Full Version Including Passenger Rescue - Sailboat Capsized into Redondo Beach Pier in California

This sailboat left King Harbor in extremely windy conditions and was unable to turn around and get back behind the breakwater. They ended up getting caught by a large wave and tossed into the pier. All four passengers made it to shore.
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[@greggacek1655]

It was amazing how fast the pounding surf made that sailboat an unrecognizable pile of fiberglass.

[@VibratingDolphinNow]

I can only thank god that someone was there to watch the whole thing and shoot 1080p60fps video

[@alimodiandude]

Glad they all survived and THANKS to Jason Wells for capturing something many of us can learn from.

[@OsamaBinChillin]

Loool

[@NICRUIZ41]

Hahaha!

[@narikaba439]

Also, thanks god he didn't shoot the video vertically.

[@nudsh]

This video is: "Hey honey, let's get a sailboat." "Babe, you've never even been on a sailboat!!" "I know, we can start with a small daysailer like a Capri or something, they are easy to sail. Oh, Jen and Dave can come with us, there is room for 4." .............. 2 weeks later on the first trip out.....

[@fowchiiiliedpuppiesdied]

Hilarious and apropos, props to you. They forget to test their skills in the lake first. For Christ’s sake, the ocean, people, it’s the OCEAN. Get some surfers out there, STAT.

[@briane173]

@@fowchiiiliedpuppiesdied They take a little to much security in the name "Pacific."

[@stevemason5348]

All were safe and well, that,s the main thing. Well done to those that jumped in to help them. Thumbs up from me guys

[@Jack-bb2lj]

It's the perfect wave! By far the biggest one of the set and they were right in the pocket. Magical.

[@Hammett175]

So Pitted

[@letsgopresthew1491]

For real.. is what i thought.

[@philippekeroack2075]

The art of sailing can be summarized at about 70% anticipation and the rest to execution and enjoyment. I am surprisied that amongst experienced sailor comments no one mentionned the setting of an anchor as soon as the problem became evident. This is typical of small boat club racers who's primary focus is on sailing the boat fast around a course with the mindset that anything can be fixed quickly to keep the boat going. The needle on the pride meter well in the red zone. I know, I've done this for years and got into plenty of such close calls.

[@theprochrist]

you had four clowns on a boat.. ..none had the sense to drop the anchor prior to the "breakers"...some of the most disgusting sailing I have ever seen...or lack thereof.

[@briane173]

@@theprochrist Being as this boat was at best a pocket cruiser and at worst a daysailer, I'd be surprised if they _had_ an anchor onboard. If they didn't the CG could've easily fined them, adding insult to injury. King Harbor/Redondo Beach has more than its share of problems with wind and surf, and taking a boat that size outside the harbor in those conditions is sketchy to begin with.

[@harryshrubshall01]

People learn to sail but not trained at any level on how to deal with a boat when things go wrong ( much like learning to fly). Valuable lessons learned here. Strong onshore wind and waves caught these sailors by surprise with consequences that could have had them killed. In such instances its a good idea to release the Jib and anchor as far away from breakers as you can and signal for help. Thank heavens no one got crushed against those pier pylons.

[@TheWilliamHoganExperience]

Yea - that pier is a gnarly boat eater isn't it. Bad situation for the boat - no engine, no anchor, mailsail down, and a fouled jib with big waves and high winds pushing them into the pier. Happens with alarming regularity around here... We lose boats and ocassionally sailors evey year. How these 4 survived is a miracle. A few month ago a fishing boat went down in the same area in the middle of the night with 4 aboard. The only reason they survived was because it happened close to the pier, and someone heard their cries for help and called 911. Doesn't always work out like that unfortunately. These guys survived an RB harbor entry mishap too - amazing: kzbin.info/www/bejne/m6akg3xthdCCn6M

[@sphinxbot]

Not the sailors finest moment and it certainly could have ended much worse. Great learning material for other sailors.

[@airwolfcentral169]

FlyChuck couldn’t they tack into that oncoming wave?

[@beaus123]

@@airwolfcentral169 Far too overpowered to manoeuvre.

[@saltMagic]

There were no sailors on this vessel.

[@Mjr._Kong]

@@saltMagic I'm not sure this even qualifies as "bad sailing." Suicide by yacht, perhaps?

[@briane173]

Any one of these crewmen could have been sent head-first into a pier piling, and that to me is the most amazing result of this debacle is that none of these souls got launched into a pier piling or they wouldn't be alive to tell the story.

[@saltMagic]

true they would have looked like the boat in the end.

[@JonDunnmusician]

Bingo A miracle

[@oxxxeee]

I am glad they survived. Jason, great camera work and footage, you are a human tripod!

[@myoriginalmusic6739]

Bill Oxford their is no need to get rude !!! So what if he has a biggen :)

[@TheSolargen]

Here's the armchair analysis. From very early on the helmsman has the tiller hard over. It looks like there's a problem with the roller furling, which is why everyone is up front. Why was the main down? Had the engine failed? Lessons learned using my super power 20/20 hindsight. You can't push through the wind to tack using jib alone when it's blowing hard. Had he run a little, then he could have used the momentum to push the bow through the wind but he would have been in the same situation on the opposite tack, drifting toward the pier or shore. He could have sheeted in and delayed the inevitable. You can't make to wind with a jib only on a fractional rigged boat with those wind speeds. If the main was up there wouldn't be a problem. The big lesson, never be without a means of propulsion.Start the engine before dropping sail. If the engine fails, get the sail back up, quick! Very glad there were no serious injuries. The way this played out it's just a sad understandable accident.

