This Line Killed 2 Sailors

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[@Lazarov_Tweevles]

Just a few thoughts on the topic: - Put in a first reef (at least) before the sun sets. - Monohull: If you're wondering if you should reef... the answer is yes. - Multihull: If you're wondering if you should reef... it's already too late. - Boom-furling (or stardard) main... Run a downhaul line to the head (top corner) of the main. Run it through a block to a winch. You don't have to bother winding it on the boom. Just get it down quickly (any point of sail) in an emergency. - Carry an appropriately sized sea anchor and/or (series) drogue. Stop or slow the boat down. Practice in light conditions. - For watch keepers: If you're nervous or unsure of anything, wake the Captain. - For owners: If you're planning a passage that you feel is above you're pay grade, hire an experienced professional and put them in complete control of your vessel. Join their crew at their discretion (try to inherit everything you can from them). - For delivery captains: Make it clear to owners that you are the sole final decision maker on the vessel. Give them permission to request you pull into the nearest safe port where they can dismiss you. * these are part of my crew briefing for every delivery over the past many decades.

[@frankmiller95]

Agreed on all points except reefing at night and the use of a drogue. At first, as crew, later as captain and and later again, as delivery crew, we never reefed until it was necessary, regardless of the time of day. When we reefed, we did so without hesitation, but also shook out the reef as soon as it was possible to do so safely for the conditions The point was and remains to make as fast a passage as safely possible, which is still the best way of avoiding problems. Drogues would seem to be a great solution, but in my many score thousands of miles at sea on innumerable different sailboats, l've never so much as seen one, much less heard of one being available or used successfully. The explanation most often provided for why this is the case it that a drogue with a hoop of sufficient diameter and strength to function effectively is simply too big to stow aboard a sailboat without being dangerously obtrusive to working safely on deck.

[@scomo532]

All very good advice. Particularly, reefing before sunset and an emergency line to pull the mains’l down. Also, I cringed whenever the narrator called the mainsheet or the preventer a “rope”. As the old saying goes, there’s only one rope on a sailing vessel and that’s on the luff of the mains’l (or fores’l, or mizzen) all the rest are called LINES! Also, why didn’t the Capt’n do reefing drills before leaving Bermuda?

[@timothydunn5889]

All sound advice. Thank you.🇦🇺

[@Lazarov_Tweevles]

​@@frankmiller95I appreciate your response. Please employ the storm tactics that you feel comfortable with. I'm happy that you've never found yourself in conditions that would benefit from drag inducing gear. For multihulls I prefer to carry a series drogue which can be deployed off the stern at varying lengths to control the speed while running with a high following sea. For monos I typically bring my own chute which I can use as a sea anchor or choke it smaller to use as a drogue. Many years ago I picked up a delivery of a very sleek Hinckley yawl with the owner on board. I was hired at his wife's insistence due to events that occurred during his prior year's crossing from the US to the Caribbean. He had followed a (famous) weather router's directives which led him into a nasty developing storm. He blew out his genoa and managed to drop his main. He told me that he was traveling at 18 knots bare pole (any physicists out there might want to comment on the exponential difference in impact force incurred when driving a displacement sailboat hull into a wall of water at 18 knots .. as composers to..say ... 2 knots). He had no drag gear on board so he tried towing warps (rope and chain) with little effect. That night he was knocked down three times, lost his complete electrical system, and one of his pickup crew (off a famous crewing website - with "more enthusiasm than experience") decided that he'd had enough and pulled the EPIRB. The owners next challenge was to talk the US Navy out of forcing him to abandon his vessel. --- I generally charge my clients a fixed fee with overrides for non-weather-related delays so they don't care if it takes a day or two longer. I try to "do know harm" to any of the boats I drive. My focus while cruising offshore (or flying airplanes) is to "never make the same mistake once". Ps .. 25 kts gusting to 30 is just a typical day here in the Caribbean trades.

[@Lazarov_Tweevles]

​@@scomo532Don't forget the bell rope

[@richcastellano4883]

I knew Carl and Anna Marie. I met both aboard their boat when they gave me a tour of their CNB as I too was considering purchasing the same boat. Carl and Anna Marie had just sailed across the Atlantic on its maiden voyage and they were very proud to show me every inch of the boat including Carls favorite tech room he created up in the bow. A sort of work bench and tool shop. He should me the in boom furling and he shared that he found it to be very difficult to manage. He said if the boom for any reason wasn’t in exactly a horizontal position the sail would rise forward or backward on the furler and get itself jammed so he rarely furled from the cockpit but instead he had a second control up at the mast so he could look up and make sure it was fueling straight. It made him nervous that someone had to go forward to the mast to be sure the furling would go smooth . He also pointed out the main sheet issue to me and said he wished that was done differently. Otherwise they were very happy with how the boat was performing and highly recommended it to me. Down below it was beautifully appointed and well laid out and Carl even opened the floor access for me so I could view the redundancy in systems and the ease of access. They were both very nice people and they loved their new life they had chosen. It was brief meeting but they were at least very happy for a time. I left with a very bad feeling about the in mast furling and the entire boom operation and I made the decision to keep my 58 Jeanneau and not go forward with the CNB. Even Carl knew that boom was an accident waiting to happen as he made it very clear to me that it worried him but he felt he had a good process for dealing with its shortfalls.

[@hn1928]

Thank you, this explains a lot.

[@ackattacker]

Thanks for this explanation. I have crewed long distance on a 48 foot yacht with in-boom furling and found the system very nice in calm weather where everything was under control. Trying to put in a reef in heavy rolling seas turned into a goat rope nearly every time and had do be done carefully and methodically.

[@AMERICANPATRIOT1945]

My condolences for Carl and Anna Marie. This was a horrible accident that should never have happened. I have never liked in mast or in boom mainsail furling. A good full batten system with lazy jacks, and Batcar or other low friction slides are a safer solution for the ocean. You are most wise to keep your Jeanneau 58. The yacht is plenty huge and sails well I am sure. A yacht like the CNB 66 is over the top for most sailors and unfortunately proved to be a super duper gorilla boat for this crew.

[@HotakaPeter]

Thank you. You have convinced me slab reefing is the way to go.

[@mathewdavis-adventuresandd6643]

Thank you for the adding to the story.

[@zacablaster]

I cannot fathom why 'John' and 'Mike' would not want their identities known. If I was looking for a crew, they'd be at the top of the list. Excellent management of an emergency situation, from constant contact with rescue to proper first aid. Those guys rule

[@JayBee-cr8jm]

Not getting into emergency situations is pretty important too.

[@zacablaster]

@@JayBee-cr8jm how would you, as a crewman (not the captain), avoid this particular emergency?

[@JayBee-cr8jm]

@@zacablaster I would have checked the weather. Did anyone do that? I would have known how to operate the mail sail before setting foot onboard.

[@zacablaster]

@@JayBee-cr8jm they did. Do you know much about the north sea? It is notoriously dangerous. The forecast can't help you, it goes from dandy to deadly within an hour and that's no joke.

[@JayBee-cr8jm]

@@zacablaster Before I get on a strange motorcycle I ask if it's an automatic, a dual clutch or a manual. I ask if if it's got two blinker stitches or one. I adjust the mirrors and study the gauges. Before starting the machine I am well acquainted with it, its eccentricities and it's features. This is common sense. This didn't seem to happen in this case.

[@lubberwalker]

They designed this massive boat from the water up for two, why wasn't it a ketch? Shorter masts, shorter booms. In-boom would have been fine then. The other flaw was having a winch and mainsheet, for a vast rig, bang in the middle of the cockpit, half of which was a forward "lounge" instead of a safe doghouse/roof/winch/traveler. This boat was designed for wineglass sailors, not oceans.

[@MrReesh]

I am also of the opinion that the placement of that mainsheet was a very bad design choice.

[@macdoctor145]

Good observation. I hope the yacht design industry learns from this, but I’m afraid most people who can afford these kind of yachts probably want as much power as possible from their sails and wouldn’t listen to sound advice. I’ve heard it said that lawyers die more in private aircraft than any other type of person because they think they know it all and will not listen to other peoples advice When it comes to flying conditions

[@lubberwalker]

@@macdoctor145 Agreed. I don't like to speak I'll but..... I think ego played a big part. Why was the owner skipper when he had a more experienced crewman aboard?

[@rolfpiotrowski4325]

Genau das ist das Problem! Es ist das gleiche wie mit den modernen, hochmotorisierten Autos! Es wird heute eine Menge technischer Schwachsinn verkauft und mit elektronischen Helferlein dann für den Normalverbraucher bedienbar gemacht. Aber wehe wenn die Elektronik einmal nicht funktioniert..!😱 Es gibt Gründe dafür warum sich erfahrene Weltumsegler immer wieder für klassische Systeme entscheiden! Sie sind einfach durchdacht von Generationen von Seeleuten und Bootsbauern! Sie funktionieren! 🤷‍♀

[@feelincrispy7053]

@@lubberwalkerbecause he’s the owner? lol He should have trained the other guys quickly. Take 15min

[@thelastpirate]

We met Karl and Annemari in Bermuda the week before this tragic accident. They were very sweet to us. Our condolences to their friends and families. I believe there is a very important lesson learned here: the old wisdom of “round up to reef” is often the incorrect move, especially in a wind vs. current situation they may have been experiencing in the Gulf Stream. The in-boom, in-mast, or slab reefing discussion is a moot point when the real problem was the SOP of turning upwind to reef. This is not just my opinion; I’ve discussed this with many sailors. John Harries wrote a great article about this accident and downwind reefing that is easily searchable on Google.

[@zacablaster]

Thank you for sharing. Good luck and good winds to you!

[@dmitripogosian5084]

How would you furl the genova if you do not turn upwind ?

