Story - Today was the day

Kalandia Web Diary
Bill Peach
Thu 3 Dec 2009 18:25
Today was the day.  Very light winds and a fairly calm sea but by no means flat.  The swell still made us roll but It was now or never because the forecast suggests the wind will pick up tomorrow.  In any case we had to gybe (that is, to turn the boat to follow the wind direction, which had changed) and this meant a change of sail configuration so it was the ideal opportunity to stop the boat.
 
We thought we would first try and take a film of a Mobmat rescue on the high seas.  Bill dutifully got into wet gear and a life jacket and jumped - yes jumped - overboard.  I am a bit ahead of myself here, because there is actually a lot of things you have to do before throwing the man overboard rescue device over if you do it by the book.  You have to remove the guard rails, fetch the halyard or whatever lifting mechanism you propose to use, and all this on a rolling boat.  In a real situation your brain would also go into slight panic mode I would imagine.
 
Anyway Bill got himself into the Mobmat.  Bill was easily hoisted using the electric winch but unfortunately one of the lanyards was not tied on properly and the cradle swung away as the boat rolled one way and he swung back when it rolled the other, lesson learned for the user instructions.  No harm done thankfully.  Anyway we got him on board which was the main thing.
 
Well, I said I was going to do it so I did. I then got into the Mobmat and was lowered down.  Swim gear on.  I got out of the Mat and paddled very briefly but found myself being drawn towards the hull which looked like it was going to come down on me.  Not only that, I didn't look at the chart to check that in fact we were in the middle of the North Equatorial Current that has a velocity of between .5 and 1.5 knots.  It felt like 1.5 as I saw the boat draw away.  It then became a real rescue situation.  Anyway I was thrown a life line and hauled in.  So I can't say I was aware of the ocean itself, nor worried about any large predator possibly swimming under me  - it was the boat that was the threat.  The moral of the story is don't fall overboard in the first place and wait until a totally flat sea to go for a swim.  I don't know what the boys thought of it all.  Plonker! possibly. 
 
Other activities today have involved lots of sunsights and noon sights (well, only one of those) as all three boys are doing their Ocean Master exams and have to have evidence.
 
We also have sighted two other boats quite close by today, the first for many days and chatted to them over VHF - one Norwegian and English boat on the ARC and a Pole who is not on the ARC and who left Las Palmas 16 days ago and at that rate has ages to go yet.  We think we will get there late next Tuesday.
 
Richard caught another dorado, 1.8 kilos this time and is cooking it up as we speak.  Must bring in the washing.  Ho hum.
 
Liz

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