Posted by admin on October 31, 2011 under Bareboat Charter, Crew, Maneuvering Under Power, Skipper, Storm Tactics | 
Docking a boat on to an end-tie or tee head with a strong wind blowing you off requires some knowledge on how to do it and it’s one of those things that you SHOULD practice for WHEN the time comes.
Trying to just sidle up along side like you might do in a no wind condition or where wind is blowing you on to the dock is just not going to work.
Fortunately, there are some simple ways of doing it.
(1) Motoring forward up to the tee head directly into the wind.
Have dock lines prepared and cleated to the forward and aft dock side of the boat.
NOTE: Make sure that the dock lines are run outwards underneath the life lines first then back onboard over the top of the line lines. This ensures that when the line is deployed, it will be clear of the life lines. Since this is usually a crew member doing this, it pays to physically show the crew member when you are out away from the marina if you’re not sure they will do it correctly. Running them inboard and over the lifelines can create a huge havoc at the wrong and crucial time.
Approach the tee head near perpendicular but at an angle so that it makes it as simple as possible for the crew member to step off the boat as far forward as possible. As you reach the tee head the crew member will have to step off the boat and onto the dock. This requires a little dexterity on the crew member’s behalf and good throttle work on your behalf to not hit the dock yet get the crew member close enough with out jumping. Since you’re headed directly almost into wind, you’ll have afforded some time with the bow at the dock so that the crew member can take their time carefully stepping off the boat and onto the dock.
The crew member now cleats the dock line to the dock cleat in the direction of where the aft of the boat will sit using about ¼ of the boat length of line between the two cleats.
Now comes your part. Turn the wheel all the way to the stops to the non-dockside side of the boat (tiller to dockside side) and engage forward gear. This creates a sideways force on the rudder and will push the stern of the boat to the dock. Adjust the throttle to over come the windage force on the boat.
DOCKING A SAILBOAT INTO THE WIND
(2) Motoring in reverse up to the tee head directly into the wind.
This method works especially well when the boat has a swim platform and walk through transom.
As above, have dock lines prepared. Then back up to the tee head.
NOTE: You’ll learn in the NauticEd Maneuvering a Sailboat Under Power online sailing course that a boat’s stern facing the wind is an extremely stable position and you will not get bullied around by the wind. You’ll also learn that backing into the wind is extremely easy. If you haven’t already, take the NauticEd Maneuvering a Sailboat Under Power online sailing course.
The crew member steps off the boat holding the aft dock line when the stern is close enough and cleats the dock line to a dock cleat that lies in a direction more aft of the boat in its final resting position. Again about ¼ of the boat length of dock line should be allowed between the aft cleat and dock cleat.
Turn the wheel all the way to the stops towards the dock (tiller pointing away) and engage forward. This will swing the bow of the boat in towards the dock against the wind. Another crew member can toss the forward dock line to the crew member on the dock to aid. Or if the 1st crew member is able they should take a long forward dock line with them when they stepped off the boat originally.
DOCKING A SAILBOAT INTO THE WIND
Either of these methods can get you docked safely. And, practiced, a skipper could do all the above solo.
Practice both of these a few times and when the real moment comes, you’ll be looking like a pro. Rather than a…
This docking a sailing boat tip was written by Grant Headifen , Director of NauticEd. NauticEd offers an excellent Maneuvering a Sailboat Under Power online sailing course as well as many other online sailing courses.
Posted by admin on September 14, 2011 under Bareboat Charter, Crew, Maneuvering Under Power, Skipper |
Here’s a question from a student regarding docking a sailboat after they took the Maneuvering Under Power Sailing Course
>>>>>>>
Hello Grant,
I have a question in reference to the maneuvering under power:
Under the excersice end ties #3, wind from behind, once you have backed the boat to the dock and secured the stern spring line, should the wheel be turned toward the dock and throttle into forward to bring the bow to the dock?
Thanks,
Excellent course!!!
Jose
Happy Sailing.
>>>>>>>>>>>
Jose,
You’re absolutely correct.