[@jackchen5290]

@@dmitripogosian5084on a downwind course the Genoa is mostly blanked by the fully out main and is depowered. It’s fairly easy to furl. Agree with learning how to reef when on a downwind course, but I don’t know how works on a in boom furling main,

[@matthewmcdermit8744]

What? I am not sure that I have ever heard of such incompetence on a 60' sailboat. First, the skipper failed to properly vett and train his crew. Second, a second mate who has to wake the captain for routine tasks is under qualified -- despite what his resume might indicate. Riding about while others operate the boat, and you don't learn a damn thing, is NOT "experience" anymore than flying twice around the world in First Class makes me a pilot. With the skipper incompacitated, clearly, the 2nd and 3rd mate panicked. It is clear that they really did not know how to sail. To abandon a damaged but otherwise sound $2 million yacht is a testament to that. . . . The truth is modern technology has made it too easy. Just as people are unqualified trying to climb Mt. Everest, there are unqualified people trying to sail our oceans. The truth is there are people trying to sail 60' yachts unqualified to do so. The four people in this video illustrate that. . . . So, "the rope" did not kill these two: hubris and incompetence did.

[@matthewmcdermit8744]

​@jackchen5290 , What? I am not sure that I have ever heard of such incompetence on a 60' sailboat. First, the skipper failed to properly vett and train his crew. Second, a second mate who has to wake the captain for routine tasks is under qualified -- despite what his resume might indicate. Riding about while others operate the boat, and you don't learn a damn thing, is NOT "experience" anymore than flying twice around the world in First Class makes me a pilot. With the skipper incompacitated, clearly, the 2nd and 3rd mate panicked. It is clear that they really did not know how to sail. To abandon a damaged but otherwise sound $2 million yacht is a testament to that. . . . The truth is modern technology has made it too easy. Just as people are unqualified trying to climb Mt. Everest, there are unqualified people trying to sail our oceans. The truth is there are people trying to sail 60' yachts unqualified to do so. The four people in this video illustrate that. . . . So, "the rope" did not kill these two: hubris and incompetence did.

[@falkpatt]

IMHO, the lesson here is that CNB 66 is too much boat for a moderately experienced cruising couple. Unfortunately this sort of thing is going to happen more and more because boats are getting bigger, faster and more complex. That couple could've easily been overwhelmed any time they went out on that thing.....the hull design is based on racing yachts crewed by 10 or more skilled sailors. Yes, the naval architect simplifies the sail plan a little bit for less crew, but it's sorta like putting a comfy seat, horn, and turn signals on a Formula 1 car and letting novices drive it on the street. An accident waiting to happen.

[@daltonbedore8396]

rich people buy exactly that type of car, too.

[@VidarrKerr]

It is a terrible design. Looks nice though....

[@SharifSalukis]

Our 38' catamaran was too much for two people. It was great in light air. But obviously too much, to the point of dangerous, once hull speed passed 15 knots.

[@mvd4436]

Seems like these ppl had too easy of a life and thought it was all fun and games

[@Dryer_Safe]

Tragic story. If I know one thing about sailing in rough weather, it's that you do not want things flailing about. Not sails, not lines, nothing. Everything must be tight and under control. Winds can be so powerful even a small sail can become completely uncontrollable and dangerous. And this boat was designed with a huge main, a huge boom, insufficient options to keep the boom under control for a shorthanded crew, and a far too long and hard-to-control main sheet. It was an accident waiting to happen.

[@kennethm.pricejr.8921]

One gigantic mainsail, an extra heavy boom and a long mainsheet from the cockpit: what could go wrong?

[@scomo532]

The boat was too big for two people to handle and obviously too big for a minimum crew to deliver in the No. Atlantic. I really did not like the design for the mainsheet. Set up in the middle of the cockpit is fine for a race boat, but this was a cruising boat. I think the designer should have warned the owners early on that they should have had a smaller vessel designed or he should have broken up the rig to a ketch to make the sail plan more manageable.

[@alanwhite933]

Maybe smaller main and a mizzen ?

[@VidarrKerr]

It is a really terrible design. It is trying to be something it is not and the result, final design, is just dangerous.

[@francisjcoyle112]

I had similar experience surfing down 20' waves, wind was astern 30 to 35 knots. On a 47' Boat with in mast furling as we went down the waves , boat would turn and backwind mainsail, it was held with preventer but you can't get enough angle on it to prevent it from moving back and forth. Next weather report was gale conditions in gulf stream, so I rigged storm sail and tri sail. the tri sail eliminated all of the problems with the boom which was now tied off. The tri sail can back wind to either side, with no drama. This is the problem with larger boats which I was considering. All heavy weather gear. i.e. storm sails, drogues, storm anchors, rode and bridals are massive and you can get caught out there. They where very lucky and exceptional sailors all of those years, however things can go wrong in a moment, I feel very bad this happened. Thank you for posting so we can all learn or take something from this. I

[@Bene368]

Did an Atlantic crossing on a CNB 76 last year. Big storm, middle of the night, veering winds, big gust, autopilot failed, preventer failed, crash gybe. The blearing horn tells us "All hands on deck, emergency" as the captain makes his way makes his way to the second helm to support the mate, wind turns, the mate just screams "Duck, duck duck!!" Captn immediately dives on the deck, as the boom comes flying back to port, taking out our running backstay, with the main sheet almost decapitating our captain. Luckly no one was injured, the rigg just suffered minor damage, preventer had to be replaced and the running backstay got pulled through the winch, melting the line. Next morning we met a small sailing boat, who broke their forestay in the storm. They could not maintain speed and were afraid of starving before arriving to the Azores. We supplied them with all the food we could spare and gave them our two damaged hightech lines (Dyneema, 15x stronger then steel), which they used to secure their mast. They made it to the Azores just one day after us. CNB 76 is not a good boat to cross an ocean, at all!

[@kimaaboe8263]

We were in the same storm in a Tayana 37, about 50nm away from s/v "Escape". Double reefed main and staysail, -with no modern gimmicks. Two person crew, hand steering for about 36 hours. Not nice, but we came out of it unscathed.

[@frankmiller95]

This is a sad story. After repeatedly re-watching the video from approximately 9.39-10.44, those seconds seem to illustrate the critical moments when everything went catastrophically south. As a retired professional sailboat captain with countless ocean crossings under sail, as well as a licensed deck officer on ships, it seems there must be critical details missing from this account. As told, there are several things that simply do not follow what would be a logical sequence of events. ln the following order: As experienced offshore sailors, why did the captain/owners feel the need to round up to reef (haul in) the roller furling jib? ln almost all cases, especially off the wind, this can be readily accomplished without dramatically changing the point of sail. Further, after deciding to do so, how could they have failed to immediately take in the mainsheet as they simultaneously eased off the preventer? Again, if this is indeed what happened, it was an uncharacteristically rookie blunder by experienced offshore sailors. That single compound failure appears to almost certainly be the primary cause of the series of events that cost captain/owner(s) their lives. Another unanswered, but almost equally critical question is what was/were the two delivery crew doing while all this was happening? lf they weren't on deck and involved in the reefing attempt, why not? Were they not called? lf they were called, but on yet on deck, why did the captain attempt to reef short handed? While the conditions were clearly difficult, the very few extra minutes required to bring additional crew on deck would have made all the difference. An alert and experienced helmsman, observing the potentially deadly, unsecured/out of control, swinging boom, with someone in or anywhere near its arc, would have known to immediately to fall off, (return to a more downwind heading) to prevent the likelihood of exactly what happened. Although there appear to have been several other serious lapses around the same time, the single act of unnecessarily rounding up, without simultaneously securing the boom is key. The rest is immaterial and makes the story unnecessarily complicated and confusing. lf this seems like an overly technical and accusatory analysis, both to those involved and Waterline Stories, there is no disrespect intended or implied to anyone involved. As usual, the USCG seems to have done an excellent job under extremely dangerous and challenging conditions. l've personally avoided catastrophe more often than l care to recall, often due mostly, if not entirely to good luck. To repeat a favorite quote that will never become obsolete: "The word 'experienced' often refers to someone who's gotten away with doing the wrong thing more frequently than you have." Laurence Gonzales, "Deep Survival"

[@dmitripogosian5084]

Further, after deciding to do so, how could they have failed to immediately take in the mainsheet as they simultaneously eased off the preventer? It sounds that this happened because one person was responsible for both ? One of the other two crew members was at the helm, as I understand, but what about the fourth one ?

[@dmitripogosian5084]

@@frankmiller95 Well, if you look at any accident, it can always be said, well this maneuver could/should have been performed safer. Think car accidents, this left turn should have been performed safely ... It is not very informative. Informative is to analyse what was the mistake if any. And for that we do not know actually enough information. Like what were the seas ? In which direction ? etc. ...

[@matthewmcdermit8744]

What? I am not sure that I have ever heard of such incompetence on a 60' sailboat. First, the skipper failed to properly vett and train his crew. Second, a second mate who has to wake the captain for routine tasks is under qualified -- despite what his resume might indicate. Riding about while others operate the boat, and you don't learn a damn thing, is NOT "experience" anymore than flying twice around the world in First Class makes me a pilot. With the skipper incompacitated, clearly, the 2nd and 3rd mate panicked. It is clear that they really did not know how to sail. To abandon a damaged but otherwise sound $2 million yacht is a testament to that. . . . The truth is modern technology has made it too easy. Just as people are unqualified trying to climb Mt. Everest, there are unqualified people trying to sail our oceans. The truth is there are people trying to sail 60' yachts unqualified to do so. The four people in this video illustrate that. . . . So, "the rope" did not kill these two: hubris and incompetence did.

