Docking (part 1): Introduction to docking with style and grace
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- Опубліковано 4 сер 2024
- This is our introductory video to a series on docking a sailboat. This video introduces a set of processes which will allow you to dock your boat with grace and style. The follow on seven video episodes in this series will address each individual dock skill process in greater detail.
Some times you watch the show... some times you are the show.
Thanks for these videos. They are great to review with my Oklahoma wife who is learning to sail. Having grown up in Salem Willows it’s also great to see the familiar waters and my uncle’s boatyard in the background. Thanks again.
Greg Atkins
Loving all your instructive videos. Thanks.
Great explained. Thanks for the video series.
Great video! Haven’t done this in a year and needed a refresher, mostly on moorings but might be getting a slips this season.
Brilliant, beautifully demonstrated, I love your videos,
Thanks for sharing your knowledge,
Cheers, Rich
Rich
Thanks for the kind comment. I find the process of producing these videos to be an excellent way to improve and sometimes to correct my teaching skills.
Great instructions, communicated clearly
Well done! Thanks!
great video! thank you! I like this method and will try this weekend.
Thanks, beautifully explained
Great info...I suppose every circumstance may differ but my big takeaway from this is putting the boat in gear once the spring line is attached brings the boat in against the doc. Makes sense...Thank you.
Circumstances can vary all over the lot, but if you get a midships spring line on the dock, then forward gear puts you on the dock, in any and all of the circumstances...
Exactly to best way we've found to dock our Hunter 30.
Right to the point. No babes in bikinis... Well done sir.
This shows nicely how idling in gear against a spring line gives you complete control - however you have to get the spring ashore first, and personally if at all possible I like to get that done before anyone steps ashore. Especially with just a skipper and one crewmember, if the crew steps off and something goes wrong - line dropped, whatever, and the boat drifts off - you have a problem. So if possible I go with making a loop (as someone else commented below), dropping that over the shore cleat from on the boat and taking up the slack, before anyone steps off. Granted, that can be difficult at the stern depending on the position of the cockpit, stern cleats etc - in which case go for the midships cleat if you have one. A loop dropped over a shore cleat from midships and tightened and the boat's going nowhere, giving you all the time in the world to sort the other lines. One other thought - why go for a 'difficult' cleat - ie the one in the video close to a bunch of dinghies? Surely go for a cleat with more space around it, then you can easily adjust the boat fore or aft once you've got lines ashore...
As to the choice of cleat, that dock is not much longer than the 31' boat. If we tried to use the middle cleat on the dock, the midship point of the boat might have been past the end of the dock - going forward on the spring and the boat might just rotate around the corner of the dock, wiping out the fenders as she turned...
@@SailFanatics Sure, I did say it depended on the respective positions of the cleats. But if possible, a short breast line lassoed/ dropped over the middle dock cleat and tightened to the yacht's midship cleat is a winner - she's then completely secure for someone to step off and sort out the other lines at their leisure.
Nice! TY.
Excellent.! thnks
Nice video
Spring line is key 👍
⛵️👏⛵️👏
Just the fact he has a broad New England accent, makes this video 100% ligit
One thing I do is put the boat in neutral at distance to help determine the tide. But Must be great to have a crew. 100% of the time i am alone. It's just practice and go very slow. Reverse helps slow you down.
I agree nice to have a crew haha
What knot was that, oxo oxo please
Docking white no motor?
I mostly agree with the technique but I prefer to cleat with a full wrap as the force is on the trunk of the cleat instead of the horns. Sometimes the line can cinch up or pull through if a three quarter wrap is used. Also, it is not a secure cleating with a three quarter wrap. ua-cam.com/video/BBqsF72xNSU/v-deo.html The old knots books used in USA date back 100 years when ropes were not double braided and they perform differently.
The other issue is using the eye splice to attach to the cleat on the dock. It can lift off easily and will not lift off if it is on the boat pulling down.
In windy conditions stepping off would be much more difficult. Attach spring midship and Lasso a cleat. André in Sydney
I use the same method single handed I make a loop about 4 metres long and drop one end over a winch and approach the end of the dock at 90⁰ if its windy then using a boat hook drop the other end of the loop over the end dock cleat. The boat turns 90⁰ and comes along side of the dock.
Now I need to learn how to do that on my own, on a short, short finger pontoon without a midship cleat. ha.
To solve this problem, I fit a moveable cleat on the jib track, see if you can do something similar.
As to the short pontoon and alone, try backing in and looping the aft midships spring over the dock cleat nearest the inside of the pontoon, then going forward on it to force the boat against the pontoon.
I have the video material for video on singlehanded dock, I hope to produce soon.
@@SailFanatics Would be nice :) HOpefully I'll see it when it comes out.
So far my docking isn't overly graceful, but hey, as long as I don't crash my boat into dock that should be fine, eh?
Looks like you ran into those smaller boats
Nope.
Many sailboats cant dock that way as they dont have the thrust or even prop walk to keep against the dock.
Frank,
I am not sure what problem you have in mind. If an engine has adequate power to move the boat through the water, then it'll have enough power to hold the boat, being restrained by the spring line, against a dock. There is no prop walk or even prop wash involved in this function, although you do use the prop WASH over the rudder to align the boat parallel to the dock.
As long as the midship spring mine is aft of the pivot point all you need to do is idle forward and steer away from the dock and the boat will come along side the dock.
Said crashing into the dinghy..
Actually not...but it was almost a case where backing into the spot could have been justified.
@@SailFanatics I agree about backing in. You're parallel with the dock on portside coming in. There's no need to turn and dock on starboard side.
But you basically crash into the dock and the dinghy(3:14-3:18). I'm not trying to be rude here, but we can see it in the video.