[@bobypin3]

I sailed a Martin 242 for 10 years and it was very difficult to go upwind with just the jib in any wind and impossible when it was blowing as hard as this seems to be. It needs the main to make any upwind progress but it is a very large sail and difficult to control in high winds. The outboard would have been bouncing in and out of the waves and not helping much. They probably had it stowed below as it is a class rule to have an outboard aboard but not necessarily mounted.My advice would have been to stay on shore when the winds are that high.

[@pacificcoast101]

Would using the jib alone cause a Martin 242 to dip the bow? It appears that they furled the main as they exited the harbor and tried to turn back but lost forward motion while fighting to furl the jib. I stayed in that day due to the winds but if I had been out in a sailboat I would have tried reefing the main to have some control.

[@ceirwan]

Agree the helmsman had the helm over all the time killing the speed. But you can beat upwind in a fractional boat in those conditions. You can't lay as close to the wind as normal, but its possible. If he'd wound that genoa in hard, boat would have been on her ear, but she'd have clawed her way off. He lost control of the situation, and didn't appear to realise the danger he was in from the surf.

[@Gottenhimfella]

There is no sheet; a crewman is hand-holding the clew. Either the headsail sheet had broken, or the clew cringle was damaged- in which case they could not simply rig a jury sheet, or bring the lazy sheet across.

[@TheSolargen]

Silicone spray to the bolt rope and track/channel works, piece of cake on my carbon sail. There is no way in the world I would rely on a jib only close to the shore with the wave force as you get closer. Flatten the main and feather. I've raced in over 20kts many times using a sail without reef points but without the jib getting the lift from sitting in front of the main, its not wise.

[@dickfitswell3437]

That was a really nice sunset

[@Narahchien]

Thank God everyone is safe; a boat can be replaced, but not a life. Kudos to those who jumped in to help. I was concerned for them as well.

[@RobertMertensPhD]

I saw some comments down below, about whose fault this was, and I can only relate my experiences. My Windrose 18 came without stanchions (see my other comments), and the first time I took it out with passengers aboard, we turned around at the edge of Ponce Inlet, FL, to avoid seas like this. There were high winds coming in and a strong tide going out, making for eight-foot waves. My passengers (one of them) almost freaked-out. I resolved in that moment, to not take any passengers again, until I installed stanchions on my boat. It was only to see how easy it was to fall overboard and how difficult it was to handle the vessel without them, that I determined that it was unsafe, foolish and irresponsible to do so with other peoples lives in my hands. Also, people wondering about the jib sheet. If you look closely, the video is very good and very clear. Both jib sheets are hanging in the water, so, probably hooked under the boat, maybe wrapped around the rudder or the keel, forcing at least one of the crew to go forward, where it's dangerous to be, and try to manhandle the sheet into producing a wing. Very likely, the sheets weren't secured aft, got loose (which might be why the jib was flapping in the wind at first), and then the one hand got hold of one of the sheets, but the seas were too rough, and he was unable to handle both the sheet and walking back, or the sheets were tangled under the boat. Again, this close to shore and danger - drop anchor. But preventative measures would have been to insure the jib sheets are secure, and land measures would have been to install stanchions before even going out to sea.

[@ryannolan270]

Best comment I’ve read

[@norml.hugh-mann]

I bet they got the jib sheet caught in the prop and thats why they couldn't motor to safety as i dont see an outbord must be inboard. What would stanctions have done to prevent this? People would have still got tosssed out the cockpit unless your suggesting they tie the corner of the jib to a stanction to get some power to get off the lee shore and sort out their problems in open water

[@RobertMertensPhD]

@@norml.hugh-mann There are no inboard motors on sailboats this small. Stanchions would have helped the man forward to stabilize himself while holding onto the loose jib sheet. He did manage to hold onto it for a few seconds, and the skipper was able to control the vessel. But he couldn't hold on, the sheet got loose, and they lost control again. I also noticed the skipper trying to turn the rudder hard, and if you understand rudder dynamics at all, you know that you can't control a vessel with anything greater than 14 degrees of rudder (most vessels no more than 10 degrees). He turned it all the way to 45 just a moment or two before the boat got rolled over. So, he lost control of it. He might have avoided the rollover and simply smacked into the pier. I wonder, though, the skipper might have simply abandoned the idea of steering away from the pier, and take the more interesting option. Simply allow the wind to blow the vessel into the pier, and then use its momentum to guild it safely between the pylons (losing the mast, of course) and then ground it on soft sand. That might have been a less expensive option, with hindsight.

[@splortz]

Excellent footage. A lesson in each minute.

[@BerenddeBoer]

One more lesson you take the jib down before the main, otherwise the wind pushes the nose and you lose steering. Sorry people this doesn't look like an experienced captain.

[@Daveinet]

Some boats will sail on jib alone, but I tend to agree. Conditions have to be just right for it to work. Normally you can't get enough speed to be able to steer up wind.

[@user-yb4xn6or4k]

If for some reason the mail sail couldn't be raised, would moving everyone to the bow shift the center of lateral resistance aft on a boat this size?

[@TheSolargen]

Yes, Bandb.In the same way jumping makes you closer to the sun.

[@zonzeven]

But not at night !

[@TheSolargen]

Or farther away

[@bethanderson8758]

From conversations elsewhere I'm almost certain the boat owner is the one on the cabin top dealing with the jib. Armchair sailing is often a fool's errand as any of us could make a mistake and end up there. Not me, of course, nor you, but everyone else. ;-) Glad everyone is safe.

[@tigerleahu8169]

" All four passengers made it to shore." .. indeed, there wasn't a sailor among them, just passengers. One of the worst examples of seamanship I've seen in a long time.