[@jonnenne]

​@@matthewmcdermit8744they literally operated the boat together. Coast guard deemed the boat unfit for further passage. No sails, no bueno. I recommend you watch the video and focus less on boosting your ego

[@matthewmcdermit8744]

@jonnenne , yeah, they operated the boat incompetently. The ONLY person who really knew how to operate the boat was the owner. That is clear, which is why they needed to wake him up repeatedly and why they panicked after the captain went down. The gentleman clearly is competent at something since he and his wife were able to retire at a young age and afford a $2 million yacht, but skippering a crew and 60' yacht is not one of them. I stand by my previous comments: modern technology has made it far too easy; we have people trying to sail our oceans who really have no business being out there; hubris and incompetence killed those sailors. The yacht, although crippled, could have been managed by a competent crew. . . . Now, if you don't mind, I am about to finish binge watching E.R. I am excited to start practicing medicine when I finish watching. . . . Stupid is as stupid does.

[@LabiaLicker]

Thanks for adding the closure about what happened post rescue

[@runeviking6249]

Sailing and experience starts with a sailing dinghy and later increases the size gradually. It is not recommended to sail over a 30-40 foot boat if you have no experience with a sailboat. In strong winds and waves, sailing downwind is a high-risk affair. Autopilot becomes useless.

[@LabiaLicker]

@@runeviking6249 Yep. Yacht clubs are all ways looking for new hands. A great way to learn.

[@samknight9577]

The more I learn about sailing ,the more I think a Dinghy is the boat for me.

[@mrno.7366]

😂

[@dmitripogosian5084]

Oh, no, on a dinghy you need to learn how to right it up from the water :)

[@coldwarkiwi_2nd183]

Keelboats are fun, Just a bit more dangerous if things go wrong.. So in 30kts with a gen up, Make sure nothing goes wrong and your all good :D

[@iansenior9759]

Best to have a smaller boat which is easy to handle and can look after itself. If the weather gets too much have bare poles and deploy a sea drogue if you have enough sea room until things settle down.

[@elypowell6797]

I take a decommissioned US destroyer, those things are tanks of the sea.

[@albertofourie3294]

That's why I do not like the mainsheet in the the cockpit! There was a similar incident on an X-yacht doing the ARC a few years ago when during a night shift change a crew member was knocked down by the mainsheet (connected to the traveler on the floor of the cockpit) and killed him! These in-cockpit mainsheet systems are seriously dangerous and DO NOT belong on leisure sailboats!

[@Hoganoutdoors]

I sailed a 20 Pacific Seacraft Flicka for 4 years, taking her Los Angeles to La Paz without an engine, and cruising the Sea of Cortez for 6 months in 2012. She had a tiny mainsail. It was sheeted to the stern rail, and even in that tiny boat, the mainsheet was a serious hazard. I ended up rigging a friction based preventer/boom brake using a figure 8 rappelling device to keep the boom under control during gybes, and I use a similar system on my Catalina 30, even though it had mid-boom sheeting clear of the cockpit. It's important to reef early and often. It's also important to design your reefing system to work at any point of sail, not just upwind. I've also learned to avoid sailing dead down-wind. Study your boat's polar charts, and you'll probably find that 150 degrees off the wind is optimal for reaching your destination the quickest, Yes, you'll need to gybe if your destination is dead downwind. Gybing from a a broad reach is a lot easier and safer than gybing from a dead run, and it's more or less impossible to accidentally gybe if you're paying attention. Keep the boat under control at all times. That's the main thing. Do not test it's limits unless you are prepared for the consequences of exceeding them. This is especially true on a cruising boat and while leisure sailing. The sea will root out and severely punish any foolishness. It will do so under the worst conditions. It can and does kill anyone who ignores this fact, and even some who do everything right. RIP to these sailors. They led a good life, and died doing something they loved that was totally badass. Bravo!

[@Icebbear]

It's always hard to see tragic accidents like this happen. Especially when they could have been so easily avoided. As a sailing instructor I teach my students to avoid heading straight downwind because it is a very unstable course and there is always a risk of an uncontrolled gybe. Particularly on such a large yacht, it is safer to sail on broad reach. The forces that build up, even when using a preventer, can hardly be controlled. I like the animations in the video. But the change in wind direction at 4:54 would not lead to an uncontrolled gybe. It only would do so if the sail had been on the opposite side.

[@cbarnettcti123]

I was so impressed with the quality of your narration that I subscribed. You speak in even, measured tones, never becoming dramatic. The explanations are detailed. The graphics are clear and helpful. Of course, I also subscribed because I love sailing.

[@waterlinestories]

Awesome. Welcome aboard

[@catherinefraser8632]

Exactly the reason I subscribed too!

[@mbbeautea6986]

I agree. I don’t know anything about boats, water, sailing, etc but this is a really important education. I’ve been a passenger on plenty of ferries, cruises & schooners but knowing about what you’re getting into when you step aboard a ship is really important! I’m in Boston so plenty of opportunities to enjoy the waters! I love the ocean more than anything but sometimes I listen to these stories and think “if god had wanted man to fly…. He’d have given him wings” ya know?

[@jermainerace4156]

In such bad weather, undermanned, it may have been folly to try to keep sailing: they may have done much better motoring just enough to hold their direction, or if fuel did not allow this, heave-to and wait out the weather, even if that means a few more days sailing. I personally think that the ultimate problem stems from the size of the boat: it was simply too big for a crew of two in bad weather, and while they did have some help from the extra crew they picked up (which almost saved their lives, and probably saved the vessel) these were not sufficiently familiar with a nuanced vessel to be sailing in bad weather. The rig had to be big enough to drive the boat, and such a rig was not manageable without serious engineering compromises; the overly heavy boom, that weird attachment of the main-sheet in the middle of the cockpit (I've never seen one like that before and it immediately looked odd and dangerous to me, like 19th century levels of dangerous). It may be old-fashioned, but the engineering solution to the problem of too large a sail for the expected number of crew may have been to split the canvas into two more manageable pieces with a gaff rig. While this is complicated for two people to manage with the topsail, they could forgo the topsail when appropriate, at which point it is a relatively easy rig to handle (though I still think it would be too much boat for two people). At the same time it was not helpful that they were in the middle of training two crew who, although very good sailors, were not familiar with the rather nuanced vessel they were handling, in bad weather, on a long crossing, the captain without enough rest, and no one who else who knew /exactly/ how to handle the boat. They might have fared better if they delayed their passage north until the two hands were more familiar with Escape, with German commands, and with the unusual procedures. One other note, and it's just my opinion (take it or leave it, YMMV): if your boat has electric winches, but even the entire crew can't manage the rig without them, you are actually undermanned.

[@revolutionaryhamburger]

I knew a couple. They were lifelong friends of my parents. They always dreamed of cruising the Caribbean in retirement. They saved and planned over the years. Finally got a boat they carefully fitted it out. They at last retired and sailed to Bahama for their maiden voyage. It was to be the first of many. They arrived safe and sound. They pulled up to the dock and the wife went to secure the lines and she slipped boat and blew out her knee and so they both flew home never to sail the seas again.

[@peterguirguess853]

They died cuz they were fighting . U NEED COHESION IN A CREW AT 230 IN VIDEO, U CAN TELL BOTH OF THOSE WHITE PEOPLES IS DRUNK. SHE GOT HELLA MAD, EVEN BROKE A BOTTLE TO ATTACK HIM WITH IT. IF SHE GOT. HELP FOR HER ADDICTION THEYD BE ALIVE TODAY

[@awuma]

One couple I knew: they finally set sail in their 42 footer, for the wife to discover she was mortally afraid of losing sight of land. Another couple: set sail down the Hudson in their fine sailboat. Anchored to ride out a hurricane somewhere around Poughkeepsie, only to drag anchor and get stuck in the muck. When getting towed out by a tugboat, the rudder stayed stuck and ripped out. Boat sank. Marriage kaput. Third couple: set sail in a fine boat which even had a bathtub in the head. While up on stands to wait out a hurricane, the boat fell over.

[@macfarlanenz1]

Don't leave it too late.....

[@stephenburnage7687]

The reality is that spending a lot of money on a boat isnt always the way to go. There is a lot to be said for simpler and well proven designs.

[@matthewmcdermit8744]

What? I am not sure that I have ever heard of such incompetence on a 60' sailboat. First, the skipper failed to properly vett and train his crew. Second, a second mate who has to wake the captain for routine tasks is under qualified -- despite what his resume might indicate. Riding about while others operate the boat, and you don't learn a damn thing, is NOT "experience" anymore than flying twice around the world in First Class makes me a pilot. With the skipper incompacitated, clearly, the 2nd and 3rd mate panicked. It is clear that they really did not know how to sail. To abandon a damaged but otherwise sound $2 million yacht is a testament to that. . . . The truth is modern technology has made it too easy. Just as people are unqualified trying to climb Mt. Everest, there are unqualified people trying to sail our oceans. The truth is there are people trying to sail 60' yachts unqualified to do so. The four people in this video illustrate that. . . . So, "the rope" did not kill these two: hubris and incompetence did.

[@scomo532]

@@matthewmcdermit8744 I agree, a casual walk through on the mooring in Bermuda does not pass for preparing a small crew for a potentially hazardous passage. I can’t help but think that the main should have been a traditional mains’l with jacks that flaked into a pack on the boom. Like mast furlers, boom furlers are cumbersome and can malfunction. I helped deliver a 76’ CNB along the US east coast whose main was rigged traditionally with jacks and a boom pack. With one on the helm, one person easily reefed and shook out the huge (7/8 frac rig) main.

[@matthewmcdermit8744]

@@scomo532, agreed.

[@calthorp]

@@matthewmcdermit8744 I agree, If they were ex coast guard how come they did not know anything about 1st aid?

[@patricklund6497]

great idea if you are day sailing between med' marinas!

[@ssenssel]

First time this video was posted I thought my ADHD kicked in and I didn't pay attention to how the couple died.. I even went back to the end to see what I'd missed. But the comment section was also confused. Thanks for posting again to further clarify.👍👍

[@andrewseaman7012]

Nobody has commented on this issue. I read somewhere that both died on the way to hospital.

