stepping or you will need to a. flip the boat over on it's side to retrieve it, or b. take the mast down
his next vid shows us flipping the boat in the water
the rest of the day continued to test his patience with the main sail not hooking and needing to flip the boat again and then his hulls flooding and needing to pump them dry while parked on an island
he had a great attitude all day long and was laughing about it all.
i would have been so frustrated i would have probably scuttled the boat
How in the world did you get a video of me?
-- Scott
Prindle Fleet 2
TCDYC
Prindle 18-2 Mod "FrankenKitty"
Tornado Classic "Fast Furniture"
Prindle 19 "Mr. Wiggly"
Nacra 5.8 "De ja vu"
Nacra 5.0
Nacra 5.8
Tornadoes (Reg White) --
I was curious as well - PMed him on Sunday to ask and never heard back.
Kids these days and their short attention spans...
-- Southern Alberta and all over the damn place.
*
1981 SuperCat 20 "Roberts' Rockets"
1983 SuperCat 19
TriFoiler #23 "Unfair Advantage"
Mystere 17
Unicorn A-Class (probably made by Trowbridge) that I couldn't resist rescuing at auction.
H18 & Zygal (classic) Tornado - stolen and destroyed - very unpleasant story.
Invitation and Mistral and Sunflower and windsurfers w/ Harken hydrofoils and god knows what else... --
I've written ezine stories and blogs on many of the trips. I still think one of the most valuable write ups for rookies was the detailed article on my "bozo move". There are lessons in there, particularly how the ...
Thank you for documenting and sharing your knowledge and experiences
I've learned tons from experienced sailors passing on knowledge
That was unquestionably a bozo move.
ya but gained a ton of sailing experience (quickly) and that "i survived" endorphin rush is pretty fun !
As a long time sailor with not a lot of beach cat experience I find the this thread very interesting. While the OP was about selecting a first beach cat it seems there has been somewhat of a shift to how to raise the mast on a beach cat. Truth be told my biggest shock was figuring out how to raise the mast on my Prindle 18-2. While I have raised and lowered the mast I am still not sure I have come up with the final solution. I do use a ladder, but not a six foot one; my ladder is ten feet tall. That extra four feet really makes a difference. I also have not raised the mast solo. I have a friend position the ladder somewhat close to the end of the mast and while I am on the tramp lifting the mast he puts the ladder under the mast to support it. Then I lift the mast a little more and he moves the ladder closer to the boat as the mast gets higher. At some point he leaves the ladder, climbs up on the tramp and the two of us complete getting the mast up. Then one of us attaches the stays while the other one stabilizes the mast. I also leave the straps that secure the boat to the trailer in place till the mast is raised. To lower the mast I make sure the straps attaching the boat to the trailer are in place. Then I move the ladder in front of the trailer and use a winch (actually a come along) attached to the forestay and run over the top of the ladder to lower the mast while one of us stays on the boat to stabilize the mast as it is lowered.
I would point out there is an online vid https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lz3hbRmy-7w I sorta based this method on. The difference in my method and the one in the vid is the guy in the vid is a 6'4" 250lb off shore oil worker with the strength to do things my old tired body can't; which is why I need the help of a friend. But it shows how helpful a ladder can be in raising a mast. It also shows how a well designed system of stays and trap lines makes things a lot easier and safer.
The point is that for me at least sailing was the easy part, getting the boat rigged and off the trailer and into the water was the hard part.
I resent the oil worker comment. Im a towboat captain and only weight 235 lbs at 6-5. LOL Its all good. you got any questions on the system that im using give me a call. shoot me a PM for info
I would point out there is an online vid https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lz3hbRmy-7w I sorta based this method on. The difference in my method and the one in the vid is the guy in the vid is a 6'4" 250lb off shore oil worker with the strength to do things my old tired body can't; which is why I need the help of a friend. But it shows how helpful a ladder can be in raising a mast. It also shows how a well designed system of stays and trap lines makes things a lot easier and safer.
The point is that for me at least sailing was the easy part, getting the boat rigged and off the trailer and into the water was the hard part.
I resent the oil worker comment. Im a towboat captain and only weight 235 lbs at 6-5. LOL Its all good. you got any questions on the system that im using give me a call. shoot me a PM for info
Well I am 73 years old so I blame my old tired eyes and Alzheimer’s disease; not to mention my poor keyboard skills for the error.
I really like the system you have and the Colligo Marine stuff. That is definitely a great idea. Truth be told I may be putting that rigging on my big boat. Still trying to get it ready to sail it to the Bahamas after the first of the year and my Prindle is on the second burner now.
I would point out there is an online vid https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lz3hbRmy-7w I sorta based this method on. The difference in my method and the one in the vid is the guy in the vid is a 6'4" 250lb off shore oil worker with the strength to do things my old tired body can't; which is why I need the help of a friend. But it shows how helpful a ladder can be in raising a mast. It also shows how a well designed system of stays and trap lines makes things a lot easier and safer.
The point is that for me at least sailing was the easy part, getting the boat rigged and off the trailer and into the water was the hard part.
I resent the oil worker comment. Im a towboat captain and only weight 235 lbs at 6-5. LOL Its all good. you got any questions on the system that im using give me a call. shoot me a PM for info
Well I am 73 years old so I blame my old tired eyes and Alzheimer’s disease; not to mention my poor keyboard skills for the error.
I really like the system you have and the Colligo Marine stuff. That is definitely a great idea. Truth be told I may be putting that rigging on my big boat. Still trying to get it ready to sail it to the Bahamas after the first of the year and my Prindle is on the second burner now.