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From: (no name) (no email)
Date: Sun Sep 07 2003 - 10:07:50 EDT
In a message dated 9/6/2003 6:10:03 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
writes:
> Norm,
>
> Thanks for the reply. I do take your advice to heart. I must say that it
> is very distrubing to think that there are many people out on the ocean
> intentionally risking other people's lives because they are too lazy to
> change a light bulb. It goes against everything that I thought mariners
> have stood for. I know how much you detest governmental interference, but
> that type of behavior makes me favor long prison sentences for captains and
> obsenely high civil verdicts against companies that wantonly endanger
> everyone else on the ocean just to grub a few more dollars.
>
The email about the US flag ship that turned its lights off at sea turned my
stomach. I sailed on US flag ships for 27 years and every one of them was run
with great professionalism. Even though I was a Radio Officer, I spent a lot
of time on the bridge and took a keen interest in everything going on
everywhere on the ship. I was proud of my shipmates. With very few exceptions, they
gave me a fine example to follow when I began to make voyages on
Bandersnatch.
Bad lights, especially on pleasure boats, is the most widespread safety
violation I see on the water. In two separate ports, St Augustine FL and
Gloucester MA, during dinner parties on board, several experienced skippers took note
of passing vessels' lights. In St Augustine 31% had a bad all-around white, in
Gloucester it was 52%. Most of the boats had the required light(s) on board,
but they were very often obscured in some aspects by people or structures.
We have also seen several police boats with illegal lights.
Commercial vessels almost always have excellent and bright running lights.
>
> Under the current regs my options are puny sidelights...
You are quite free to install lights that are stronger than the regs require.
These are MINIMUM requirements.
> BTW the reason you can see a white light farther usually is that the red
> or green tint cuts down on the output of a bulb give the same power. But I
> can match the intensity and visibility of that white light with a red or green
> light as long as I am willing to simply apply more power.
This is true, but watt for watt, your best visibility is an all-around white.
Besides the tint of the lens, many photons are absorbed by the light fixture
itself. An all-around white gets the most light out there. I would say that
for maximum safety at night, for the least power consumption, the winner has
to be the First Star LED anchor light. I would like them to make side lights
with the same techniques.
The main problem I see with nighttime visibility of sailing vessels is the
rule, and the reality that requires the rule, that gives sailing vessels the
right of way over power vessels. This rule was created in the days of pure
sailing vessels that were completely at the mercy of the winds and literally could
not get out of the way of power driven vessels so they invented the concept of
the steaming light so that the difference would be obvious. Nowadays most
sailing vessels do have motors too, but still are almost always slower to be
able to get out of the way than power vessels. So we must continue the
right-of-way system we have. I suppose the answer is to have some light arrangement
that would allow an all-around white on a sailing vessel while still making a
sailing vessel obvious at a distance at night but I have no idea what that might
be.
>
> Since Truelove is a rather strong steel hulled boat I can relate to
> Bandership with its ferrocement hull. Actually, Norm, we are burning our
> lights to help others stay our of our way. ;-) It doesn't matter whether
> a tupperware boat hits a steel boat or the steel boat hits the tupperware
> boat, the tupperware boat is going to loose.
Any time two vessels make contact it is very likely both will suffer damage.
They will both loose. Avoid collisions of any sort with any vessel.
The last time I was hit my boat was tied to a dock and we were not on board.
A father and son team managed to smash their houseboat into my bow. Although
their boat was severely damaged, mine had to hauled because the damage was so
close to the waterline. Their insurance company paid me about $1300 for the
repairs.
Strength is only relative. I remember one day on a tanker in Quincy MA we
were being docked when one of the tugs had to retire due to a puncture in the
hull from hitting floating ice.
<<< On the other hand, I will do everything that I can within the regs to
make my vessel more visible to help out the few of you out there who are not
crazy, just so that you can stay out of my way when I fail to play with a full
deck.
>>>
I prefer to believe that the vast majority of folks out on the water with me
are conscientious mariners, and that has been my experience in 27 thousand
miles of cruising from Key West to Halifax. But as we are all aware, it only
takes one fool to ruin your day.
As I said before, I would not hesitate to act contrary to the regulations to
avoid a collision, but we really don't have to. Remember that the General
Prudential Rule DEMANDS that we do EVERYTHING in our power to prevent a
collision.
A wise mate once told me, "Sparks, before you do anything on the bridge of a
vessel, just imagine how it would sound if you were telling about it on a
witness stand."
In a book about maritime collisions the title page contained the quote: "The
superior seaman will use his superior judgment to avoid having to use his
superior skills."
Norm
S/V Bandersnatch
Lying Portland ME
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