A sailing skipper acts dumb

[DanielW]

Here in Singapore we learn early on to stay outta the damn way................ :0

 

[Vagabond39]

Tankers:

Seems like this applies (in bold)?

Yes.

Of course, it assumes the skipper of the sailing vessel is aware that the other vessel is restricted in her ability to maneuver.

To assume otherwise is to be ignorant. And you know what they say about ignorance and the law (let alone common sense. )

What Sven is alluding to isn't offbase either. It's essentially Rule #1: a vessel must take all reasonable action to avoid a collision. But reason' is a multi faceted concept; knowing the rules is one facet. Knowing what to do and how to do it in a 'pucker moment' is another. So, if you're the master of a 500 foot tanker and a small craft crosses your course - which is the more reasonable action? Running it down because you can't avoid it - or running aground and risking spilling 100 thousand gallons of crude?

Capt Dan G>E35II "Kunu"

I don't know where small 500 foot long tankers are used, It's the 1500 foot monsters I worry about. At 226 foot beam, 100 foot draft, and with the bridge located aft, if anyone is on the bridge, they need Binoculars just to see the bow. And as high as that bow is, a couple of miles to see to the water. Anything closer best be flying a hot air ballon teathered to it, if it wants to be seen.
100,000 gallons of crude will fit in each of the tanks.
In the opean ocean manuvering one is an option, But that option requires much of that ocean. And, many cannot use the Suez Canal as they are too large.

 

[exoduse35]

[QUOTEI don't know where small 500 foot long tankers are used][/QUOTE]

The answer is at the end of the post. Also those tankers of which you speak park well off shore to unload. It is believed that it is safer to transfer the crude to smaller vessels so in case of a wreck in or near port the environmental damage is minimized. Also dredging for a 100' draft is out of the question. In Martinez the refinery receives about 4 500'ers a day that just do a local run to someplace outside the San Francisco Bay,Richmond also has refineries so the 500' traffic is significant! Besides we are not even a fly on the windshield to any ship that needs a tug boat!

 

[Sven]

100' draft, really ?

Are there really such beasts out there ?



-Sven

 

[DanielW]

Are there really such beasts out there ?



-Sven

Yep, 97.77 ft, check this out http://www.maritime-connector.com/ContentDetails/1433/lang/English/World-s-Largest-Ships.wshtml

 

[Sven]

Yep, 97.77 ft, check this out http://www.maritime-connector.com/ContentDetails/1433/lang/English/World-s-Largest-Ships.wshtml

Ah, that monster !

I didn't realize it was that deep. Thanks for the pointer.



-Sven

 

[CaptDan]

In Martinez the refinery receives about 4 500'ers a day that just do a local run to someplace outside the San Francisco Bay,Richmond also has refineries so the 500' traffic is significant! Besides we are not even a fly on the windshield to any ship that needs a tug boat!

Exactly; you took the words right out of my keyboard.

I'm on SF Bay at least 4 days a week. I see many 400-600 footers - not only on the hook in Anchorages #9/10, but in/outbound through the Gate and Delta/Echo towers of the Bay Bridge. There are five major refineries in the northeast Bay, and only a fool would think to get into the shipping channels when those tankers (and cargo freighters) are underway. And yet, I've seen plenty over the years, some who came close to meeting their makers.

There's no reason and no excuse; besides having Vessel Traffic Service to advise on Channel 14, the major shipping lanes are clearly marked on local charts. The main shipping channels are easy to see; the bouys north of the City Front, south of Angel Island, through San Pablo Bay, and out to Mile Rock don't move at random. Call me a hardass, but anybody who operates a recreational vessel on SF Bay HAS to know what's going on - and where. Otherwise, they have no business being out there; they're a hazard to themselves and everybody else.

It's a big bay; room for everybody to have fun and make a buck too. Just requires awareness and common sense.

Capt Dan G>E35II "Kunu"

 

[Sven]

I'm on SF Bay at least 4 days a week. I see many 400-600 footers - not only on the hook in Anchorages #9/10, but in/outbound through the Gate and Delta/Echo towers of the Bay Bridge. There are five major refineries in the northeast Bay, and only a fool would think to get into the shipping channels when those tankers (and cargo freighters) are underway. And yet, I've seen plenty over the years, some who came close to meeting their makers.

Down in Cabrillo we're in Port of Los Angeles which is the busiest container port in the US. Just south, still inside the breakwater is Port of Long Beach which is claimed to be the second busiest container port in the US. The traffic lanes outside the breakwater, feeding through the two main entrances in the 10 mile long breakwater, can be pretty heavy but probably not as confusing as the traffic in SF Bay.

There are some days when we cross both traffic lanes and don't see a ship going either south or north, but there are other days when there will be half a dozen in transit and those are the days we give the "collision compass" a workout. The ships are limited to 14 knots by traffic control but they still move a lot faster than we do and in my experience they use their speed and the "open" water to avoid the slower local traffic. I make the last statement because in the years I've been crossing the traffic lanes there have only been two times when we got potentially close enough so that I felt the need to signal that "I'll stay out of your way" by tacking or clearly falling off, all other times the ships have not even gotten close.

Coming through Angels Gate when one of those monsters is doing the same is exciting but the same rule applies; stay clearly out of the way or just wait.



-Sven

 

[Emerald]

a good book

Some years ago, I was given a great little book all about this topic of ship avoidance. It's titled "How to Avoid Huge Ships, or I Never Met a Ship I Liked" by Capt. John Trimmer. It starts off with a recount of him on a sea tug pulling barges by cable. There is an engine room explosion on the tug leaving it dead in the water. The first barge comes barreling up onto the aft deck of the tug, pushes her stern down in the water to the point she looks like she'd go under, and then the tug has enough buoyancy to pop free and rocket forward bringing the tow cable tight again, and the barge comes by for a second pass. The crew is on their toes, manages to grab hold of the barge, which luckily is not tracking for a direct hit like the first time, and they get it all secure and are now a floating mass dead in the water. It's a dramatic illustration of just how everything can so suddenly go wrong, how little vessel control there may actually be, and nothing should be taken for granted. The book continues on with many examples and perspectives from the ships view of our tiny recreational boats. A fun quick read I would recommend to everyone, regardless of experience.

 

[CaptDan]

everything can so suddenly go wrong, how little vessel control there may actually be, and nothing should be taken for granted.

A sea-going axiom - often repeated by USCG safety experts and trainers: "Big things are a result of several smaller, increasingly perilous things going wrong."

There are endless examples: a sheet drags through the water, fouls the prop; the current sets the boat off course and into a pier. A 20 cent cotter pin, unintentionally left in a bag instead of fastened to a turnbuckle, leads to a dismasting. A loose 5 dollar radiator cap causes an engine to overheat; the captain - assuming it's a fire - anchors in a busy channel. A barge - on the hip of a tug piloted by a distracted Mate - plows into the disabled craft killing two passengers.

I've experienced several 'pucker moments' over the years. One in particular occured last month. I won't bore you with the details. The point is, stuff happens; how you deal with it is what matters. Serendipity and good fortune don't hurt either.

I'd like to read that book. Thanks for the tip.

Capt Dan G>E35II "Kunu"