Comments on: PLAN ZERO

By: Lee J.

Lee J. — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 00:54:48 +0000

The weather down in San Diego wasn’t that bad Thanksgiving weekend, but bad enough for me not to venture off shore until Sunday. By then the forecast looked pretty benign, so I decided to head out around Point Loma and up to Mission Bay to drop the hook for the night. Even though the forecast was for winds of 10 kts or so, I went with my usual practice (when single handed) of wearing a PFD with safety harness, and setting up one tether clipped at the base of the mast, and a second clipped to the toe rail at the fore deck. This lets me stay clipped to the boat even if I need to go all the way forward, even though the boat is not rigged with jack lines. The rule on my boat: do not leave the cockpit when single handed unless clipped to the boat.

As things turned out, the wind blew close to 20, and I had to reef both the main and the 150% genoa to keep control. And, as luck would have it, for the first time in 4 years with this boat, the furling line for the genoa got fouled on the deck cleat at the bow. I was very glad to have not skipped the step of setting up both tethers before casting off. Got the sails reefed, and still made 5 knots close hauled — and best of all the boat was comfortable enough that the autopilot could resume holding a steady course with no trouble. What could have been a dicey outing remained an enjoyable ride.

Had not heard the term “Plan Zero” before, but it fits. Keep up the good suggestions, Dan.

By: Capt. Rob

Capt. Rob — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 03:10:53 +0000

Great Blog Capt. Dan and I couldn’t agree more. Down in Dana Point the weather and seas hit us while we slept on board Friday night. We could hear the building waves thundering a low rumble through and over the breakwater. At 2 AM we decided to roll out of our bunk to take a look. The stinging wind and sight of monster waves pounding the granite boulders made me very glad we were safe and snug in our slip. Morning’s light revealed lines of huge swells many losing their tops to the northerly wind, no place for me nor my Canadian built sloop.
I am an experienced sailor. I know my ability, I know my boat, it’s rigging, it’s readiness, my safety gear and I have the eyes to look to seaward and say “no way dude”!
Any Plan is good only if you’ve some common sense. It seems these guys lacked training, experience, knowledge of their vessel and most importantly an ounce of common sense.

By: Randy B.

Randy B. — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:35:17 +0000

I think Friday was definitely a “Plan Zero” day. Even a cursory WX check should have convinced any prudent sailor to stay ashore. There was nothing equivocal about the forecast. And like you say, a quick peek over the breakwater should have extinguished any doubts.

I’m glad you addressed the techniques for depowering downwind; I was doing a little head-scratching on that one. But it almost sounds as though things happened so fast , that even given a “Plan B,” and a heap of luck, these guys may have still wound up on the rocks. So another case is made for Plan Zero.

So I cancelled my sailing plans for Friday and Saturday, and instead did my navigating through
a good book with a good bottle of red as a crewmate. One cool thing about being a sailor is that we don’t have to feel guilty about such indulgences. Not our fault we couldn’t go sailing…

By: Shirly Ujest

Shirly Ujest — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 19:46:17 +0000

“Does that snarly water on the outside of the jetty look like a place for a 22′ boat? Only on a bet, a dare or if the captain is drunk.”

I surely think “Stupid” should be the fourth option…