tethers

[K38Bob]

Nice thread. Thanks to Mark, the L38 article is scanned and online (last 2 pages transposed)http://www.sfbama.org/1999/1999DHF%20Shlasky.pdf

Counterpoint to a too long tether
http://www.sfbama.org/fs/Dramatic%20...20in%20DHF.pdf
and
http://www.sfbama.org/fs/CYC%20Report.pdf

[bobwalden]

Nice plan, Bob. I do basically the same thing when single-handing out of the gate. I run docklines from bow to cockpit outside the stanchions, and i have lines on each side of the stern rigged to the stern swim-ladder that let me yank it down from the waterline. if I'm dangling over the side (I can't really rig jacklines down center), I can a) maybe get a foot on the dockline to push back up or b) clip onto it and slide down to the stern, and -- maybe-- get the ladder down and get back on. I'd give myself maybe a 50/50 chance of pulling that off, but it beats the 100% chance of dying if nobody else is around.

I also keep a signal mirror, couple of small flares, extra (1-legged) tether, knife, personal SPOT, and VHF in my various foulies pockets. Again, the chances any of it will save my life if I'm really overboard on my own are slim, but better than none.

[mike cunningham]

When planning mast head maintenance this summer I spent a lot of time on climbing equipment sites trying to find a way to create a safety line for myself. I have a Freedom 30 and she has only a single halyard to the masthead. I wound up using a klemheist knot in a webbing loop which I could push up the mast as I ascended with my top climber on the main halyard. Since I have a free standing spar I don't have to worry about spreaders getting in the way.

So, while I was perusing equipment I came across a simple system that pole climbers use to relieve stress on their torso should they fall and wind up hanging in their harness for longer than a few moments. Unfortunately you can die simply as a result of extended suspension in a harness due to pressure on your chest.

What they use is a simple webbing foot strap sewn to the harness on one end and folded into a little bundle secured with velcro. This strap can be released in an emergency and one can stand in the strap to relieve the pressure on the torso.

It would be fairly easy to fabricate such a strap which would be reasonably compact and attached to your harness with velcro. on one end a stirrup(s) and on the other a carabiner or other type of snap hook. If you were to find yourself overboard in the harness you could grab the strap remove it from the velcro binding and snap into the toerail thus creating a small ladder to get you back aboard. The beauty of this would be that you always have your ladder with you. Of course this assumes you can reach to toe rail. On my boat I have done some experiments in, admittedly, calm water and I find it relatively easy to reach to toerail. There are probably many variations on this theme but I really like the concept of having your "get aboard" equipment on your body as opposed to on the boat.

I also bought one of those tiny PLBs which I carry on my person. If I really get stuck or I wind up separated from the boat I will get to find out if the sarsat system is faster than death by hypothermia.

[Now&Zen]

New addition to an old thread. On a Newport owners site I am part of one of the owners made up this emergency boarding ladder.


I figure a pair of these kept attached and on deck at the rear quarters would help in re-boarding if one went over the life lines but was still attached by a tether. Maybe they could be kept in an open stow bag of some kind. You could probably get a hand up there and pull it out and down.
He made it following instructions here: https://youtu.be/VEXttVyT1A4

[AlanH]

On the S2 7.9 there's a factory installed swim ladder on the transom. I've actually used it to get on the boat when it's been on the trailer so I know that it takes my not-insubstantial weight. Every now and then I think about taking it off to "clean up" the transom.

Then I think about going splash for a few moments and put the wrench away.
I really should shorten my tether.

[mike cunningham]

Freedoms come with a swim ladder too. Unfortunately i have to remove it to fit the Erud. I am having a lightweight and very basic get out ladder built into my new erud structure.

[Gamayun]

I'm super happy for my sugar scoop, which I think can continue to have the ladder mounted when the Monitor and Erud are installed. I hope so because I have jacklines that run almost to the stern of the boat with the thought that I'd get back on from there. It's just a thought. Perhaps it would be good to try these methods on a nice warm day in the Estuary or Clipper Cove or somewhere protected. A friend on a Cal20 put a ladder on his boat and said he could barely get back in and that was when we was not stressed or cold. It was an amazingly eye-opening experience when I jumped into a pool with the PFD and leg straps. But for some reason, none of my crew has yet volunteered to jump in the water here in Oakland and to see how the LifeSling works in real life. Hmm...maybe we should try picking up the MOB off the dock as a good proxy?

[Daydreamer]

I really like the rope ladder.