[@ddaverr]

I like your wit.

[@andre1987eph]

What surprised me was how long it took two of them to get to shore once in the drink. Non swimmers perhaps

[@TheTruthKiwi]

Very lucky that no one was dashed against the jetty pylons and lucky everyone was thrown out. Literally a life and death and terrifying few minutes there for everyone involved. Glad everyone made it

[@christopherahern9880]

So glad to see these guys made it back to shore relatively unscathed. Hopefully, we'll see a Badwolf II join the Martin Fleet.

[@marinamartinez6886]

Great video, hope everyone is okay.

[@buynsell365]

Watching this video makes my blood pressure rise.

[@ottonfiniewicz3181]

Supplement: The only active jib, so close to land with wind blowing in direction to the land, is a big misunderstanding.

[@BreeZieDoesiT]

I cant believe skulls werent smashed and spines did not get broken. Truly lucky people to still be breathing and fairl well.

[@brianmccarthy5557]

I don't know when this was filmed but I saw an almost identical accident many years ago in the same place, possibly in the 1980's? In the case I saw the boat was also parallel to the pier, hit it almost the same way but the mast hit the top of the pier and broke. Wind and surf conditions were about the same, not unusual for King Harbor. I remember two crewmen, though I could easily be wrong. Nobody drowned that day either. Several surfers went in and pulled them to shore. I first saw the boat in trouble from the pier, then went and saw the rest from the rocks in front of the parking lot. I learned to sail at 9 or 10 in King Harbor in a Lido 14 , no motor of course. I sailed in similar weather and waves to this when I was that age. We were taught the right way to enter and exit the harbor mouth. In the case I saw the sailboat made its approach far to close to the shore and the pier, as I suspect also happened here, but didn't lose its mainsail. Both of these were cases of incompetent sailors with no local knowledge of the harbor. Unfortunately, these were not the first or last cases of this kind. I don't recall any cases of human fatalities, though I once saw one of the local porpoise pod misjudge the tide and waves to run headfirst into the jetty rocks and kill itself. This is why you should know how to float, basic ocean swim and always wear a life vest when sailing.

[@pateo7]

Jason about to get that KZbin MONEY :D

[@amberquantrell8305]

Wow! That guy was LAUNCHED! Glad all are ok!!

[@yousernameish]

Furling genoas are the work of the devil. It looks like the mainsail had already blown out of its track. The genoa furling gear then wasnt fit to haul the genny in, bearing the boat downwind quickly onto that shore. I doubt very much the skipper had been intending to sail using genoa alone (hes getting flak for that in the comments)... just trying his best to get that menace genoa stacked.

[@andrewbragger2679]

The furler won't work when the sheet is round the prop.

[@billyblazer80]

These stupid human trick videos are my favorite. Keep them coming, please.

[@helicart]

No, these guys definitely had no clue. No motor apparently, and no sail power. They could have had that jib sorted a lot quicker. If they were having trouble with it, then they should have thrown the anchor to keep them out of the waves and off the beach. Though probably no anchor either. I was skippering a friend's catamaran decades ago on Sydney Harbour. Moderately strong winds. I didn't realize but the lines controlling the retractable rudders had snapped and the rudders were not fully down. I could not steer it effectively and the wind pushed us back towards a restaurant on pylons. We banged into the pylons a few times before I finally worked out the rudder lines were the issue. Once I got a quick knot in the two loose ends of the line, we got away from the pylons quickly. The rigging would have been destroyed otherwise.

[@sailingcitrinesunset4065]

The swiss cheese effect, numerous errors allowed all the holes to line up ending in disaster! If they had of done one thing different would have ended with a different outcome.

[@ud4458]

Crew: Sailing takes me away 🎶.. Pier: nope

[@RobertMertensPhD]

Geez! That was painful to watch. I get caught on Lake Monroe (Sanford, FL), and if the winds are just 15 kts, the waves look like this - due to the sea wall. I see a few armchair analyses down below. It's always hard to tell what went down. When it's this windy, which it was yesterday off Ponce Inlet, and today, as well, it's time to stay on the beach and take videos of sailboats crashing against piers. If there's one thing I always consider to be the very last option, when things get this bad, and it was going through my mind as I watched. DROP ANCHOR! And then drop sails - in that order. It looks like the main was out, the jib was being held by hand, there were four hands on-board (I'm almost always alone when I sail - I WISH I hand four helpers to help out when something like this happens), and it also looks like there was almost no keel. Even when she flipped, there should have been a keel in the air. But that's just my first watch - maybe there was, and I didn't see it. The boat should not have flipped in the wave, which means either the keel wasn't down or it was broken off. Again, when things get this bad, don't be ashamed to drop an anchor and wait for help. Two minutes later, the marine patrol would have been there to pull you away from the pier. A rudder has a maximum turning/control angle of no more than, perhaps, 14 degrees. Yes, the tiller hand had it far to the port or starboard, effectively making the rudder useless. It is one of my projects to install rudder stops, partly to keep me from turning the rudder too far, and partly to keep it away from the motor - and in this weather, ESPECIALLY in this sort of weather, I would BARELY trust my motor, but I would have it in the water and running. So sad to watch this little sailor break apart that way, busted and shattered into a million pieces in the waves. One last little thought. Never travel with players. Players tend to "be in charge" even if they have no clue what they're doing, and often, when things get bad, they try to take over. This whole business wreaks of captain failure, which could be either the captain lost his nerve, didn't know what he was doing, or there was a player aboard, trying to run things when they went south, which can upend even the best captain's plans for a path to safety.

