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Self Rescue Tether

Yea, interesting. It is the first video I have seen with the sailor being dragged in a fairly realistic scenario. It certainly reflects the challenge of re-boarding. In that seaway with that freeboard you would be very hard pressed without some kind of climbing aid. You would probably be praying for some seaway to lift you up. Food for thought.
 
Hi,

I am Eric, designer of the self-rescue tether and single-handed sailor myself. Thank you for the comments.
Pages in English can be found at www.design4sea.com/safety

Among other information, there is data on the effort required to haul oneself aboard.

Fair wind to anybody
 
mike cunningham said:
Ahem... reality check.

https://sites.google.com/site/design4seashop/video-8
Click to expand...

This is exactly why I don't use inflatable PFD harnesses when singlehanding offshore. I remember when this study came out and demonstrated quite clearly that inflatables will hold your head underwater at speed and drown you quickly. If I have to cut the tether the inflatable isn't going to help me survive anyway - with a non-inflating harness I at least have a chance of getting back onboard.
 
JakeJ said:
This is exactly why I don't use inflatable PFD harnesses when singlehanding offshore. I remember when this study came out and demonstrated quite clearly that inflatables will hold your head underwater at speed and drown you quickly. If I have to cut the tether the inflatable isn't going to help me survive anyway - with a non-inflating harness I at least have a chance of getting back onboard.
Click to expand...

Yea, I was thinking of the difficulty in general. Even in a harness only, struggling to overcome the flow of water at anything over a knot or two would be a daunting task.You would have to know exactly what to do, do it quickly and do it right the first time. Not a lot of margin for error.
 
The speed of the boat has an unforeseen, positive effect: surfing. The tether pulls your upper body out of the water and the drag is reduced. I did a test at 7.5 knots, and when I started to haul myself the boat (under engine, main and gennaker) accelerated up to 9 knots. The main problem was not the drag, but the water passing over my head.
About inflatables, a few tests (unpublished data) confirmed the problem you mention: only high buoyancy devices can prevent your head from getting underwater.
I hope this helps
Eric.
 
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