[@fahhcue850]

Yeah I just made that same comment on the other video. Then went to this one to see if there was something I missed as well. He must’ve gone back and fixed it. I’m guessing he lost too much blood… tourniquet must’ve not been tight enough to cut off the blood flow completely. As far as Anna, perhaps she had severe head trauma that went untreated for too long. Maybe she had swelling of the brain or a brain bleed.. Either way it’s a sad situation and I was definitely left feeling all types of confused after the other video, until I saw there was a second one that addressed the whole situation…

[@mymobile5014]

I'm 10 minutes in and bored stiff so far. So much detail that isn't necessary. I wonder when it's going ton get to the point?

[@Hulalulatallulahoop2]

Thanks for the re-upload....I watched the first video last night but will also watch this one for what happened to the couple who died and the aftermath. I enjoyed the first video so many thanks!!

[@HollowFlight]

Feeling like they skipped some steps. New crews (regardless of individual experience) really ought to practice maneuvers in good weather before setting out. Reef the sail. Do a hove-two. Practice a man overboard drill. Switch positions and do the drills again. It doesn't take long and you need everyone on board familiar with the vessel. Otherwise someone might not know where the jib cranks are stowed, how to turn the engine on, etc. Don't wait for the wrong moment to figure something out. Familiarize yourself with the vessel and make sure everyone else does the same.

[@jonnorousseau3096]

I always put a second reef in the main and at least one in the headsail before dark regardless of weather conditions, I also use 16mm spectra for both my main sheet and preventer, that's on an 8 metric ton steel Stadt 34' with a Selden fractional rig, I've sailed on quite a few 60+ boats, mostly racing yachts so I am only too aware of the dangers of an uncontrolled gybe. I've never been a fan of any kind of furling main, be it in mast or boom, bat cars or even just simple slides at least allows you to dump it if need be, this is a tragic accident that could have been mitigated and a lesson for all, argument perhaps for that tried and tested simple GGR style double sheet, admittedly not ideal on a 60+ dual helm boat with central main sheet winch but safe as houses. Condolences to their families😢 Downwind reefing is an essential skill but reefing early is a better and safer option, I pray to God Almighty as a single handed sailor I never have such unfortunate events occurring at sea, again Condolences to their families 😢😢😢😢

[@catherinesecula5287]

The boom vang does normally help to reduce the violent boom uncontrole movement, and some very efficient boom reterner, are designed for big boat like this , not just " ropes " ..surprised that this beautiful boat was not equipped with a better boom retener system

[@philipwright7186]

A very tragic ending. It seems likely the systems designed to make a 66 footer capable of being handled by a couple might have been the reasons for their untimely deaths. Clearly the boom and mainsheet arrangements weren't satisfactory from the skipper's perspective even in moderate conditions. You need to be ahead of the weather in terms of sail strategy, it's customary to reduce sail at night for obvious reasons, but the reluctance to do so had fatal consequences. I would also say the steering positions on a CNB 66 look very exposed, it doesn't really look like the deck layout of a serious passage maker to me, even if the boat itself is more than capable of it. Very sad, and to think that a smaller more manageable boat would likely have not caused any problems.

[@Durnyful]

The cockpit looked v exposed. Not my choice for passage making

[@gordonpeden6234]

Nicely explained, diagrams etc. Clear, concise, succinct. Well done John and Mike, Things can go South very quickly. So sad, RIP Karl & Anna-Marie.

[@JohnBobRoger]

I run a real simple preventer system on my 35 footer (similar to the IMOCA boats) off-wind of course but also when beating (acts like a kicker). I use cabin winches and clam cleats. Also I discovered something I call "reverse irons". Haul the sail whilst going downwind....The boom is something requiring constant control...IMHO.

[@robertmarquis8986]

When I was a younger sailor, I got hit by the boom while teaching. I installed a boom brake called Walder after this incident. Many accidents were avoided thereafter!

[@kosmamoczek]

Thank you for the reupload.

[@SailProMarina]

Well very sad ending to this ,,,,,, However I will add my thoughts. First and what would have saved them is KNOWING their conditions accurately. After the 1st squall was the time to REEF and STAY that way until daylight. When the CURRENT Weather forces you to reef , it's already dangerously too late. They got lucky on the first squall , and at night should have been far more cautious of it happening repeatedly. After all that the 2 mates who were unfamiliar with that vessel , and likely the owners didnt know this either ,, the CNB 66' with its "in boom" furling has no type of traditional Topping Lift. This makes one think that the Duo-Winch Main sheeting system is the only means of control. However, the Vang has a Rapid Release mechanism at the Clew end , and once released can be secured to either the Port or Starboard rigging base to relieve the " hot boom " situation. I know it's easy to say that , but not being there and actually in that situation, who knows how successful that attempted solution would be. So I suppose the primary lesson for ANYone to take from this tragic event is REEF EARLY REEF OFTEN in repeated or unknown weather and squalls. It is far easier to raise your sails than reduce your sails. In my 40+ years of sailing and watching others , all too often reefing late leads to bad endings , although rarely fatal. God Bless them for living their dreams to the fullest. Sail On Folks. SV Hydra SV Jaz Chris & Stella

[@charonstyxferryman]

I would call you comment for hindsight. None of us know the exact weather conditions, and weather can suddenly deteriorate rapidly. Moreover, weather predictions beyond 3 days are almost always total garbage.

[@MalcolmLambe]

Exactly. Too late in reefing. And when they did...the skipper goes below? Wtf

[@SailProMarina]

@@MalcolmLambe I know right, probably like this " Ok if reefed the main , gonna head below and change my socks and make a sandwich " lol 😂 j/k

[@Durnyful]

Too much sail up leads to chaos... if offshore a particularly v v bad thing to let happen

[@AltaMirage]

Professional sailor here. Your wind angle position for the uncontrolled gybe is.. seriously wrong. The wind angle would need to be forward of the boom on the OTHER side, being the Port side on a Starboard tack (boom out on port side). Also, reefing an in BOOM furler does NOT require "tying to the boom" as you suggest. Just no. Also, 35 knots is NOT a storm force wind. It is a simple gale. A wind of that force WILL NOT generate "Eight meter waves". Just no.

[@macdoctor145]

Maybe they got those stat’s wrong when they were making the video.

[@AltaMirage]

@@macdoctor145 A lot of things are very wrong with this video. It irritates me that people like this produce videos with such little actual knowledge. Trading off other peoples misfortune but with little real usefulness or correct information.

[@cristoforopassaro2219]

From the description, the wife had difficulties working the main sheet. How she got injured is unclear. The husband then abandons the helm (autohelm I hope) but during his attempt to attend to the wife, he gets hit with the mainsheet as it breaks or possibly the mainsheet deck block causing him to trip and break his legs. The crew member trying to get the jib in then abandons that action to help the husband and wife. The remaining crew member tries to steady the boat by turning dead downwind. In a sea, with no mainsheet attached to the main, the main would or could jibe without restraint on a dead downwind angle. Very dangerous. It would have been better to go to a broadreach so the wind would press and control the main. He might not have been able to control the boat properly because the genoa was not furled. To gain control, the foresail needs to be either furled or reefed, then the boat can be turned to weather (close reach) to reef or furl the main in a controllable and safe manner. The issue is the unfurled genoa.

[@delilahboa]

Thanks for update on what happened…..the open ocean terrifies me but I LOVE your channel ❤

[@beverlyreiner-baillargeon6205]

The ocean is not a place I'm going on , too!! 👍😂👍😂

[@johndarwen2845]

We would have fitted a Boom brake so this couldn’t happen. Have used a Boom brake to a 40 footer and Dufour 56. Saved us so much from damage and danger.

[@lyedavide]

Handling a sailing vessel is no easy task. I used to go sailing in a recreational catamaran with a couple of friends in my youth. I honestly can't imagine how difficult it must have been for the crew in such terrible weather conditions. I feel that the yacht was simply too big to be handled by just two people. Poor crew and resource management just added to the already stressful situation that no one onboard was expecting nor prepared for. The North Atlantic ocean is not a good place to start learning the ropes. I feel this was a preventable accident. RIP to the husband and wife.

[@daltonbedore8396]

they were over three years into full-time sailing that yatch at that point. the issue wasn't experience by the owners i dont think

[@jimbeam7160]

Confident people are usually incompetent and don't know it. Look out for over confident people who don't fully appreciate the foreseeable dangers. It's obvious the Captain didn't even foresee the problem of reefing at night in high winds and a challenging sea state. Stunned that this woman lost control of the boom?@@daltonbedore8396

[@jiefflerenard1228]

Very good narration, intelligent explanation keeps it from becoming boring, congrat.

[@waterlinestories]

Thanks, I really appreciate that

[@twisterwiper]

Excellent recount of events. Thank you. Those two shipmates were absolute heroes despite the tragic outcome.

[@xevious4142]

Have to admire John’s professionalism in trying to save the boat and the lives of its owners.

[@abtechgroup]

Why wouldn't a $2M boat have a traveler arch for the safety it provides?

[@jakeroon]

they sell these boats as "performance" and the look/styling plays a big part. Also they want to maximinze sail area while lowering the center of gravity, thus having the boom as low as possible. Works great for a large crew on racing yatchs. Perhaps not the best idea for leisure sailors.

[@allaboutwaves]

the "uncontrolled jibe" animation ist wrong, the wind would need to turn exactly to the opposite site for the boom to swing around.

[@ctradio4416]

Just wanted to say you have an fantastic voice and presentation style

[@SkylerinAmarillo]

I went for a day sail on a small sail boat on Lake Travis near Austin, Texas. It was a rental boat, nothing remarkable, not too big. I think we had 5 or 6 aboard. Weather was nice. It was a large lake, no waves, of course. But as it was a lake, the wind wasn't predictable. We were all sitting low, when suddenly the wind shifted and we jibed and the guy sitting across from me fell over unconscious. I thought the boom hit him, but it was just the sheet somehow. He was knocked out cold and took several minutes to wake up. He was still very groggy about an hour later at the hospital. I can't even imagine the forces involved in a North Atlantic gale. Note to self: If I ever buy a boat, I'll be sure to have confidence in every part and every action needed before venturing out away from shore. Heading out to sea in a boat you don't fully trust is a bad idea.