Here is a vector force diagram to match. Actually, as you can see, you could do it with out turning the wheel to the dock but the resultant torque (turning moment) would be reduced. Turning the rudder creates extra turning moment. It doesn’t really matter which direction the wind is coming from with this method. Altho if the wind was high and blowing you off the dock. I would do the front spring first, then drive forward with the wheel turned away from the dock.
Cheers
Grant
Docking a Sailboat
Posted by admin on July 8, 2011 under Bareboat Charter, Crew, Maneuvering Under Power, Skipper |
The information contained in this explanation of what is propeller walk comes directly from the NauticEd Maneuvering and docking a sailboat under power sailing course which forms part of the requirement for the NauticEd Sailing Certification rank of Skipper.
You’ve learned to sail, sailed for a few years, and now you’ve upgraded to a bigger boat with an inboard engine. How frustrating! You want your new sailboat to go backwards but you keep going sideways. Welcome to propwalk. GRRRRR. This is not something that you probably got taught at your local sailing school because you learned on a smaller boat with maybe an outboard. Now you’ve got a much bigger and heavier boat and there are more expensive mistakes that can be made. Propwalk can be frustrating or you can understand it and use it to your advantage.
Let’s Understand Propwalk.
Imagine you’re walking up a spiral staircase. Each step is the same height and requires the same amount of energy to go up the next step.
Spiral stair case
Now imagine if the spiral stair case was tilted over 20 degrees. You’d find that as you went around the stairs they would be steeper on one side and flatter on the other. Or the stepper side cuts through more vertical space than the flatter side.
Stair case tilted
As we look at a propeller and the water flowing through it, the arc that the tips of the propeller follow relative to the moving water pushed by the propeller is a spiral shape, much like a spiral staircase.
Propeller Spiral
Or another way to see it, is to observe the sweep of each blade as it passes through the water.
Propeller moving water through the water
Now if we tilt the shaft of the propeller down, the spiral also tilts down.
Tilted Propeller Shaft
But we have to put put a few prefaces on this. There must be no boat hull above to affect the initial flow of water, the water must be deep and the propeller can not be moving horizontally through the water – that’s a lot of prefaces and not reality. But here is what that would look like anyway.
Propeller tilted down and moving forward
Now let’s put the propeller in close proximity to the hull of the boat where the water tends to move horizontally. This is represented here by the imaginary sweep lines. Here then you can see that the up swinging reversing blade (green -starboard) cuts more of the flowing water similar to the tilting staircase example above.
Propeller tilted with water moving horizontal
In much the same way as the tilting staircase, the down sweeping blade cuts through less flowing water than the upsweeping blade. This creates more force on the up swinging side of the propeller than the down swinging side and thus a torque is produced on the prop shaft.
This results in the following forces and thus a resultant clockwise torque on the boat.
Resultant torque on propeller
In a similar fashion, imagine yourself treading water in a swimming pool and your right arm swings in big circles while your left swings in smaller circles. Your body would move backwards but the action would also turn your face to the right and consequently your back to the left. The boat turns in exactly the same way.
In forward gear, the exact same phenomenon occurs, just in the opposite direction. However, we notice it much less because the water from the propeller is being pushed over the rudder which creates far greater forces and thus counteracts any tilt induced torque.
So in summary, a boat which has a counter rotating shaft, when in reverse, yaws clockwise (stern to the left) because the shaft is tilting downwards. Factors to reduce the effect include having a smaller diameter propeller or reducing the pitch (twist) of the blade or lengthening the shaft so that the water flow is further from the boat which would tend to allow the water flow to be more in line with the shaft. The effect is also reduced by a slower turning propeller IE less engine RPM.
An alternative way of mounting the propeller is called a saildrive and these are widely accepted in Europe. Saildrive systems have a horizontally mounted propeller shaft and therefore they do not create prop walk.
A sail drive unit does not experience prop walk
But there is no need to run out and go to the expense of converting your boat to a saildrive unit if you are experiencing frustration with prop walk. Because now that you understand the theory of propwalk, (more than 90% of sailors) all you have to do is practice the exercises in the NauticEd Maneuvering under power course a few times and you’ll have it licked.
So there you have it – now you’re 1 in a thousand sailors who understand how propwalk originates.