I will make a few for those to place on Nightmare at midship and stern quarter.

On a nice calm lake I have used an aluminum boarding ladder to get back aboard Daydreamer after swimming. Pretty handy.
I can't imagine approaching one of those in any kind of seaway, with it rising / falling two, three feet or more.
They have been referred to as something more akin to a cheese grater

During the hands on portion of the SAS course, I found boarding the life raft with full foul weather gear MUCH more difficult than expected, getting back aboard the boat would be a whole other level.

[DaveH]

At some point Michael Jefferson will chime in with his idea about Aiders, which are essentially nylon webbing ladders used by climbers.
To save him the trouble, I have pasted his post from the LongPac 2015 "Jacklines and tethers" thread below.
I have adapted his idea slightly for myself... rather than clip a bundle to my harness I have 4 that I install at the base of my 2 farthest aft stanchions port and starboard.
this places them, on Domino, just forward of the cockpit and slightly aft of midships.
I use double sided velcro to bundle them at the base of the stanchions which seems to hold them securely but is still easy to tug the aider free.

DH

OK, here is Michael's OP:

There is a practical approach to getting back aboard after a tethered fall. I have carried for years a nylon stepladder, made by sewing steps in a long loop of thin 1" nylon webbing, folded up and secured with a few rubber bands. It is attached to my clip in point on my harness by a stainless offset carabiner, and has a short tail to pull to unpack it. When unpacked, it is about 5 feet long and has 5 steps. If one were dangling from the tether, hopefully one might get a hand on the toerail. If not, your tether is too long! If one were to clip the (offset Eye "genius" ) carabiner over the toerail, and then pull the tail, one would have a fighting chance to get back aboard. By getting a foot into the highest loop that is practical, one could stand up, with ones weight on the ladder, and grab the lifelines. This way, the legs are being used to lift, not the arms. Climbers have used similar ladders, called "aiders" for many, many years to help in climbing things which are too difficult or steep for ascent by grabbing holds and pulling. A company called "Mountain Tools" has a selection of aiders. REI has them. Search in "climbing/webbing and cords/etriers. Item # 889775
For bundling into a compact assembly suitable for clipping to the harness, I recommend the "alpine" versions of the aiders. Yates, Black Diamond, and others make good versions. They are also known as etriers.

Here are some links. Some of the pictures do not show the full length of the aider. 5 step aiders are about right. Price is about $22.

http://www.mtntools.com/cat/rclimb/a...lpineaider.htm

http://www.rei.com/product/889775/bl...cm_mmc:cse_PLA

West Marine sells three versions of the "genius" carabiner. The 3 1/8" version is part number 317057. The 4" version is part number 317065.

Here is a link: http://www.westmarine.com/buy/west-m...02_060_002_003 Price is $30 to $40. Make sure it is big enough to get over your toerail.

The last thing to do is to seize the loop on the aider to the carabiner with some light line or heavy whipping line. This is so that there is no chance that the aider will shift around. You want the aider carabiner loop in the bottom (narrow) part of the carabiner. Also tie a short piece of parachute cord to the last step, and consider a small line stopper ball, such as west marine # 9201328 to allow a something to grab.

There are no guarantees, of course. If you go overboard singlehanded on a tether, it will be a heroic fight to get back aboard, but as others have discussed above, the odds using only your arms are small. If you can get a foot in an aider attached to the toerail, they improve dramatically.

Best wishes,
Michael

[Intermission]

My previous boat did not have a boarding ladder, so I made up a rope ladder with three quarter PVC pipe for the rise, and inch PVC for the treads, or rungs. The bottom tread also had a smaller piece of galvanized pipe for weight inside the PVC. The rises were one foot and the treads about ten inches; an old halyard snaked back and forth through the treads, with the ends exiting out the top to tie or clip to the rail. If I ever make one of these again, I'd use inch and a quarter, or inch and a half for the treads/rungs to be easier on bare feet.

This all looked good on paper and immediately after assembly, but there was a Big problem with the curvature of the hull and the ladder sticking to it like glue, with NO where for my toes to go!

My solution was to hang a large and a small fender horizontally under the ladder to give it the stand off it needed from the curve of the hull. Still, it took a lot of upper body strength to get back aboard. One trick, was to put a series of knots in a stern line opposite the ladder and then lay it across the cockpit to give something in addition to lifelines to hang or pull up on.

I would encourage everyone to test their "from the water re-boarding system", before you really need it.