[@Superfandangoo]

Agreed, though you can see the fin keel is attached for a split second, I doubt the anchor would of held

[@TheCoolhead27]

All they had to do was fly the halyard on the jib.

[@gordonipock9385]

You can see the fin keel clearly as the boat is going under the pier. No swing keel here. A big fin keel.

[@JoyElectric567]

It's a miracle no one got killed in this situation. This is beyond unacceptable regarding seamanship! The sea is not a joke people. He will punish you and penetrate all mistakes you make! This is obvious, but many situations aren't as obvious as this. If you do not know what you're doing, never tempt destiny!

[@championskyeterrier]

One of the big questions here is was there an outboard engine on the boat, and if so, why was it not mounted and running before taking down the sails? With or without an engine, what was the planned sequence for entering the marina (i.e. engine on, furl jib, take down mainsail etc.)? Other things that might have been done include tossing out an anchor to either stop or at least slow the boat down, if there was an anchor on board. Lastly, ditching from the boat prior to the crash is probably safer. I assume the people in the video have sailed a lot more than me, I never assume I would do better but try to learn from the situation.

[@cjmccanna1]

it was a race, the engine was stowed away.

[@vibratingstring]

If you need an outboard on a twenty foot sailboat, you shouldn't be sailing. Take up something safe, like youtube.

[@scottberg8521]

@@vibratingstring Outboards are required (1 design class) and they're stored on top of the keel during the race; clear equipment failure and the (probably very skilled crew) thought they could fix it in time... they didn't but I'm very slow to 2nd guess those who were there.

[@mustafadurna5926]

did they lose the engine? why didn't the skipper luff up to the safety of deep water while they still had the genova? i guess they had multiple problems at once.

[@samfold1943]

Questions: In those conditions why have no engine? Did they forget it? If they did have an engine, why wasn't it start prior to dropping the main? Why not head to wind? When it was clear the jib rigging was screwed, they not re-raise the main and at least have some control over the boat?

[@cjmccanna1]

they were racing, the engine was stowed away. it is a small boat.

[@PeterHallett]

Stern bouncing around make hard to mount motor. I would have continued on starboard offshore longer and deployed anchor, with someone on radio asking for assist while heroic foredeck crew kept trying

[@jeffworst9939]

The name of this boat was Bad Wolf. It's now a popular spot for scuba divers to explore and provides a home for lots of marine life. The boat has broken up into several pieces and rests at about 83 ft. I don't think it had a motor because nobody has ever seen one. I guess it's possible the motor sank in a different spot from the boat.

[@andrewbragger2679]

Jib and main sheet attached to rudder and propeller. You've got one minute and thirty seconds to sort it out. What what you going to do?

[@ottonfiniewicz3181]

Basic rule of sailing: Sails go up from steer (main sail later jib) and go down to steer (jib later main sail). The front sail (jib) should go up as the last sail and it should go down as the first sail. Working jib always turns away boat from the wind.

[@Gottenhimfella]

Not true in strong winds: I have half a dozen times broached (rounded up uncontrollably into the wind due to a strong gust) under various "jib alone" configurations on several boats.

[@Cameron-ur2tk]

main sail dropped? thats there first issue, if the were scared of the being overpowered by the wind why not reef the main, not drop it. You got no control sailing upwind with a jib lol

[@henryrichards1556]

I agree they should have used a reefed main: the jib just pushes your bow downwind especially in these conditions. Probably should not have been out and looks like a bit if panic set in -- maybe just not enough experience but glad everyone is okay.

[@johnchang7]

To me the mast was broken. No spreaders and the boom malfunctioned. The guy holding the sheet wow that’s what winches are for. These guys were in way over their heads in those conditions plus the boats condition. These guys are lucky no one drowned

[@wekenyon]

I don't see any indication that the skipper had any plan in his mind. You don't want to have a sailboat motionless in the water while you decide what to do. I give the skipper a grade of "F".

[@MrRourk]

Dolt! Glad they got rescued!

[@mikederyder3885]

I always thought only us surfers knows what it's like to shoot a pier. Guess I was wrong. 😆 They did pick the best wave of the set. Lol. Its hard to believe nobody hit a piling.

[@letsgopresthew1491]

The one guy on top got launched.. if he hit a pole he was k.o for sure. Bles m

[@jacquesleon6819]

Hey. I hope that the crew is OK. Since it's useful to learn from others, I was wondering if professional skippers could help us identify what could have been done here to prevent the crash. I am an advanced sailor (still learning though) and I must admit that in these conditions, with this wind, the main down, a jib out of order, no engine, and the impossibility to run because of the shore, I think that I would have crashed the boat too. The only thing I would maybe have tried is to throw the anchor (though it's can be quite dangerous to manipulate an anchor in these conditions too). Professional advice would be nice, cheers.

[@randystafford3403]

Somehow an earlier comment of mine got deleted. The main was partway up in the first 10 seconds of the video (top few feet of luff in mast slot). Its luff came completely separated 10 seconds in, then the boat gybed to port tack 35 seconds in. At that point they were pretty screwed: couldn't point or make way under jib alone. If they hadn't gybed, they could have run under jib and at least avoided the pier pilings and run aground on Redondo Beach, or maybe bought some time to try hoisting the main again. Or they could have anchored offshore from the breakers and gotten their rigging sorted out. Or, assuming they got their jib sheets sorted out, they could have reached back and forth across the wind and tried to claw their way up, instead of trying to point high under jib alone. Here’s the area: www.google.com/maps/place/Redondo+Beach+Pier/@33.8398787,-118.3932816,634m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x80c2b4a715b606a3:0xe8170704fa215ae0!8m2!3d33.8398787!4d-118.3910929 The iwindsurf graph for South Redondo shows a high gust of 27mph out of the north at 7:15 that evening - wx.iwindsurf.com/map#33.651,-118.139,9,1,!164165,7. Assuming the incident happened at about that time, even if they had no reef points they had a better chance of making the harbor upwind under main alone, with all four crew hiked out on the port rail, than under jib alone. If they had no auxiliary power and hadn’t raised their main, it makes me wonder how they got out of the marina in the first place. They must have sailed out under jib alone. Anyway, this is all Monday-morning quarterbacking. I wasn’t on the boat and I don’t know all the factors involved. In the video the boat rolls into the pilings 2:15 in, but the video was spliced at about 1:00. Best case the skipper only had a few minutes to make decisions, but with breakers and pilings to leeward on port tack, that course wasn’t safe. I’m just glad nobody was killed or seriously hurt.