The NauticEd Maneuvering and docking a sailboat under Power sailing course shows students how to take advantage of propwalk. Just imagine you’re trapped in an EXTREMELY tight marina. Exercise number 8 wil show you how to get out. Turn the boat one way and you’re in trouble, turn it the other way and use a combination of wheel and throttle and you’re out of there with out a scratch.
Maneuvering and Docking a Sailboat Under Power Sailing Course
Take the NauticEd Maneuvering and docking a sailboat under Power sailing course now.
Posted by admin on May 15, 2011 under Bareboat Charter, Celestial Navigation, Coastal Navigation, Crew, Maneuvering Under Power, Rules of Right of Way, Sail Trim, Skipper, Storm Tactics, weather |
Imagine if you could just hang out at the yacht club every day – how much you’d learn from everyone. That’d be cool. Well … now you can!
It’s a very cool piece of technology we just installed on the NauticEd site. It’s called DisQus and the concept is based on crowd intelligence. It shows how the power of the Internet can beat out a boring ol’ book. Thousands of websites have already introduced it and it’s ideally suited for you and NauticEd.
On every page through out all of the NauticEd sailing courses you can now discuss (Disqus) the topic at hand and read what others are saying about the topic. For example, lets say you know a few things about docking using spring lines but are a bit confused about backing into a slip. Right in the course you can add your springing off knowledge and ask all other students their opinions on reversing. When any one comments and adds to those comments you’ll be sent an email (if you want). You can add pictures and diagrams if you want. Our part is to use the crowd intelligence to improve our sailing course material for everyone.
You can even invite facebook friends to join in on the conversation and help out.
Crowd-Intelligence with DisQus and NauticEd Sailing School
How cool is this? Now you’re tapping into the knowledge of thousands of other NauticEd students – wow that’s a big yacht club with a lot of combined experience. You’re not on your own any more. It’s not just us and our authors pontificating about sailing – it’s a real open discussion and conversation in real time.
But like any party or social – you can’t just stuff your mouth with cake and listen – you’ve got to add your two cents. And you can’t be rude because people are watching and the bouncers will bounce you out. So come on join in – ask questions and post your knowledge.
To kick off, I’ve gone in and asked a few questions and posted a few comments in each course topic. I invite you to join me and start new conversations. Like who gives way – the paddle board or the sailboat? Do you know the answer?
Login and give us your opinion to the Rules of the Nautical Road topic embedded in our Rules course.
And to celebrate the launch of crowd intelligence via DisQus, we’ll award a free sailing course of choice to a student randomly picked from everyone who participates in the conversations over the next week (through May 25th) . Hint, the more you talk the more we’ll notice.
We’ll see you on NauticEd.
Grant
Posted by admin on April 14, 2011 under About NauticEd, Bareboat Charter, Maneuvering Under Power, Skipper |
PRESS RELEASE: NauticEd Launches New Sailing Course: Anchoring a Sailboat
Today NauticEd released another sailing course: Anchoring a Sailboat. The sailing course focuses on knowledge required to effectively and successfully anchor a sailboat.
Anchoring a Sailboat Sailing Course
Captain’s Alex and Daria Blackwell, authors of The Art of Anchoring, wrote the NauticEd specific sailing course. The sailing course consists of 12 modules and will be sold for $17 online at http://www.NauticEd.org
The Anchoring a Sailboat sailing course modules are:
- Module 1: Introduction to Anchor Types
- Module 2: Anchor Types
- Module 3: Anchor Selection
- Module 4: Rode and Connections
- Module 5: Site Selection
- Module 6: Charts
- Module 7: Dropping the Anchor
- Module 8: Scope
- Module 9: Setting the Anchor
- Module 10: Swing
- Module 11: Time to Relax
- Module 12: Anchoring Etiquette
Grant Headifen, Educational Director of NauticEd, says that the Anchoring a Sailboat sailing course is a welcome addition to the 12 other sailing courses that NauticEd offers. NauticEd plans to make the Anchoring a Sailboat Course a prerequisite to gaining the NauticEd sailing certification rank of Bareboat Charter Master. “We’d received lots of requests for a comprehensive anchoring course from our students. Anchoring expertise is one of those really important sailing skills that is required and sort after. On a bareboat charter sailing vacation, for example, you spend more time at anchor than you do sailing. And anchoring is a bigger stress on the charterer than most other sailing activities. Charter companies don’t really realize that more people would charter if the stress was taken out of overnight anchoring” says Headifen”.