[@Hoganoutdoors]

I sailed a 20 Pacific Seacraft Flicka for 4 years, taking her Los Angeles to La Paz without an engine, and cruising the Sea of Cortez for 6 months in 2012. She had a tiny mainsail. It was sheeted to the stern rail, and even in that tiny boat, the mainsheet was a serious hazard. I ended up rigging a friction based preventer/boom brake using a figure 8 rappelling device to keep the boom under control during gybes, and I use a similar system on my Catalina 30, even though it had mid-boom sheeting clear of the cockpit. It's important to reef early and often. It's also important to design your reefing system to work at any point of sail, not just upwind. I've also learned to avoid sailing dead down-wind. Study your boat's polar charts, and you'll probably find that 150 degrees off the wind is optimal for reaching your destination the quickest, Yes, you'll need to gybe if your destination is dead downwind. Gybing from a a broad reach is a lot easier and safer than gybing from a dead run, and it's more or less impossible to accidentally gybe if you're paying attention. Keep the boat under control at all times. That's the main thing. Do not test it's limits unless you are prepared for the consequences of exceeding them. This is especially true on a cruising boat and while leisure sailing. The sea will root out and severely punish any foolishness. It will do so under the worst conditions. It can and does kill anyone who ignores this fact, and even some who do everything right. RIP to these sailors. They led a good life, and died doing something they loved that was totally badass. Bravo!

[@danielkarlsson9326]

that Boom Design gives me nightmares. Every cell in my Sailor and fisherman genes tell me to crawl on that deck and never stand up. you never want more mass beeing able to swing over a deck especially something that will swing more wildly in bad weather. A thicker mast may take abit of wind and will not allow as big of a sail but it will also sturdy up the hull if designed right and with modern material it is not that heavy as the old wooden and steel ones. And that comes from a lad who got tangled up in a aluminium mast as a kid which was not secured to the dingys hull and went under with me in tow. luckily i grabbed the overturned dinys centerboard and held my head up enough to breath until the adult scouts saw me and managed to free my leg. Still take that over getten the boom in my head any day. I was very lucky and i know of both family friends and neighbours who has been lost at sea getting tangled in lines and dragged under or drowned while out fishing or sailing. And im from Sweden which is considered quite safe by seamanship standards. Best regards.

[@SerbanOprescu]

My blood curled while watching this story. Step by step, my heart sunk.

[@stevemcnair-wilson6106]

I find this heartbreaking and so flawed were their action that it disgusts me! Almost all long distance cruisers, with solo or dual crews are either ketches or yawls for a reason. This yacht was mighty, but severely overpowered from he start, but that is really not the issue. If you are overpowered you drop the sails and/or cut them free. In the open ocean, away from land, sitting, battened down under bare poles, streaming a sea anchor is as safe as it gets, so why did they not do this. And as for running downwind, with a restraining strap on the boom with a view to stop a gybe appears almost suicidal. If you can't control the beam, then the boat will stay broached in the trough of the waves. Uncomfortable if not positively dangerous. I have sailed in everything that the North Sea can throw at you, in dinghies, racing yacht and cruisers, and the secret to safety lies in planning and preparation! ...and what the hell were those experienced crewmen doing? Its enough to make you cry, seeing now needless this tragedy was!

[@user-lq3ss9xf8c]

In mast furling DOES require upwind to furl

[@bobcornwell403]

Because someone asked, I will state what I consider a cutter rig to be. A cutter must have at least two headsail (often called jibs). But that is not enough. There are plenty of double headsail sloops. To be a cutter, the vessel must have its mast stepped further aft than a sloop, often near the mid-length of the deck, or near that. The vessel in this story was set up as a masthead, racing sloop. This required not only a relatively large mainsail (roughly 40 to 45% of the total sail area) but also a very tall one. The problems with this are two: 1.) The sail has to be shortened down by quite a distance to significantly reduce its area. 2.) The square footage of sail per length of boom is much greater. This, on top of the lesser inertia of the boom, means it can swing at great speed. A longer boom, although heavier, has much greater inertia for its weight, so would accelerate slower For a boat, this size and an amateur crew this small, this boat was an accident waiting to happen. Also, while sailing downwind on an open ocean, with this small of a crew, the mainsail should have been furled, with any hint of coming strong winds.

[@frankmiller95]

Tell that to professional delivery crews who routinely and safely make transatlantic or Pacific deliveries with only two three crew and rarely douse the main except in strong gales. Modern sailboats need the main for stability, control and power, even it must be triple reefed down to the size of a postage stamp. Insufficient sail area, especially with the main can often be as dangerous as too much.

[@charonstyxferryman]

I wonder if a ketch could had been a better choice. Sailors who are helming a ketch, often doesn't use the main sail. The mizzen sail, being much smaller, would be easier to work with in all weather conditions.

[@bobcornwell403]

​@@frankmiller95 Normally, I would agree. But with this particular boat an crew, I have to disagree. First, this boat did not have a professional crew on board, even though at least one of the crew was a professional. Unfortunately, the skipper wasn't. And, with a boat this big with this kind of sail and reefing setup, you need a skipper and crew that can act as a single unit. With this boat, this was sadly not the case. The skipper and crew didn't even speak the same language. And the crew was not made familiar with the operations of the boat. Had it been my boat, I would have gotten this crew familiar with the sail handling as soon as it left the dock. Second, when sailing downwind, the mainsail can become a huge liability, especially when the wind gets strong. If the wind switches directions and the boat yaws the wrong way, the mainsail can be slammed over to the other side. In squally conditios, wind directions can change by a considerable amount. With the greeness of the crew and the predictable problem with reefing quickly and the direction the boat was sailing relative to the wind, would have sacrificed some speed and either taken the main down completely or preemptively reefed it quite drasically. It is the job of the skipper to anticipate things going wrong, and almost expect them to. On the 17 ft boat I used to own, I almost never went straight downwind in any kind of wind strength. I did it once to frighten a skydiver I had on board who thought he was such a badass. The boat rolled, pitched, and yawed like a mechical bull. When I notice my passenger getting a bit pale, I changed course to a downwind tack. And the boat settled down.

[@jonnorousseau3096]

A cutter in its truest form has the two headstays parallel to each other but with the inner stay bearing the load and it's fixed at the stem with the masthead/outer headstay attached to a bowsprit not load bearing, these days anything with two forestays is a "cutter" which is absolute rubbish, you can have a fractional cutter rig for example, a solent rig, a slutter which is half way in between the two. This boat had a main driver performance rig and at 60+ would have a very big main which you would absolutely not be able to handle even with 4, I've raced 4 spreader rod rigged open 60's with running backstays and centre main sheet winch, dual coffee grinders for the 75 ST primaries and it is no joke sailing a boat like that even in 15 Kn. They probably over extended themselves with the size and power of the vessel in all honesty

[@frankmiller95]

@@charonstyxferryman No. lt's easier, but not better for technical reasons to complex to get into here, but here's a two word hint: balance and power.

[@leonaessens4399]

I remember Riley Whitelum of La Vagabonde talking about in-boom furling recently and why he disliked it. He and Elayna encountered in-boom furling on a boat they sailed for a week or so while waiting for the new boat to be completed, and chose to not have it on their new boat.

[@frankmiller95]

While extremely appealing in concept, in practice, in-spar reefing and furling systems have yet to be perfected. l'm as unenthusiastic as anyone about going forward to the mast in heavy weather to wrestle a reefing cringle into the hook on the gooseneck, but for now, it's the one sure way to reef effectively. lt's also very satisfying when it's done because you know the boat is no longer overpowered and trying to kill you.

[@jammydodger1449]

The research and detail you put into these videos is brilliant. Thanks for keeping us all on the edge of our seats with these stories. From UK.

[@sykendu-twanbiemans7586]

This new ‘era’ hooked me up with your channel once again. Curious and excited to see the build. About the solar capacity: do take into account that on higher latitudes, the sun isn’t that high in the sky. On the other hand, when you are there on the right time, the days last long….

[@suivezlemir]

intersting stories as always Skip. And I can see the efforts made to improve the production quality, especially the diagrams / animations to make it easier for us earthlings with no boat experience. Kudos.

[@ArrDee49]

I used to sail, having learned in a 20' gaff rigged timber hulled whaler. I got boom bashed and thrown overboard. Thankfully it was in enclosed waters. I continued to sail, with that in mind. The sea is a fickle thing, calm and serene then horrifying. I have since gone to sea and crossed oceans in all seastates, in multi screwed, steam turbine, steel hulled ships; it was no less dangerous. The sea doesn't care. Experience in those seastates does. Taking an inexperienced crew on such a voyage is just asking for trouble. The crew were lucky....... Or were they? Fair winds and following seas, Karl and Annemarie.

[@geofftayner3559]

You can tell how experienced the other guys were with their decision to sail away from land in an extreme emergency. I'm not an experienced sailor, but it sounds like these 2 highly experienced sailors were the only reason the boat didn't sink. It is too bad that the boat's captain did not give these 2 more training on the unique features of the boat. I'm ballparking it here, but from the description of events it sounds like Karl was running a 24+ hour day with no sleep. It gets harder and harder to not make mistakes with each passing hour in a situation like that. The other part of the accident in my opinion was trying to build too large of a sailing yacht that could still be manually controlled like that.

[@frankmiller95]

Any experienced, well qualified offshore sailor can come aboard almost any properly set up offshore sailboat and become sufficiently familiar with the gear layout within a few hours. At that point they should to be able to perform almost any normal job on deck. Obviously there are exceptions, but they're rare.