[@TheSolargen]

27kts on a boat like that is no biggy both sails flat as a pancake max mast bend and feather up in the puffs. Done it quite a few times. I think there was some malfunction.

[@jacquesleon6819]

Thanks Randy. You are right. I did not notice the first gibe that pointed them towards the pilings. It's also useful to look at the map. I guess that, in distress, the best would have been to run to the beach. The helmsman probably thought that the jib could be fixed in time for them to flatten it and sail away from the shore... But it wasn't. I guess that the mistake was for them to focus on fixing their jib before establishing a safe(r) emergency route (run in direction of the sand beach with the anchor ready). I must admit that it is a mistake that I still sometimes make though (so far without consequences): when something is broken on the boat, I focus my attention on it and, for a short time, I loose focus on the environment.

[@TheSolargen]

The no clue remark is uncalled for and unfair. He had finished the race there were others still racing, so he knows how to sail, he wasn't DFL. He obviously thought he would sail into harbour under jib alone. Why not it's blowing hard, maybe done it before? Got rid of the main so he didn't have a ton of sail when he got into the mooring field/slip. Had a problem, thought he had time to mess with the sheet or whatever he was doing. Like an air crash it's not one thing, it's one mistake compounding another.Not what I would have done but then there's not a lot of sail to contend with on this chair.

[@deneseneu1557]

I agree that the "no clue" remark is uncalled for..even world-class racing crews have found themselves in uncontrollable situations and ended up dead. I appreciate your assessment because watching the video, it definitely looked like a few things had fallen apart for the crew. These folks are lucky and all of us who sail should try to learn from crashes and capsizing incidents. My first sailing lesson a few decades ago was to avoid cocky know-it-all skippers because they are the most dangerous ones.

[@tedfinkenauer42]

Race Commitee should have called this day with all the weather reports given, but it's really the skippers job not to put his crew in jeopardy ever. With all of his knowledge as described, he should have pulled his boat from racing. Reef when you can, not when it's too late. Glad to hear all survived.

[@randallwatson391]

Yeah, I'm not sure about pulling the race. Races get pulled all the time and in the end no one knows how to sail in stiffer weather. Over here people are asked to leave the water at +20knt - i think it's ridiculous. However, and I know nothing about the way this particular vessel was set up, but some comments here suggested the boat was not set up to reef, in which case - don't go out if you can't reef. On the other hand, a concatenation of smaller screw ups/breakages can very quickly turn into a real issue.

[@randallwatson391]

Yeah I don't think he's sailing intentionally toward the breaking waves nor the pier- It's a concatenation of screwups and breakages I think. They've jammed the main trying to hoist, and managed to then tangle the jib. Maybe the jib is on a roller and it's also jammed. Now they have no effective drive, and the bit of jib that's up simply serves to drive them faster down wind. It all happens pretty quickly. Seems they don't have time to get a motor going, (if they have one). Perhaps the crew were not used to doing things in such a strong breeze? They learn from this. Many of us have made mistakes when sailing and luckily we've come out of it without a disaster or at least without someone filming our screwups. At the end of the day, it's not for us to make judgement calls about the competence of the skipper - we were not there, we have only a tiny bit of information.

[@fredpinczuk7352]

Living and having sailed here in Redondo beach, I can tell you that he was nowhere near the breakwaters. By the looks of it, they tried to bring down the sails, and the foresail must have been stuck or the wind simply too strong to furl it. It does not appear that he had enough power with his motor to bring it into the wind to assist. And by the time he tried to use the foresail to help him out. It was too late. Raising the main would have given him more control. Then again, I was not on that boat and can only assume.

[@alvincay100]

"He didn't have much sail up. He should have stayed away from the breaking waves." It's hard to achieve sails up when you have broken parts and fouled lines. After watching this I'd say they ought to make an outboard and an anchor mandatory for this kind of sailing conditions.

[@kathrynwatson7110]

Those people were sooo lucky they didn't hit the pier and get injured or killed! Wow!!!

[@K1600GTLguy]

Poor seamanship and an unskilled crew on so many levels. It's brisk out there, but hardly overpowering as evidenced by the other three boats making way behind the one floundering. Many day sailors have poor heavy weather skills, and rely far too much on outboard engines and dropping sails when they run out of talent. I hope no one got hurt, but it was all preventable and manageable with an experienced skipper and crew. The sea is a hard taskmaster, and this boat owner just got schooled.

[@user-kq5dr5gi4m]

Firstly, it is already the owner of the Wreckage of the yacht. Secondly, he did not receive any lesson. Just crap from fear. The way this bunch of suckers (and not the team) handles sails is the best of any statement. God is very merciful to them, so he left them to live.

[@Desertphile]

Their main boom went by the board? I cannot see why the head sail was still flogging when the jib sheet should have been hauled hard back to claw off the pier in time. I wonder if the jib sheets were fouled. Bummer about the loss of the boat.