NauticEd believes that the Anchoring a Sailboat Course will be a big seller and will surpass their popular Maneuvering a Sailboat Under Power sailing course.
To learn more about the NauticEd Sailing School, Sailing Courses and Sailing Certifications go to http://www.nauticed.org
Posted by Grant Headifen on November 24, 2010 under About NauticEd, Bareboat Charter, Crew, Maneuvering Under Power, Rules of Right of Way, Sail Trim, Skipper, Storm Tactics, weather |
Today, NauticEd Online Sailing School announced its release of the NauticEd Captain’s Rank. This coincides with the posting of the NauticEd Safety at Sea Clinic which is the final required course to attain the Sailing Certification Rank. The NauticEd Captain’s Rank focuses entirely on sailboat operations both near shore and offshore and is directed specifically towards the recreational sailboater.
Until now, many recreational sailboaters have been gaining a commercial boating license to attain the educational equivalence of Captain but with out the intention of operating commercially. Now with NauticEd, students can gain a Captain’s Sailing Certification with out jumping through the significant hoops associated with a commercial operator’s license.
This is very exciting for the sailing industry says Grant Headifen, Educational Director for NauticEd. ‘It means that we can have more educated boaters on the water and the investment cost in the education is well within reach of every sailboater. We’ve lowered the barriers and made the experience fun and interactive with multimedia learning. Now, if anyone wants to learn to sail, gain a sailing certification or just increase their sailing education, doing it online makes it more accessible and thus more likely to be done”. The Educational investment in the Captain’s Rank is less than $US300.
Headifen estimates it will take the average student 60 hours of study over time to complete the theory courses and online tests associated with the NauticEd Captain’s Rank. The NauticEd online Courses required to gain the rank cover a wide breadth of topics listed as follows:
Captain's Rank bundle of Sailing Courses
In addition, a NauticEd Captain must have logged a minimum amount of real sea time which is denoted by a level associated with the Rank as follows:
- Captain Level III - 50 days of sea time;
- Captain Level IV – 100 days of sea time
- Captain Level V - 200 days of sea time.
Time is logged on NauticEd’s online sailing logbook and can be accessed via iPhone and Android apps or on an internet connected computer.
NauticEd which stands for Nautic Education offers 2 lower level Sailing Certifications; Skipper and Bareboat Charter Master. These are achieved by passing fewer courses than listed above. NauticEd also offers other online courses such as a Catamaran Sailing Confidence, Celestial Navigation, and a Crew Course.
To learn more about the NauticEd Sailing School and Sailing Certifications go to http://www.nauticed.org/faq_sailing_certification
Posted by Grant Headifen on October 21, 2010 under About NauticEd, Bareboat Charter, Coastal Navigation, Crew, Maneuvering Under Power, Rules of Right of Way, Sail Trim, Skipper, Storm Tactics, weather |
Hooowa – said Al Pacino in the movie Sent of a Woman.
Skipper Sailing Course Bundle
We recently launched a new Sailing Courses and Clincs Page. The first thing you’ll notice is that we have Bundled the Courses and Clinics into their respective Ranks. So now you can buy the Skipper Bundle which contains the
And the Bareboat Charter Master Bundle which contains the
The investment in the Sailing Lesson bundles now saves you a ton. The Skipper Bundle comes in at $95 and the Bareboat Charter Master Bundle comes in at $161. That is a significant savings over buying eaah sailing course A La Carte.
Bareboat Charter Master Bundle
We’re also finishing up the Safety at Sea Clinic now and so that will make the final Captain Bundle ready. This will contain
The investment in the Captain Bundle will be $293.
AND – we did something that is really cool – we wrote the software so that you automatically get credit for sailing courses and clinics that you have already purchased. So the smart ones will figure out now how to beat the system (and we’re ok with that) that you can start getting the Clinics for $33 instead of $39.
Visit the new NauticEd Sailing Courses and Clinics page now.