[@christianfournier6862]

⁠@frankmiller95= I beg to differ. My opinion is that there should be a formal briefing on the safety devices AND the peculiarities of the boat for any sailboat voyage of some importance with a new crew. I know that the safety part is always done by serious skippers, but peculiarities are almost never described thoroughly enough. I am 79 and now a landlubber, but I have several decades of experience as skipper on a 65 footer sloop. Once I was a crew member on a 50 foot sloop (custom-built in NZ) crossing from Annapolis to Great Abaco under an excellent & most experienced skipper; at the end of an eventful cruise (we had lost our propeller) we were tidying up the boat. I came across a row of books in the living quarters which had been messed up by the heaving and rolling; while tidying up the books, I inadvertently grazed an innocuous switch which was protruding on the panel along which the books were placed. Simultaneously, I heard a whirr... which I could neither locate or understand. Fortunately, the skipper was a few paces away: he jumped on the switch and heaved a sigh of relief. This switch was the command of the keel-lifting hydraulic system, and - this system having been under-engineered at installation - there was no 'end of stroke cam': the keel would have forced its way straight through the deck! PS: A common delusion of skippers is that it is not necessary to explain in detail the boat's safety features to 'supernumerary' crew members. During the 1998 Sydney-Hobart race, the old ketch “Winston Churchill” developed a hull leak and the first crewman to identify it was a 'guest'. The switch for the drainage pumps was a few inches off his hand, but he did not know this. By the time the skipper was informed, the water level was already too high, the batteries were flooded, the engine would not start and the boat was lost. __ .

[@matthewmcdermit8744]

Geoff, they were more than 300 miles from land and their destination. That is two or three days of sailing. Furthermore, they have two seriously injured crew. The priority is to get them medical attention. The mates ran before the wind and away from land because they could not figure out a way to get the boom under control or get the sail down. Had they attached lines to the boom, they should have been able to center the main as they turned up. With the boom centered, they should have been able to reef the main and jib or furl them all together. With these two that would likely have been the best course of action. That is, furl the sails all together and head toward land under engine.

[@BillSikes.]

The wind dictates which way a sailing vessel will go, the skippers have no choice but to work with it, it's been like this ever since men first put to sea in ships, In the circumstances of this video, the skipper and 2nd mate had no choice but to "run before the wind"

[@matthewmcdermit8744]

@strake750 , okay, tell me you are not a sailor without telling me that you are not a sailor. . . . It is true that sailboats cannot sail directly into the wind, but for more than a century now, mankind has known how to sail close to the wind. It is called upwind sailing. No, this boat lost what is called the main sheet, which is the block and tackle rig that controls the boom, the horizontal spar. (It would be similar to losing the steering wheel in your car.) This boat certainly would have had mooring lines, however. At a minimum, they should have secured the boom amidships, where it would have acted as a windvane. With the mainsail luffing, they should have been able to reef or furl it completely. If the furling system was broken, and if the auxiliary engine was still working and they had fuel, then, worst case, they could have cut the mainsail away and used the engine. They should have been able to make some headway toward land, gotten the injured off sooner, and saved the boat.

[@pbertf24]

I’ve been Sailing for 53 years and the idea that a couple can handle a 66 footer By them self is ludicrous. I don’t care how strong you are how wise you are, how experienced you are .

[@markhamstra1083]

It’s not impossible, but it requires an improbable level of experience and skill - and even then it will entail elevated risk. Races like the Vendee Globe show that even more demanding boats like IMOCA 60s can be single-handed around the world mostly safely by some highly-skilled sailors (with extensive onshore support teams).

[@frankmiller95]

Tell that to the successful competitors in the Global Solo Challenge, or Vendee Globe.

[@youthoughtitwasbadbefore6134]

I personally know an 81 year old sailor sailing his 70 foot boat. He is extremely experienced by now.

[@markbigalke4669]

I have compleated a 9 year circumnavigation aboard our Cherubini 44 double headed ketch. I have been in 3 gales, and two had storm force winds of over 60 knots. I have been in 20 ft seas. Key components for an offshore cruiser for a couple are in my humble opinion as follows: 1. Ability to hove to. Either because conditions have deteriorated or to “park the boat” awaiting sunrise to enter a difficult inlet. 2. Ability to reduce sail area as the wind increases while sailing downwind. 3. Use of two boom preventers. First on the end of boom, second one mid boom to toe rail. This way, while jibbing, if the end of boom preventer is in other process of detachment, the mid boom preventer along with the main sheet keep the boom under control. 4. Mid cockpit mainsheets are dangerous. No place on a husband wife boat. I know two people knocked overboard. One during a 40 knot squall at night without a life jacket on. Airlifted from Bora Bora /Reatia back to Germany. 5. Boats 60 ft and over are too large. Crew needed. Difficult to haul in remote areas. Roller this and roller that. Still too big! FYI - We have in mast roller furling, Hood system in custom carbon GMT mast, and roller jib. Staysail and mizzen are hank on.

[@pnwcruiser]

I've been sailing a similar number of years and the thought of passagemaking on that vessel makes me cringe due to combination of size and design. I've crewed offshore on boats almost that large but of relatively traditional design and they posed no real problem even with short crew in challenging conditions (important that they heave to well). However with a boat like that, hard pass. Just my preference...to each their own.

[@fuckdyoud2734]

Usually its something like "this ship, this captain, this oil rig..." But this time its something so small as one rope! God i love these videos. Such an insight into the manifestations of entropy and how they can affect us.

[@forrestallison1879]

This is why I have a boom brake and I'm done rigging preventers.

[@jochenheiden]

I appreciate the clarification!

[@Dr.rothmann]

R.I.P. the story make my sad 😢 Thanks for sharing so other, like myself, can learn for this.. With a 68ft flagship and only 2 person on board it's so important.

[@keeganmarrs6639]

There’s no wind in the trough of a 20+ ft/ 6meter swell. The boom can swing. Especially if reefed…if it’s already heavy. This is why a 3 point block system on a main boom is super important. The main boom cannot jibe

[@keeganmarrs6639]

I single hand a double mast schooner in heavy wx often…I am a commercial fishing vessel.

[@keeganmarrs6639]

50ft

[@ashtondempsey6082]

This is almost a carbon copy of the Platino loss. A large pleasure sailing craft with minimal crew, caught out by a combination of conditions and heavy equipment. In both cases, uncontrolled gybes that destroyed control lines and left a massive boom clearing the deck. It makes sobering reading and caused us, coastal sailors on a 10m keeler, to review our equipment practises and training. The Platino report is available on line and I strongly recommend reading it in full.

[@awuma]

The Platino report is super detailed, and explains everything very well. A copy is at the ORCV site. That tragedy illustrates the "Swiss Cheese" model of midshaps very well, with a series of technical factors contributing, and had any one not been present, the disaster would probably not have occurred. I think it illustrates the inherent weakness of the dependence on advanced technology in yachts, multiplying the holes in the Swiss Cheese and increasing the probability of a chain reaction of failures leading to disaster. Platino is a boat very similar to Escape, and the mainsheet arrangement likewise proved to be deadly (converted from an earlier, safer configuration). Even though the causes and conditions of the uncontrolled gybes were different, the consequences were the same. The forces acting on such vessels are enormous, and the hardware and technology appears to be inadequate to handle them when things start to go wrong, exacerbated by human error.

[@charonstyxferryman]

The *Boom of Death* is unfortunately a thing which happens too often. I had been hit by a boom an a small yacht (L23) too. I was lucky it was only a superficial scratch, but it hurts.

[@LITTLEDANCERSADHU993]

I was out sailing just the other day,took a novice out, i all ways leave the main stowed ans just use the head sail when i have non sailors aboard ,unless it is champagne sailing conditions.

[@charonstyxferryman]

@@LITTLEDANCERSADHU993 That's a really good idea. My first day on a sailboat, the old salts (+50 years experience) decided that we was going to sail in light winds (max 2 to 3 kn of boat speed), so things are happening more slowly. I was hit by the boom years later in gnarly weather: About 1.7 meter, 6 sec waves, and 18 kn gusting 25 kn winds.

[@LITTLEDANCERSADHU993]

Yeah , in my opinion,the boom is the most dangerous bit off kit on the boat, having said that, a sailboat is only as safe as how it is bieng conducted by the skipper.@@charonstyxferryman

[@pierrevanhalteren5733]

When you reduce the mainsail at sea, the best is to sheet in the jib as much as you can and to sail close-hauled as to have the boat to lean on it's gib and thus stabilized. Not doing that is very dangerous as nothing is more instable at sea than a sailboat in rough seas with its sails not catching any wind.

[@vincent7520]

As usual an excellent summary of the events with no frills; no sensationalism. Then again it is quite surprising the skipper didn't tell an experienced crew members the idiosyncrasies of the boat. Any new crew member must be given the full picture of the boat, even if the rigging and operational mode is traditional : each skipper has his / her preferences and ways of doing things (I have mine) and everybody must adjust to them : reefing at night in heavy weather is not the moment when you should figure out where is posted the main halyard, how a preventer etc… This is why spending half a day sailing close to shore for a shakedown and adjustments with new crew members is essential. You sail back to port for dinner, have a good night sleep and leave the other days when tide; currents and wind allow. Simple? Yes but barely done except in sailing schools and who wants to be considered as a student or see one's own pride and joy taken for a sailing school vessel? Nonetheless it seems to me this disaster could have been avoided altogether. Then again, let's respect the victims and hope viewers will lear a lesson from this sad story. This story calls also for another remark. Why choose a 20m boat to sail as a couple? A 13-15meter boat is more manageable and the forces involved are easier to handle… And again a huge mainsail to handle with a huge boom on a 20 m boat would simply scare me stiff if I had to handle the boat alone or almost. A divided sailing plan would have been much easier to handle than those monster spars which can be properly handled by a numerous crew…

[@maxflight777]

5:14 the graphics for the uncontrolled gyre don’t accurately show the wind direction

[@peterguirguess853]

​@@maxflight777u blame that for the death. What a fool u are.

