ENTRAPMENT PREVENTION AND RECOVERY - Top Tips for Preventing Entrapment when Dinghy Sailing

[@mattsayer78]

How would you recommend (or any pointers for) resolving the conflict between checking all potential capsizes fast and the desire of some safety boat crews to use that as an excuse to zoom around sailing areas at full speed? Particularly maybe windy race days with competent racers, if you can see all crew recovering boats how close do you need to be?

[@robbiebell7643]

Hi Matt, we believe crews should be encouraged to promptly assess the situation, count heads and check that helm/crew are ok, that often does mean safety boats responding at speed and getting close enough to do that effectively. Zoning can help to reduce the travel time (where you have multiple safety boats) and positioning is also important. Clearly there are times when a safety boat might have to prioritise, in which case they need to consider the boats being sailed, the crews ability and the state of the capsized boat (on its side or inverted). Crews should also be considerate to other water users and be aware of their wash when moving around the sailing area whilst driving at a safe speed for the conditions. I hope that helps

[@MrWhothefoxthat]

i wish i had you guys for instructors, i did my level one Saturday and Sunday, i am 61 and 18 stone, the jacket was to small, the suit was to small, so I got caught in the rope's, i couldn't reach the toe strap, and then i got that tired i couldn't pull myself on the boat, to my luck a young chap i was learning with jumped in and give me a peg up, i can only say the instructor was away with the fairy's, I did tell them the equipment wasn't up to much, and i didn't feel comfortable, i am a good swimmer but i feel that if it wasn't for the chap, i would have drowned, no name's mentioned,

[@GordonTamf35]

I had a similar experience, I was trapped inside the turtled boat with ropes around me. When I got out, I was exhausted and can't right the boat. The instructor refused to save me despite my arms are gone. Finally I managed to get out with a few cuts on my body everywhere.

[@lizashley8129]

Really sorry to hear this. I too did Level 1 three weeks ago, and got very tired by repeated capsizes. Our problem was that we did not know how to right the boat, so we spent more time than necessary in the water. However, our RIB pulled me out, so I had time to recover. Also we bought our own kit, which I must say is a great incentive to keep going.

[@mm-uz7wm]

Inversion must be the most likely situation where entanglement can become dangerous. I don't understand after all these years why they don't make dinghies have to have anti-inversion devices. It might affect the performance but everyone will suffer the same penalty so racing will be unaffected. In addition if it becomes mandatory, human ingenuity will develop much better solutions that wobbly bags.....

[@johncole3010]

Self inflating mast head buoyancy devices activated by a tilt switch contact using a CO2 cartridge

[@guygillmore2970]

TL; DR

[@DavidPartridgeBlack]

Please 2m distance on trg videos and consider masks