Posted by Grant Headifen on August 12, 2010 under Bareboat Charter, Crew, Maneuvering Under Power, Skipper |
Next week we’re going to Tonga and the island of Vava’U for a week long NauticEd Flotilla sailing trip amongst the archipelago. After a rainy and relatively cool winter in New Zealand this year its going to be a welcome and fun trip. We’re bareboat chartering three catamarans from the Moorings. 21 adults and 3 three children aged 2, 3 and 6 are coming. Correction that makes 24 children I think by the excitement and way every one is acting so far. We’re looking forward to doing some excellent sailing, fishing, swimming in warm water, snorkeling under the rock wall into Mariner’s cave and maybe have a few lovely glasses of red wine under a warm evening sky. So in light of catamaran sailing then I thought this week we’d review a method of getting a catamaran off the dock when a difficult wind is blowing onto the dock. We needed to use this in the British Virgin Island last year and with some whacky wave action we also had to time it right. It’s just as well we used this method because, with the waves, some serious damage could have occurred.
Using a spring line to get off the dock with a catamaran
The concept is pretty simple and effective. First tie a dock line from the front of the boat to the dock towards the aft. Then turn the helm all the way towards the dock and engage the out side engine in forward. The thrust from the backward wash of water as depicted by the arrow onto the turned rudder plus the force moments from the outer thrust and inner dockline will act to turn the back end of the catamaran out away from the dock. You must position a crew member with a dock fender to hold it between the boat and the dock. When the boat is turned out a significant amount, you can engage reverse but make sure it is more than 45 degrees out, else you can be in trouble with the wind pushing you back onto the dock. Once in reverse, turn the helm the other direction to get the boat moving in the right direction. Wait until the boat is a significant distance away from the dock before you decide to engage forward and swing the boat around otherwise the back quarter of the boat can broadside back into the dock, especially if the wind is strong.
You can apply a little reverse thrust to the dockside engine but keep it so that the tension remains on the dock line. The method of using the dock line rather than just opposing engines turns the catamaran more effectively when operating close to the dock because the dockside front quarter is essentially trapped thus a simple rotation won’t work.
Make sure that the dock line is arranged so that it is tied to the boat then looped 1/2 turn around the dock cleat then back to the boat. In this manner the crew member managing the fender can, at the right time, release one end of the dock line and pull it back around the dock cleat to retrieve it – all the while standing on the boat as it pulls away from the dock. Make sure the end has no knots in it. Also ensure the crew member understands not to release the dock line too early because they will not be able to hold against the thrust force.
Obviously this concept works similarly for monohulls.
Full concepts of maneuvering sailboats under power and catamarans are covered in these two NauticEd sailing courses. http://www.nauticed.org/courses/view/maneuvering-under-power and http://www.nauticed.org/courses/view/catamaran-sailing-confidence
Posted by Grant Headifen on May 15, 2010 under About NauticEd, Bareboat Charter, Celestial Navigation, Coastal Navigation, Crew, Maneuvering Under Power, Rules of Right of Way, Sail Trim, Skipper, Storm Tactics, weather |
This is day 4 of 6 in your introduction to NauticEd
Today we’re discussing the list of courses and clinics that NauticEd offers for your education.
One of the first course we believe that all sailors should complete no mater what their experience level is the FREE NauticEd Rules of Right of Way Clinic.
If you’re an experienced sailor you’ll see the value in a quick refresher course.
If you’re new to sailing then you’ll learn some vital nautical rules.
In either case – this course is free and thus you’ll be able to see how taking a NauticEd clinic and the associated test will work. This is a graphical and fun 20 minute course.
Take the Rules of Right of Way Clinic now!
For your convenience, we’ve created a chart of recommended courses depending on your skill level.
Go to http://www.nauticed.org/recommended_sailing_lessons
Ranks and courses
In email #2 we discussed the ranks Skipper, Bareboat Charter Master and Captain
Gaining the Skipper Rank
The first lessons to begin your sailing certification is the Skipper course and the Maneuvering Under Power clinic.;
The SKIPPER SAILING COURSE is a beginner to intermediate sailing course. It is a prerequisite to any certification and covers the fundamentals that every one must know. The total time needed to complete this course will be about 20 hours. Cost $67.00
The MANEUVERING UNDER POWER CLINIC: This is our most popular course. An absolutely essential maneuvering and docking course that will save you thousands in dents, bumps and scratches at the marina. Want to dock your boat like a pro every time? Want to impress? Take the most popular NauticEd Sailing School Course now. Estimated time: 3 hours total. Cost: $39.