[@johnmcgovern3806]

Bad summary in regard to associated erevilant photos and clips

[@awuma]

A very sad story, condolences to all who knew them. There are many issues here, though a more experienced skipper and better prepared crew would almost certainly have been safe. The most glaring issue is obviously the mainsheet, which appears to have only a single loop, an inverted "gun tackle" (5:28), unlike the different boat's setup at 10:27 . It was not strong enough to prevent it from breaking ( 11:20 ) in a series of uncontrolled gybes. I see no cleat, only the self-tailing electric winch at 5:28 . A second issue is that they did not have accurate detailed knowledge of the weather, and did not reef in time. Of course there are all the issues mentioned by the narrator and by commenters here, but the two above are the ones which struck me immediately while watching the video. I'm amazed that the boat did not get dismasted with that massive boom swinging freely about, but the crew did manage to secure the boom before abandoning ship. There are more detailed accounts of this tragedy on the Internet, findable via a search engine. This kind of boat is probably fast enough to avoid bad weather if the navigator has a detailed weather forecast. There's a many-decades-old debate among cruisers: slow heavy bullet-proof boat to survive the weather, or fast light boat/multi-hull to escape the weather. In any case, it was perfectly capable of taking the weather it ran into, but the crew were not. One could say "skipper" rather than crew, but perhaps all sailors need to take a few lessons from aircraft pilots regarding Crew Resource Management. The traditional autocratic-subservient skipper-crew relationship needs modification. This is a concept which has only been properly developed over the last thirty to forty years, after a series of airline disasters, and has significantly helped to make flying much safer than it was. CRM is an integral part of flight training today, and should be part of sail training too. One idea: perhaps this kind of mainsheet system should have an automatic, fast slack take-up, so that there is always some tension applied to the mainsheet. This would prevent a loose mainsheet from sweeping over the deck (and/or cockpit). It would also act as a boom brake. That would require a special kind of controlled pawl (ratchet) winch, engaging and disengaging the ratchet as needed. For such mechanised, electrified boats, that should not be impossible to manufacture. But in my opinion, all such complexity is getting away from the intent of sailing, especially when I think of all those who have circumnavigated in small boats with no mechanised assistance other than perhaps an auxiliary motor and electronic aids.

[@chrisoneil8459]

They were very inexperienced. Why would you ever bring the boom aboard…close reach square up boom with spar so furling works all while preventer and sheet stabilize the boom….tragic example of what is happening in the “cruiser world” I hope people and boat builders advertising boats “easily handled by a couple”learn from this tragic avoidable incident. My condolences go to family and all involved.

[@lindamarceline]

"Experienced sailor” is a euphemism used to hide one's own insecurity within the over-identification of a symbolized identity. No one wants to lose face and so there is a procrastination within the loyalty of an overtired skipper.

[@jafsgbagsf3727]

Sad story, awesome work by the 2 crew. The power of loaded up sheets is hard to imagine, reef early. Respect the comment to have a separate line to the head of the main to be able to crank it down in anything. I am adding this today. As a ma and pa cat couple we hate the main, have removed the first reef altogether and rely on our 2 furling headsails for any downwind work. And, of course, the 2 Yanmar sails.

[@johnneyland3334]

All sailing activities offshore (80 to 300 miles off the northeast US coast in the month of June is extremely treacherous and dangerous. This despite when most think its safe as spring has come and June brings traditional Summer weather to the coastal areas of the US coast. However winter storms are still coming through from west to east before "summer "actually arrives marked by the famous Bermuda High pressure setting up over Bermuda. Typically this high pressure dominates once established and provides the area with fair weather for the true summer months being July, August ans September The month of June are always sketchy and dangerous to mariners ....particularly because new areas of convection are setting up temporarily all around and can cause catastrophic Beaufort 5 plus wind velocity and wave spectra storms to occur exactly with little or no notice. This mainly where the Labrador currents and the Gulf Stream currents both meet and converge offshore of Novi Scotia in June. The new salty buoyant gulf stream current/water is getting wider , its warmer and its pushing stronger further east and north into and under the cold Labrador current charging down from the north and in from the east. Its less salty and extremely dense water. The convergence of these to currents can be a wind and weather generator to those unfamiliar with such local phenomena. Anyway beware and stay cl;ear of the area until July would be my advise.

[@scomo532]

Even in July the Stream can be treacherous

[@youMerlinator]

Sad stories it thank you to take the time to tell it. I saw the boat after the tragedy while it was in Maine. There is much to reflect on.

[@macdoctor145]

What was your initial observation of the yacht when you saw it in Maine?

[@invisiblerevolution]

A happy couple.... who quit the RAT RACE 🏁 and lived their dreams! 🙏🏾 And passed away together ❤ THEY LIVED LIFE! Ps. And John & Mike did their part well. 🙏🏾

[@lbgstzockt8493]

Thats true, I guess I would rather die on my dream sailboat on a journey few ever take, than in some hospital after having worked for 50 years.

[@WayOfHaQodesh]

Rest in peace to both your souls. Truly tragic...

[@sailingsibongile]

Hi... Thanks for documenting this tragic event. It's so sad it cost lives. For me, apart from comments made about skipper's decisions, it highlights the danger of running a preventer as opposed to a boom brake. A boom brake would have made the movement of the boom way more controlable, and would not have needed to be eased off when rounding up. All in all, the violent moment of the boom would have been significantly reduced. After that... Yes, I agree with some that the skipper's decisions to allocate the toughest jobs to only him was a mistake. Sadly, Annabelle should not have been allowed to be happy with the "relaxing zone" (2:13). It ended up with her getting thrashed by the mainsheet. All crew should be capable with boat handling.

[@katsbreez]

I read the title, clicked play... and still thought they'd survive. That was a heroic effort by "John" and "Mike". I hope they know that they did everything humanly possible to save them.

[@clarkstough507]

The graphic does not properly describe the type of wind shift that would cause an uncontrolled gybe…

[@user-yi3yx2fn7g]

Just discovered this upload.... again? Watched it yesterday but now I'm hoping we get some info about the owners fate.

[@johnnunn8688]

The owner and his wife died. It’s in the video 🤷‍♂️.

[@Teqnyq]

​@@johnnunn8688i think it's been reuploaded to further clarify things.

[@user-yi3yx2fn7g]

@@Teqnyq Yeah I noticed! We were quite a few very confused watchers yesterday lol

[@Teqnyq]

@user-yi3yx2fn7g guess I'm lucky to be late this time round 😂. Anyway, the conclusion felt random. I thought I'd missed key bits of info in the main as I heard the conclusion.

[@shantishanti1949]

So very sad and very tragic. The pain of crew members horrific. ❤🙏

[@stephenburnage7687]

So, it looks as if the primary cause of the uncontrolled jibe was that the preventer had been eased off (or completely released), at the worst possible time?

[@chrishowell9499]

Great job. there was a couple of articles about this story. The articles were very well written and also explain the volunteer crew was late to notify of the squwal. If the volunteer crew would have been quicker to wake up the Capt this story could have turned out much different.

[@thamesmud]

Bad design for a short handed blue water yacht. Its better to sacrifice some performance and have a divided sail plan, a ketch or a schooner.

[@paddymckeown6320]

In emergency situations you have to get your priorities right. The boom was a lethal weapon and should have been secured first. Instead it continued to wreak havoc and prevent the crew from managing the situation. I am surprised that John and or Mike did not take control of the situation and deal with the issues in the order of importance. I have spent half a lifetime at sea and have encountered many critical situations - thankfully none of those were fatal.

[@siltee9983]

Exactly. The waterline storeis analysis in very biased and it does not add upp. Leaving the boat without control for a loooong time does not sound like the right call. Also when weather kept deteriorating why didnt Jack and Mike wake the captain and suggest a 2 reef. Instead they waiting until the situation was much more difficult. And this same pattern happened both with the first and the second reef

[@frankmiller95]

@@siltee9983 Any good captain will leave standing orders to be notified immediately in any situation where the watch captain has questions. ln addition, a good captain will be so attuned to his/her boat/ship that they will awaken immediately and investigate if the movement of the hull due to sea state or wind changes in any way. l've observed it as crew and done it, myself, as captain, more often than l can recall, and l have a pretty good memory for those things.

[@siltee9983]

@@frankmiller95 Not talking about the captain. He might have been bad or good. But the fact that the ”experienced sailors” two times failed to take action in notifying the captain when the boat was overrigged indicates to me a lack of experience. For experienced sailors this goes without saying…. Experienced sailors dont just sit there waiting things to turn bad.

[@calthorp]

I was amazed it did not bring the mast down if it was swinging around like the story says

[@frankmiller95]

@@calthorpAn out of control boom is unlikely to dismast a vessel without repeatedly striking the shrouds or locked running backstays while full of wind, which almost never happens for reasons too technical to explain here. ln any event, according to the story that did happen in this situation.

[@yakacm]

Ahh I was wondering how they died, I mean it was pretty obvious they died of their injuries, but the previous version did feel a bit open ended. Just wondering if you'd ever do a Q&A type video? I'm not usually interested in that type of thing, but I'd love to know were you're from, I can't place the accent although it sounds South African or somewhere else in Africa, but I also remember you said in 1 of your videos that you had lived in England. It would be interesting to hear about your career too.