[@PaulPaulMan]

The captain turned his back on the approaching waves, if he would have saw he should have said to abandon the ship.

[@Daveinet]

Don't know if I would say it was bad sailing, as much as poor judgement. They did not have a plan B or plan C. All too often, they focus on plan A far too long, without realizing the point at which they need to change plans. When you get in trouble, you need to change you plans early on. Either put the main back up, or sail the boat mostly down wind. If you fight the wind, you will loose. I've been caught by winds in excess of 45 knots in a 24ft lightweight racing boat. We tried to motor into the wind, but as soon as the wind began to turn us, I just went with it. We were able to duck into a small cove and were just fine. But the point is, we changed plans early and did not try to fight the conditions. Their solution was simple. DROP THE ANCHOR and get your sail situation or outboard issues straightened out. Get the boat under control. Then head for the LEEWARD side of the dock.

[@saltMagic]

I agree. They were so focused they didn't even notice where they were ending up.

[@georgewashington7444]

My take-away on this scenario not a expert but 20 year sailing exp. Great Lakes/Florida/Bahamas in

[@40yoboarder]

This video drives me crazy with that foresail not sheeted in properly and no main!

[@metaksa76]

Just some super glue, and that sailboat will be like new !!

[@hesgotamotor8288]

Bet their eyes opened fairly wide when it capsized, and the people on the peer weren't even interested they were too busy looking at the sea gulls

[@ss_whole]

The sea was angry that day my friends.

[@piratepete4322]

The person on the tiller needs to know how a rudder works. It’s not like a car steering wheel.

[@LegionOfWeirdos]

Regardless of fault - these people are EXTREMELY lucky... lucky that pier caught the boat in its pilings and kept it from running them over after they were tossed... lucky they didn't get thrown into a piling.

[@marek35]

They made it trough. They should be very happy

[@firewaterbydesign]

Are there a lot of accidents and drownings there, or was the surf just unusually rough that day?

[@brianmccarthy5557]

The weather conditions shown are not uncommon at King Harbor.

[@18661873]

This is what happens when teenagers steal a boat and go joyriding.

[@magzb2642]

I know a Yacht Master who can set sail with a completely novice crew and demands action when he yell " let off the kicking strap". Blank stares all around 《••》

[@drfiberglass]

What the hell were they doing out in that rough water in the first place in such a small boat..

[@RobertMertensPhD]

On second, third and fourth viewing, there WAS a keel, it was working, and this little boat just got too close to shore (and the pier). Anchor drop would have been the final option, and it should have been dropped without hesitation, when the captain realized his crew couldn't keep the jib out. Why there were two hands operating the jib sheet: because there are no stanchions along the sides of the boat. I just bought a 42-y-o Windrose 18, and it came without stanchions. On my first trip out on the Windrose, the motor failed and I had to drop an anchor, not 50 yards from a seawall, with a north wind beating down hard on me, and four-foot seas (otherwise, my boat would have been turned into the smae splinters this one was turned into). I was unable to get either the jib or the mainsail up, because seas were so rough, I was unable to safely move forward without being tossed overboard. Since then, my next big project was to install stanchions (see the video on my channel), along with two-dozen other small, and not inconsequential items (repairing the motor, for one - turned out to be a pitted exhaust plate, allowing water into the cylinder, between the gasket - the motor would run, for a while, and then not run and not start). The one guy handling the jib sheet is unable to do so, because there's nothing for him to hold onto - no stanchions, and in the rough seas, he's fighting between holding the jib sheet and keeping himself from going overboard. Another sailor is trying to help him hold the jib sheet, but I'm guessing it's too short or something (another thing I'm doing - arranging my jib sheet loops - I'll have two, now). I don't know how you guys do it. I don't know how my Windrose 18 went for 42 years without somebody putting stanchions on it. I can only assume it was a yard decoration, and not really used for sailing. And you can see the problem of lack of stanchions becomes serious when the entire crew are thrown overboard, one barely missing one of the pylons, because there's NOTHING to hang onto. These people almost died, for lack of stanchions. There is a bow pulpit and aft stanchions, but amidships - you're screwed. At the least, had there been stanchions, the one sailor could have tied off the jib sheet to one of the stanchions. These people could have held onto the boat, and the sailboat could have been saved, but for the lack of this one simple addition to any sailboat. I installed my own. I bought the stainless steel tubing from a web site that sells metals, and the stanchion bases you can get from any boat supply. The only other thing I've had to do is install aluminum plates underneath, for support. For a couple of hundred bucks (what it cost me), they could have avoided all of this.

[@bikedude4968]

i am sorry to see this crew get in to this position. looks like that had a jib line jam and were just using the jib to run down wind bad move in high winds near the beach. i had this happen, you can not get the jib line fix up best thing to do is let it flog out and rise the main until you have the boat under control again. they had the main set up in the first 2 second of the video ? then let it down to go back in to fix the jib i say as they made a turn at .33 at 1.00 they turn to go down wind only thing they did not count on was the wave pushing them . so at 105 turn again but no one was putting up the main until 1.39 and then just stop putting it up as panic had set in and then to late.the waves had got them. when you make a mistake it cost you in blood, money, or your life at sea.

[@Kyleinasailing]

We all have to learn but it's better to master the basics in much less demanding conditions.

[@kristine6996]

There was something technically wrong with the sails I suppose, the boat couldnt get enough speed in order to escape the power of the waves. And then it was only a matter of time...

