[C320-list] raising a bosun's chair

[Chris Burti]

Jeff,
For the sake of friendly discussion and to minimize
confusion, if any.

My comments are from personal experience in having
done it just about every way discussed and having
hauled and having been hauled numeroius times. I
recommend that people experiment try several safe
recommended methods for themselves to find out which
works best for them. I offer my suggestions as the
distillation of my experiences and as workable and
safe options.

The ASA method is fine if you are lucky to have two
helpers...most of the time I consider myself extremely
lucky if I can get one competent helper at the
specific time I'm ready to do the job.

I recommended the ascending knot for use primarily as
a safety on the second halyard. As such, it only
requires the use of one hand. It is far easier (and I
believe far safer) than having one person responsible
for both halyards when you can't get two helpers. 

I described the technique for using two knots in order
climb solo because it can be extremely useful
knowledge for solo sailors in a tight situation and
does not seem to be widely known. As you note, it is
not particularly easy at sea. However, one can readily
become proficient in its use on a mast without needing
to become an "expert climber". 

The ascending knot works perfectly for the very reason
that it was developed. It may not come readily to mind
as a sailboat application because thinking "inside the
box" focuses on hauling things up with a halyard
rather the fixing it and climbing it which is, in
effect, what using it as a safety requires. Everyone
that I know who has tried it, swears by it. One of my
friends has even bought mechanical ascenders because
he likes gadgets better than knots and found that they
work very well also.

As to using the windlass, our C-320's have clutches
and self-tailing winches, but many other boats don't
have anything of the sort. Instead, those owners throw
a bight around the horn of a cleat next to the halyard
winch to control the tail. As there is a cleat right
beside the windlass, this technique makes using it as
safe as using traditional halyard winches. 

Also, a beefy grinder is not always available at the
right time. The Admiral would be able to haul my huge
posterior up safely with the windlass while I use the
Prusik on the spare halyard as my safety. There is no
way she could crank me up with the manual winches.

One caveat to using the windlass. There is a very long
electrical lead to the winch. As a result, several
owners have reported the the load generated by using
the windlass for mast climbing will throw the breaker.
They recommend not trying to haul a heavy person up in
one continuous pull.

Best Regards,

Chris
 
> My personal *Opinions* on other methods:
> ========================================
> The process I use is the one that ASA teaches. 
> (Except they teach using one
> person on the main and one on the safety line.) 
> Mast gadgets like the
> ladder steps, self-climbing doohickies, etc, are
> still probably safer than
> the winch approach, and some are clearly easier than
> others.
> 
> While an Ascending knot is not a bad idea (if the
> person going up the mast
> is an experienced climber).  Knot that it may not
> always be as easy to use
> on a boat where the mast may be causing you to swing
> around.  Mountains
> don't try to swing you around like a pitching mast
> does. :) I frequently
> have to hang on with my hands and legs to keep me
> positioned where I need to
> be while going up and down, and to have to use two
> hands to run the ascender
> is a pair of hands I don't always have conveniently
> available.  I'm not sure
> how good an ascender knot is for a safety line
> though... (My brother is, and
> he didn't suggest it for what that's worth last time
> I went up the mast).
> 
> While the windlass might be easier from a muscle
> standpoint, it's not safe
> enough for me or any of my crew with no sheet
> stoppers or convenient safety
> line management right there at the windlass.  People
> clearly have success
> with this approach, but it's not for me.   It's your
> life, live it however
> you dare.. :)
> 
> -Jeff H.
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Koen Bennebroek
> [mailto:vergaar2004-catalina at yahoo.com] 
> Sent: Monday, August 21, 2006 3:17 PM
> To: C320-List
> Subject: [C320-list] raising a bosun's chair
> 
> I finally got a bulb for our deck light half-way up
> the mast. Now I just
> need to get it in. WM had a pocket bosun's chair on
> sale, so I ordered it.
> Now the question becomes, how to get it up there? We
> have a spinaker halyard
> that we can backup with the main halyard for safety
> (or vice-versa). Can we
> use the anchor windlass for this? Or are there other
> preferred methods, like
> routing it over the 2 jib winches? Is using 2
> halyards enough safety or are
> there other safety precautions to think of?
>  
> Any advice is highly appreciated!
>  
> Thanks, Koen
> (BigCat, #224, 1995)
> 
> 
> 


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