[@matthewmcdermit8744]

What? I am not sure that I have ever heard of such incompetence on a 60' sailboat. First, the skipper failed to properly vett and train his crew. Second, a second mate who has to wake the captain for routine tasks is under qualified -- despite what his resume might indicate. Riding about while others operate the boat, and you don't learn a damn thing, is NOT "experience" anymore than flying twice around the world in First Class makes me a pilot. With the skipper incompacitated, clearly, the 2nd and 3rd mate panicked. It is clear that they really did not know how to sail. To abandon a damaged but otherwise sound $2 million yacht is a testament to that. . . . The truth is modern technology has made it too easy. Just as people are unqualified trying to climb Mt. Everest, there are unqualified people trying to sail our oceans. The truth is there are people trying to sail 60' yachts unqualified to do so. The four people in this video illustrate that. . . . So, "the rope" did not kill these two: hubris and incompetence did.

[@the_phaistos_disk_solution]

Nicely done.

[@ThatOneCanadianKid]

As a Scotian i always find it so funny when our lil province winds up in random KZbin videos im watching lol

[@waterlinestories]

😁 It's funny, I know the feeling. I'm South African, living in Germany. When I hear people telling about South Africa, I always feel this weird mix of pride and homesick.

[@ThatOneCanadianKid]

@@waterlinestories i never would've guessed you're from South Africa! You really inherited that European accent while in Germany ahaha

[@gregsmithers4493]

❤ well researched and put together. It appears its always a series of mistakes that add up. Rip

[@Rick-tb4so]

The weather didn't kill them, lack of training did..

[@Itried20takennames]

Well….the weather helped. Had they been luckier and not hit bad conditions for longer, they may have been more experienced and not made the mistakes they did. But sounds like from other comments that this was always going to end badly, as this boat was not meant to be handled by 2-4 people. I don’t sail at all, so idk.

[@stan4d1969]

It was said they were "ahead of schedule" - what schedule? Why were they using the engine? What's the hurry? Reef the damn sails!

[@letian162]

I had a 12 m sailboat and as a SECURITY MEASURE, NEVER, NEVER sailed her straight down wind, I always sailed broad reach. The bigger the boat, the bigger the danger and damage in case of sudden wind shift. One can break the boat's shrouds and mast if the boom swing violently from one side to the other. This is poos seamanship (and boat design).

[@beverlyreiner-baillargeon6205]

Great story teller and great stories he tells. Thanks for enlightning us to the true, even though sad, ending.😉😉😉

[@flattrackeroz]

Yes, I agree, I don't get to watch these stories often, as I listen to them while driving. But he is by far the best for explanation and constant clarity with his voice. If i was to study anything I would ask him to narrate my study lists.

[@abatesnz]

In mast furling isn't that great a solution, the heavier mast aside. For sailing performance, the lack of horizontal battens mean you don't have as good a sail shape. More importantly, if the weather turns against you and the sail jams in the mast as you try to reef, you can't drop it. Your only option is to wrap halyards around the sail to try to tie it to the mast. Not an easy thing to do when it's blowing and the yacht's pitching. For sailing in the Ionian, you do find yourself getting the sail in and out more readily.

[@larrymeyer2917]

Sorry but experienced sailors would have resorted to dropping main in much less conditions. AND the Skipper should never allow a single person to deal with 2 high loaded lines in 20kts of wind, even less so in 6m seas. Spending $2M on a yacht today and you don’t have reversing winches for main sheet and preventer? Maybe $20k extra for absolute control rather than manual release, possible to even remote operate. Downwind sailing in the dark is dangerous with out big seas, the boat has 2 forestays, frigging designer should have included 2 genoa’s ( on the 2 electric furlers)with a dip pole capable of 3rd reef poling the lee sail in full downwind condition, NO main sail at night in those conditions. Or simply 2 storm jibs with engine running at maybe 1200RPM for emergency correction with rogue wave, remember they sailing downwind 6m seas, can easily push stern of boat so be prepared. Auto pilot but hand on wheel ready and close to AP control. Keeping a vessel straight downwind in such conditions is not easy in dark so AP is on high performance mode. Hey, if you don’t feel comfortable, spin boat and go upwind close haul until conditions improve with reefed sails ensuring boat is weather helm. Sad ending, please never risk night sailing with too much sail, big waves and limited experience, boat without sail will go down wind, you need to control action waves and main on the stern of boat, can’t afford boat spinning, could even role with those waves.

[@rodneypennington1086]

Can't add much to this except to observe that storm sails in heavy weather made my yachts easier to handle, really stable and didn't reduce speed by that much in terms of getting to a safe area. And I have depowered boats single handing when the main gets stuck by dropping the jib or genoa or furling them. Often then continue with the main if the weather is easing.

[@tallbillbassman]

A case of running before walking. If they had started with something manageable, like 13m, they could have learned a bit of sailing and enjoyed themselves safely, then upgraded.

[@markzed66]

I remember taking my daughter for a sail on a small hire catamaran when she was little, and I warned her about the danger of jibes (and showed her what they look like). I wonder if the design of the booms/sails where brought into question as a result of this tragedy.

[@frankmiller95]

Being hit in the head by the boom during any flying gybe/jibe can always be fatal. That includes something as small and light as the one on a Laser.

[@tserentseren7398]

Instead of doing 2 masts with lazy jack manufactures do Bermuda sails with electric control for blue water yachts. Perfect!

[@gellekleinikkink4055]

That’s a completely wrong graphic representation of the change in wind direction supposedly causing a gybe!! Since the explanation is apparently directed at laymen, it could be quite confusing. Otherwise very informative, thank you!

[@lespetitszoiseaux3774]

i'm sold. Subscribed! Excellent delivery and topics. Thank you, what a ride!

[@MarcelaR-dh1ok]

1979 was the advent of Sat Nav, and later GPS as prior to this the sextant was state of the art. Think of the lives saved if the sextant remained the only navigation tool.

[@falkpatt]

I don't see your point. This incident had nothing to do with navigation systems. If anything it might have been worse without GPS. Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't it difficult to get a proper fix in a squall? A precise location is what authorities needed in order to execute a rescue. If you're implying that sailors who can use a sextant are more skilled.... I'd have to say the only thing they're more skilled at is using a sextant. Having a machine on board that gives you a precise location, speed and direction in any condition is only positive. If this couple died because of being marooned in the open ocean after a lightning strike and losing all electronics on board...then you'd have a valid point.

[@frankmiller95]

@@falkpattUnh uh. The time and effort required to learn and master the proper use of a sextant and then calculate sufficiently accurate LOPs from the rolling deck of a small sailboat is substantial. During that time, a sailor will also, by default, be forced to learn the fundamentals of boat, sail handling and the requisite skills to become at the least a modestly competent sailor. ln the absence of that, any ignorant fool can take sailing classes, receive an utterly worthless "certificate of competence" read a few books, watch a few YT videos, spend a few hours sailing in relatively protected waters and come away with the utterly mistaken impression that they then are an experienced sailor and qualified to safely go offshore and deal successfully with perils and conditions they could not begin to imagine, much less fully comprehend and know or even begin to correctly deduce the possible proper solution. That the number of serious maritime casualties aboard recreational sailing yachts has increased exponentially with the advent of readily available, highly accurate and cheap electronic navigation devices and is in direct correlation to that is statistically undeniable and surprising to absolutely no one who has received a classical marine education.

[@MarcelaR-dh1ok]

@@falkpattBriefly, it boils down to this... A wealthy yacht owner finds himself mid-Atlantic with a cascading set of problems, as is wont to happen on the open ocean, which he was woefully unprepared to deal with and it all goes horribly wrong. Without push-button navigation he most likely never would have found himself in this circumstance. Prior to 1979 only extremely competent mariners attempted to cross the pond. This incident was clearly an accident of incompetence with even his wife playing an important role on the team. Post 79 all yachtsmen with the cash are all Master Mariners in their own mind with the push of a button, and this is a perfect example of that. Not only are there now innumerable needless casualties thanks to these yachtsmen, but American professional mariners on merchant ships are one of the very few flags that will answer their mayday calls, putting these professional mariners at grave risk ...for which they often face contempt and ingratitude when the yachtsmen are forced to abandon their vessels. The American shipping companies also face hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost time. As to myself, I am a former navy officer, federal service academy grad, and USCG licensed ship master with decades of experience.

[@MarcelaR-dh1ok]

@@falkpatt I provided a reply which now seems to have been lost. Briefly, this wealthy yachtsman found himself mid-Atlantic with cascading problems, as can often happen in open seas, and he was unable to deal with it, leading to tragedy. Without electronic nav he most likely would have never found himself in those circumstances. As for myself, I am a former navy officer, federal service academy grad, and USCG licensed ship master with decades of experience... let them remove this as well

[@falkpatt]

@@MarcelaR-dh1ok okay I see what you're saying. Because it's easier to navigate more people are sailing... You could also say that more people are sailing because there's more people in the world... Population has doubled since 1979. You could also say that more people are sailing because of a lot of other factors too, like increased production of fiberglass boats. More people are also sailing because it's on social media and more popular. But I doubt too many people in the Navy or Coast guard would lament the invention of GPS.... It makes their job easier. It makes our oceans vastly safer. You know back in the day Marine charts actually used to be guarded as top secret documents by Spain, Portugal Britain etc. I'm sure more people got out on the water when the first accurate marine charts were available to the public... and you didn't have to navigate with Dead reckoning anymore.... But it would be silly to say marine charts were a bad thing right? Same goes with any invention that makes boating more accessible and safer.

[@user-eh3zv1ex5o]

Technology, with inadequate experience vs Ocean.....how many times has the Ocean won. Then again, studying experienced Captains and their lost ships, in History Past.....the Ocean wins. Human Error and Hubris.....seem to be the main causes when studying these events. In other words, you really have to know your sailing over many years AND you really have to be a grounded person.....before you attempt crossing oceans.

[@AndyJarman]

Pity the person preparing the drawing had no idea why a gybe would happen! That diagram shows the wind flipping160 degrees to starboard and the mainsail inexplicably gybing across INTO the wind!! The diagram should have shown the wind flipping 90 degrees to port, getting behind the fwd side of the main - then the sail would gybe across to starboard