Gaining the Bareboat Charter Master Rank
BAREBOAT CHARTER CLINIC: Taking a sailing vacation? All hands on deck – this is the yacht charter sailing course for you and ALL of your crew. Make your charter sailing trip more enjoyable by getting ALL the bareboat charter tips you’ll need. Estimated time: 5 hours total. Cost: $39.
COASTAL NAVIGATION CLINIC: Learn to navigate your sailboat. If you plan on sailing away from your home base or are taking a sailing vacation, you need this course. NauticEd Sailing School makes navigating a sailboat – a breeze. Estimated time: 10 hours total. Cost: $39.
Gaining the Captain’s Rank
WEATHER CLINIC: If you’re a real sailor then you need to understand and read the weather. It’s as simple as that! Written by the professionals at Clear Point Weather, this is the best weather sailing course available. Estimated time: 7 hours total. Cost: $39.
SAIL TRIM CLINIC: Learn the true art and finesse of trimming the sails. When to adjust the fairleads, the traveler, the downhaul, the outhaul, the Cunningham, the boom vang. When leaning to sail properly, you should know what all these fine adjustments do. Estimated time: 4 hours total. Cost: $39.
STORM TACTICS CLINIC: Even when day sailing, a storm can be upon us in minutes. Are you prepared with the knowledge now? This storm tactics sailing course will teach the essentials to keep you and your crew alive. Estimated time: 4 hours total. Cost: $39.
SAFETY AT SEA CLINIC: This course is still under construction by Captain Ed Mapes. Captain Mapes has logged tens of thousands of miles on the sailboats around the world. He knows how to be safe and is passing on his hard learned information to you. Coming soon.
In addition to the above courses and clinics, we offer the following:
CATAMARAN SAILING CONFIDENCE CLINIC: Converting over to a catamaran or chartering a catamaran for the first/second time? Learn the essential differences between sailing a monohull and a catamaran. This clinic will give you the confidence. It includes an interactive experiential online game to practice maneuvering in a marina. Estimated time: 3 hours total. Cost: $39.
INTRODUCTORY CELESTIAL NAVIGATION CLINIC: If you’re in any way intrigued with Celestial Navigation, this is the best and simplest celestial sailing course available. You’ll be able to do an actual noon shot and determine your position. Estimated time: 5 hours total. Cost: $39.
QUALIFIED CREW MEMBER COURSE: Learn to sail and contribute as a crew member on a modern cruising sailboat. Learn the lines, sailing terminology, sail trim and rules of the road. Estimated time: 7 hours total. Cost: $37.50.
Tomorrow we’ll discuss practical sailing schools and how you can get a verified proficiency stamp added to your sailing certificate.
Until then – fair winds,
Grant Headifen
Educational Director
NauticEd
Posted by Grant Headifen on February 8, 2010 under About NauticEd, Bareboat Charter, Coastal Navigation, Maneuvering Under Power, Skipper |
While I’m waiting for the America’s cup race to start and twittering the updates to the delayed start – I thought I’d add a blog update about our upcoming Tonga Sailing flotilla.
The site with all the details is at http://www.nauticed.org/postgraduatesailingflotilla
The dates will be August 30th to September 7th 2010.
Sailing in Tonga
Come join us in one of the most tropical sailing locations in the world. Only seven boats will be in the flotilla so contact NauticEd now at info@nauticed.org
Requirements are that the skipper must have reached the Bareboat Charter Master Rank – see the video about how to get to this rank at NauticEd Certification on youtube.
Essentially you must have passed the following sailing courses: Skipper, Maneuvering Under Power, Coastal Navigation, Bareboat Charter plus have documented a minimum of 50 qualifying days on a sailboat.
This will be one of the most fun sailing vacations you could have. We’ve got loads of fun activities planned every day including a mini regatta. Tonga is known for its whale watching, pure white sandy beaches, the friendliest people and tropical fruit like you’ve never tasted. Come on!