[@beaser218]

A couple things. First - if you have never been the skipper of a sailboat in an emergency situation you should not be commenting on what the person at the helm should or should not have been doing. Second - we have no idea how they came to get into this position. A single piece of equipment failure could have easily taken out the mainsail. Third, regarding setting an anchor, we have no idea how deep the water is and most likely this kind of boat would not have nearly enough chain to make it stick.The best comment I read was about tunnel vision. Many of us have been there and look back and kick ourselves. It appears the skipper dogmatically is trying to beat up into the wind to get steerage. this is very hard on a lee shore in high winds. It's unclear what is downwind, i.e. off to the right of the screen, rocks or something more dangerous than a pier? It appears the crew on the bow is actually trying to hold the jib in order to get some wind in the sail. Had he collected his thoughts for just a minute he might have realized it would have been better to run with the wind using what little sail he had but he missed that opportunity once the waves started feeling the ocean floor and could no loner turn the boat..

[@beaser218]

Sorry - clearly you are not a sailor. Rudder only works as long as there is water moving by it in the general direction you want to go. Sail was clearly not under control much less in a position for beating hard into the wind, and in this kind of sea, every time a wave goes under the boat, the heading changes causing you to lose the wind and forward momentum.

[@RobertMertensPhD]

The anchor should have been out and dropped. If it was properly rigged, it would hold. I've been in a few situations where dropping an anchor was the only option. Main down, jib torn or shredded, motor running, but no response at the helm (rudder steering broken), headed for a dangerous seawall - drop the anchor. But as you say, you can't know until you've been there. And as they say, "Calm seas do not a sailor make."

[@conniefontenot2793]

Tom Mathisen .....Anchor ? Stupid stupid. 6' surf and he is going to put out a 10 lb danforth. People on here are stupid

[@Panoramix0874]

From the start he should have sheeted in this jib to build momentum to get steerage. You can at least reach tightly with a jib as long as you keep the speed up. That would have been enough to clear the pier.

[@cleanhabitats]

"Never did like that boat".

[@moleisrich1]

The sailboat was in the wrong place and everything, but why the hell is thenpeir built sideways ? Just asking for trouble.

[@fredbarnes196]

Looks to me like prior to the start of the video they took the main down to sail under jib only, but then the jib sheet failed, and the guy is trying to rig another one but is running out of sea room. And the boat has no auxillary power. And the driver isn't helping. Bad day.

[@vidguy007]

There's no excuse for these guys sitting there and not sailing the boat. They never even TRIED to sheet in the jib. Where was the main? A story is that they took the sheets off. It wasn't blowing any harder than should have been an exciting sail.

[@pirogok337]

Слава Богу все живы!!!

[@Em-mp4hf]

Scary!

[@strangelee4400]

All these 'professional' sailors in the comments giving out advice, and not once has anyone mentioned calling for Aquaman.

[@norml.hugh-mann]

Looks like the jib sheets caught and wrapped around the shaft underneath disabling the engine and causing great difficultly in trying to get some power out of the jib minus the jib sheet which is wrapped below he is holding it by hand.. Everyone has bad days and sometimes more people just means more people in your way. Could have done this, could have done that...who cares...they all lived to teach others how not to repeat their mistakes

[@andrewbragger2679]

My thoughts exactly. Main down and motor and Genny in. Jib sheet caught in prop and you've got a problem.

[@arktseytlin]

Other boats sailing no problem. This guy had no idea what he was doing

[@dr_doy]

Marins d'eau douce !!!!!

[@ceirwan]

Not sure what the problem with the genoa was so its hard to say for certain. But if he'd sheeted it in as hard as possible and stopped trying to tack he could probably got enough distance from the pier.

[@gregmirr]

hard to believe Redondo beach doesn't have a better equipped water rescue program , boats get in trouble all the time where were they when they were needed...

[@mikehen3367]

Hats down to the photographer. WOW as a sailor analysing it (I'm not an expert by any means whatsoever) its the skipper's fault, he turned back towards the pier WOW

[@saltMagic]

They were so focused on the sails they completely lost spatial awareness.

[@craiggrocott7559]

I have watched over and over, they seemed preoccupied with the main, it looked like the jib sheet has gone through the block, the guy on the cabin top is trying to hold the clew without any mechanical advantage, you could see that they were getting some drive from the jib, if they just focused on that it should have been fine, but when panic sets in it all goes shit.

[@SailboatAmelia]

Why would you deliberately drop the mainsail so close to land, losing any ability to point high? I can only guess they were forced to for some standing-rigging failure.

[@alvincay100]

It looks to me like just about everything was fouled... I can't think of any other reason he wouldn't raise the main.

[@saltMagic]

looks like they kept trying to put it in irons to fix the issue as well. and were just being dragged into the pier.

[@robdog1245]

That's a good way to die very easily. You don't ride the boat into the pier, look at what happened with Low Speed Chase at the Farallones, or Uncontrollable Urge at San Clemente Island. Both times they rode the boat into the surf, and both times people died (Farallones I believe 3 and SCI I believe 2). The old saying "stay with the boat" doesn't apply here, they'd be better off bailing once it became clear the boat was out of control and headed toward the breakers, then they'd have a chance at least and not have to worry about getting crushed beneath the boat as it rolled or slammed into the pilings.

[@championskyeterrier]

One crew died from Uncontrollable Urge, but your point stands. www.ussailing.org/wp-content/uploads/DARoot/Offshore/SAS/PDF/2013%20Islands%20Race%20Report.pdf The problem is the natural tendency to try to save the boat past a point of no return approaching lee shore. The trick is to predetermine a decision point to ditch ahead of time and not tunnel vision on fixing the immediate problem.

