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 Izablue2 |
Hard points & Jacklines |
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Posts: 122 05/07/08 08:47:18 |
I would like to install some hardpoints for our teathers in the cockpit. Any suggestions on locations?
And.... to ease moving around in the cockpit, has anyone come up with a system (jacklines, etc??) to accomdate this? Mark Izablue #835/3 |
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lakandjc |
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Posts: 146 05/07/08 09:24:20 |
Mark:
FWIW on White Star we created a "zone" by installing a large Wichard folding padeye on each end of the cockpit footwell. a couple of inches below the edge of the seat. One padeye was on the port side of the footwell, just aft of the forward wall of the footwell and the other just forward of the wheel on that same wall. We spliced a length of Spectra between the two of them, leaving just enough slack in the line that one could easily snap a teather clip on it with one hand, but not so much slack it flopped around; about 1.5 to 2 inch droop in the middle of the line. I don't remember the diameter but it was about the size of your little finger; smaller would be too hard to pick up quickly with one hand. We then ran our jacklines from forward past the winch and connected it to a cleat near the back of the boat. This arrangement allowed us several options. When in the cockpit, when tethered to the footwell line, one could move forward and aft from under the dodger to behind the wheel without unhooking and work either port or starboard winch. One could also step into the companion way without unhooking and, if you left the tether hooked on the footwell line, you could leave the other tether hook inside the hatch on the companionway step, so you could hook up before exiting the safety of the interior. When one needed to go forward, you could pick up the tether that lived on the jackline while still hooked to the footwell line, unhook the footwell line and move out of the cockpit without ever being unhooked. Yes, we had two or three tethers there at all times but we just clipped them on somewhere and they didn't get in our way. We also ran our jacklines inside everything so we could move clear past the mast before being out of reach of either boom or shrouds. This worked even with a dinghy tied on the foredeck. Perhaps this will give you some ideas. And if my descriptions aren't clear, I'll be glad to explain further. Getting a good jackline system developed is a worthy quest; good luck with it... James |
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Izablue2 |
jacklines | #2 | ||
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Posts: 122 05/11/08 18:47:39 |
James,
Thanks for the information. I understand it quite clearly and will replicate your method on our boat Mark |
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do335 |
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Posts: 253 05/11/08 19:07:34 |
On my boat I have two hard points near the floor of the cockpit on either side of the companionway. I attach a jack line to one hard point, run it back
loosely around the steering binnacle and back to the other hard point. This allows me to attach my tether while in the cabin, walk up into the cockpit,
around the steering wheel and forward to the companionway again. The jack line is short enough so at no point can I stretch the tether to the point I could go
over. I have two more jack lines running from hard points just aft of the dodger on each side and then forward to a hard point just aft of the anchor well
hatch. With a double tether, I can move from the cockpit jack line to the forward jack lines without ever being unclipped from one of the jack lines for even
a second.
The importance of tethers was drove home recently during the Double Handed Farallones Race I participated in where two sailors were thrown from their 40ft sailboat when it rounded up in very rough seas. They had life jackets on but no tethers. Luckily there were boats very near by that picked them up in mins, but the 40ft boat wasn't recovered. They are lucky to be alive since hypothermia can kill you in these waters in very little time.
Steve 642-2f TESA
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