Anonymous wrote:
Howard wrote:
I like the concept of the "life dinghy" like the Portland Pudgie, as an alternative to the so called "life raft"............. "death raft" is a more appropriate name unless help is fairly close by....... which for most of us it is..... unless you happen to be a "real" adventurer... as a number of members here are or have been at times. The gradual deterioriation of these so called "life rafts" is a major feature of every survival story involving them it seems. The idea of designing a ply dinghy that could provide the needed shelter and resources for survival...... and be able to make progress under a sail is intriguing.
H.W.
I did build a 'life dinghy' once, and had it approved as part of a New Zealand Category 1 inspection and clearance. But silly me, I built it to meet the Cat 1 requirements for a life dinghy which definitely compromised it's usefulness as an actual tender. I do know of someone whose liferaft started falling apart after just a few hours. But I also know of people who have survived for a very long time in a liferaft. I am also thinking of the tragic situation off the New Zealand coast a few months ago where a yacht sank and one person died because in the experienced conditions the liferaft was apparently swept away before they could get into it. Launching a life dinghy in this situation could be even worse.
I personally am starting to question the whole traditional approach to rescue and survival in these situations. By way of explanation I set off recently to purchase a set of flares for my current yacht as we had none, and you should always carry flares - right? On the way to the marine store I began thinking about the many hundreds of dollars worth of flares I have purchased, and eventually had to dispose of, during my long sailing career, and had a think about how many people have actually signaled for help and been rescued as a result of using flares in recent times, probably not many. There is better technology out there. So rather than purchasing flares I bought a good EPIRB with a 10 year battery life. Yes it was twice the price of the coastal flare pack I was going to purchase, but it has a ten year shelf life instead of three, and if I get into trouble and need to activate the EPIRB our NZ Rescue Center will know very quickly that I am in trouble, they will know which boat is involved, and they will know very precisely exactly where I am
David:
I agree that deploying and boarding a life dinghy in extreme conditions could be a challenge, and making a dinghy that could be used as a life dinghy, and still be a viable tender presents a really serious challenge. Size, and the various features that make it tenable for survival , which add up to extra weight and bulk, are a problem. This could perhaps be addressed with an add on section that contained things like a weather cover, and emergency supplies. This would be detached in port when used as a tender, but connected while at sea. Size is an issue for stowage....... Instead of a canister that can be instantly deployed, you have a bulky dinghy on deck, or perhaps better in davits. My interest is in multihulls, and of course a catamaran would be the ideal for slinging a life dinghy. In t he past open boats were used as lifeboats with some success. look at people like Shackleton of Bligh, and numerous others who made heroic crossings in tiny boats.... But the boats were carried on relatively large ships, not small sailboats. Making an unsinkable dinghy is pretty simple.... just some sealed compartments.... The Duo I posted the photo has them by design. At 3m x 1m, it would be rather difficult to store in one piece on a small sailboat, and the challenge of assembling an launching it in life threatening conditions would be pretty overwhelming. Davits really are the only realistic option for a life dinghy as far as I'm concerned. This makes the life dinghy discussion just idle chat in most cases. Roger Taylor's unsinkable MM2 is probably the best survival choice for a small boat, though I doubt he would survive long in a flooded boat where he sails! There was (is?) a company called Yacht Saver or something like that that was making air bags to be deployed inside a boat for this purpose.
I don't know if you've read the saga of the Rose Noell, but that describes a rather impressive survival story in an inverted trimaran for a very long time.
I agree with you about Epirbs......... with the single exception of the fact that flares have been used defensively against amateur pirates.
H.W.