[@robdog1245]

I knew it was one or two, either way it was sad but probably could have been prevented, thanks for the correction.

[@janetspiritofthelivinggod6328]

5 died in the Farallones race! I'm here trying to talk my husband out of buying a sailboat! :-)

[@vanvan5709]

Hey I know that spot. Nice place to eat crab.

[@rodshehan3886]

this is what happens when you dont know what you're doing and panic. some of the worts decisions ive ecer seen a skipper make

[@cruzanmongoose]

I was thinking about the flying Dutchman.

[@prewettcr]

Makes me sick to see this...dreadful...I would drop the anchor! Hooking up to life-lines would be good idea even though it would have been a possible death-line when it crashed. Looks like he lost his main (which should have been reefed) and could not untangle the jib...lucky they survived!

[@vorname4950]

Why is a boat given to some people who absolutely can't sail ?

[@wysiwyg2006]

i have a 22ft yacht with an outboard long before getting that close id be using the outboard and jib. unlucky!

[@AllenMichaelsVlogs]

Terrible situation and it happened quickly. I don't understand why they turned into the wind their initial position was more favorable and it could have taken them away from the pier and given them more time to resolve the emergency.

[@giancriscitiello3257]

From the video, it looks like one crew member was up forward on the deck frantically trying to fix the jib sheet which had a problem that made it difficult to power up the sail. It was luffing the entire time. Not familiar with the type of boat but with a properly working jib, they might have been able to sail upwind away from the pier at an oblique angle.

[@phazerbrains]

Yeah, but there are two jib sheets - switch tack and go another direction. The mistake really is that they let themselves get way too close to the pier in the first place.

[@randystafford3403]

In the few seconds before the boat rolled into the pilings, you can see the crew member forward on the starboard cabintop actually has the working jib sheet in his hand, and it's attached to the clew. Maybe he reattached it in the preceding minutes, or maybe it never detached from the clew and the problem was it came unreeved from the block / car further aft (or the block / car broke). Anyway that indicates the clew wasn't torn out. So maybe there wasn't originally a good bowline on that starboard sheet, or maybe there wasn't a good stopper knot on its other end, or maybe a piece of hardware broke.

[@edwardreilly9098]

It all looked fouled. As with no steerage - not possible to tack.

[@Hammett175]

They weren't really rescued. They swam to shore.

[@vixvela5252]

cool video.....dont F*** with the OCEAN

[@FerreneMachine]

kook slams. they are beyond lucky

[@SVELFARO]

My only question is where was Redondo beach Harbor patrol and Baywatch ??? perhaps it was to big for them to attemt a tow. when i livved there thy were usaly very fast to respond to situations like this.

[@pacificcoast101]

You can see them in the video at 5:00. They were already on scene.

[@thenoobletlego]

Your first day of boating school

[@vincent7520]

With this type of jib (which is not a genoa and doesn't overspread aft) there is no way the boat can sail upwind : the main was needed. From a keyboard point of view they seemed quite ill prepared : I don't see how a sheet can break, nor why the main is not hoisted (with reefs of course). As for those who feel the boat could sail upwind because it was a light displacement and they do it on their own boat, I'm afraid it's a wrong assumption : each boat has its own ability and recant judge from one's experience only. But then again, a keyboard position is quite confortable (but not the best : I'd rather be at sea).

[@arbleizbzh7672]

Agreed. I have two different reactions to this video. The cynic in me says: "WTH are they so close to shore, with the jib up but not the main. Why does he keep trying to tack with (a barely powered) jib only, which likely won't happen especially without speed. I simply don't get why they didn't just gybe and beam-reached away from shore and then fixed the main and haul it to power out of that spot. It's an easy gybe without the main and the jib would have helped them fall-off the wind quicker for the gybe." The empath in me says: "The engine likely broke, or they didnt have one. The main looks like it could be jammed in the pre-feeder, so not an option; and the jib looks such a mess that sheets and furling line are likely tangled. At that point, it's a really tough spot to recover; and it's hard to make the decision to abandon ship in time" Either way, the keyboard position is much easier to crew on; albeit not nearly as fun as being at sea. ;) :)

[@vincent7520]

It seems to me there is a lack of experience in all this : they obviously are trying to do something at the foot of the mast (they're not sitting ducks frozen by fear) but it seems they didn't assess how fast the boat would crash onshore (otherwise they wouldn't have tacked at O:29 (but what's on the left of the screen we don't know and they did…). Nobody rushed to try to drop anchor. Of course dropping anchor in this situation is the last resort but experience tells you that you've got to fight to the last moment and do things as they must be done and not as "by the book". I was in such a situation a very long time ago with the same type of boat and I remembered asking a crew member to be ready with a knife to unlash the anchor and drop as fast as soon as I would tell him. We were not as close to shore and rocks as them and luckily we finally got out of the dire situation without resorting to extreme "solution". Needless to say that all crew (including me) had donned our life jackets as soon as we started to get into trouble. Then again experience is key and I already had 20 years of sailing under the belt … Sailing is experience so I don't blame them and the happiest thing of all is they all came out unharmed. But comments may be useful for other to ponder and keep a few info in the corner of their mind … Gosh ! Did I love sailing and learning … 55 years of learning and I wish I could still practice and learn again … Sigh … Oh well ;)))

[@michaelbrownlee9497]

Looks like they were having problems with the rigging, and were without a engine. The guy at the helm kept neutering himself, so i think he was taking orders from the guy trying to fix the rigging who probably owned the boat. Looks like the skipper had three unexperienced crew, and was inexperienced himself. The surf literally smashed the boat against the pier. Be nice to listen to the crews version of what happened. The surf though...respect for mother nature.