Link to Sailing anarchy where there is a report on the MOB death in the last Newport to Bermuda race. Just the facts article then you can click on the link to the report.
Looks like it could have been avoided if he was wearing a PFD or harness.
Tragic but an interesting read and shows the importance of everyone knowing how to use all the safety gear, comms, how to start the engine etc.
Looks like they did a good job getting back to him but just couldn't get him back onboard.
sailinganarchy.com/

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tarquin1 said..
Link to Sailing anarchy where there is a report on the MOB death in the last Newport to Bermuda race. Just the facts article then you can click on the link to the report.
Looks like it could have been avoided if he was wearing a PFD or harness.
Tragic but an interesting read and shows the importance of everyone knowing how to use all the safety gear, comms, how to start the engine etc.
Looks like they did a good job getting back to him but just couldn't get him back onboard.
sailinganarchy.com/

Sounds like he must have been a bit of a gung ho type of guy if all the rest of the crew were tethered or double tethered and had pfd's on except for him. Also sounds like the MOB procedures used on the yacht were excellent.

Interesting how the report says the "stature" of the man contributed to the difficulty of getting him on board. Sounds like this is the new politically acceptable way of saying that he was significantly overweight.

Very sad but a good lesson.

At 5' 9" tall and weighing upwards of 113kgs he was heavy.
Back in about 2012 I was preparing to go to Lord Howe with a fellow sailor I met through Seabreeze. He was a very big man too, guessing about 120kgs and 5'10" tall.
We had been allocated a mooring in Comets Hole, about 2-300 metres out in the lagoon.
We were doing some work up sails in Pittwater and on one occasion my colleague fell out of the dinghy next to the floating jetty at Salt Pan Cove. He was unable to get out of the water even with a few people helping him. I made the decision that if he fell overboard from Morning Bird, even in the lagoon, he would be unable to recover himself even using a boarding ladder.
I had to tell him he couldn't sail to Lord Howe with me.

It would be useful to read reports like this on "incidents" in Australia.
There were quite a few of them last year.

gary

I'm 5'11" and weigh 105kg, so i have a bit of 'stature' ... one of the first jobs on my 30' yacht was to install a solid fold-down stainless ladder and test two things: can i fold it down from in the water; and can i haul myself up fully dressed. the answer is yes to both, but it would be a struggle with any kind of sea running. i use a 10ft sit-on kayak as my tender which stows on the foredeck, so that could be launched to help an MOB get back up in non-solo sailing situations. i sail in Port Phillip Bay where exposure can kill you in under an hour ... the most important advice I've been given is to remember that one mishap might seem ok, but they often come two or three at a time. e.g. i can pull myself aboard, but not half concussed or with a lacerated hand etc. multiple options for recovery are best!

I'm not brave enough to be one of the people who sail or work on a boat I couldn't easily get aboard if they fell over the side, so I regularly check that I can get back aboard our boat unaided and without using a rope or the swimming ladder (which isn't fitted permanently).

Years ago I we did some practical work on MOB recovery, and since then I spoke to the ex US Navy guy who was head of safety for US Sailing. He was one of those involved in the excellent system that reports safety incidents, and presents an annual prize to the boat that has handled them best.

The problems of getting people back on board is one of the reasons I dislike the emphasis on PFDs. Apart from the fact that you can easily die wearing one, they do nothing to help the problem of getting people back on board - and those of us who sail small boats will know how much the bulk and friction of a PFD and its straps etc can increase the difficulty. Lifting someone out of the water vertically (ie with a halyard) can also cause death because of the stress on the body.
I had an incident a while ago when someone rather large and unfit jumped off a boat moored nearby and found himself unable to swim against the tide. There was no way in the world he could get back in my dinghy when I got over to him so I had to motor and drag him to his own stern ladder. Given the conditions (at the mouth of an estuary) if I didn't have the outboard we would have ended up out to sea in a 7' tinny, waiting for rescue.After that little bit of fun, and an experience many years ago when a guest went swimming and was too heavy to get back on board, we now don't invite people who weigh too much to help themselves.

A SUP, SOT or windsurfer does help enormously (as we have found when friends are swimming or we are recovering one of our DOBs- one of the dogs can be relied on to fall overboard once per cruise) and it would be interesting to see if some independents tests showed one of them to be as useful as it has been for us at times. Off the top of my head I'd guess that a small inflatable SUP with a quick-inflate system, or even a decent pump, could be an absolute lifesaver, especially if it was specially designed to also take tethers, straps and lifting tethers. I think the powerboat racing guys use an inflatable stretcher, and the SLSA and tow-in surfing jetskis use a mat. Even if the MOB was just lying on a big boogie board they'd probably be suffering less hypothermia, have their airwaves higher above the water, and it would be easier to pass lifting lines underneath them.

To me the most important thing is the simplest - practise! If you practise, even in middle age you can get yourself from the water to the deck of a 36 footer unaided, or (in my wife's case) by reaching up to grab a line and use it for a sling. Sure, if you're wearing heavy wet gear and tired you may not be able to do a "self rescue" unaided, but you'll make it a lot easier for others. Anyone with practise bodysurfing or cleaning their own hull etc will be able to swim in chop for a long while without getting exhausted, and getting wet weather gear off in the water isn't hard if you've practised it. Even potentially-fatal cold water shock is something you can alleviate (and cure) with practise. www.outdoorswimmingsociety.com/how-to-acclimatise-to-cold-water/#:~:text='The%20secret%20to%20acclimatising%20to,at%20the%20University%20of%20Portsmouth.

I would also consider the problem with boots and pants. Not to say that I run around with no pants on when sailing (although it has been done) but I can't for the life of me do anything when in the water with pants or shoes on. So I don't often wear shoes sailing (maybe velcro sand shoes are okay) but never ever ever boots, and wear shorts whenever possible. Bib and brace wet weather pants and sea boots frighten the willies out of me and seem like a relic of times when old square rig sailors would not learn to swim and happily plummet to the depths - bugger that, I want to be swimming around and hollering for help for days if needed. I would go from being okay to help myself to being absolutely useless in bib and brace with boots. But then again I don't regularly sail down south. On our Tassie trip I didn't need shoes and wet weather pants so it can be done in a boat with good cockpit protection.

I would urge people to consider wearing thin merino under light waterproof layers for protection and then light shoes (that can be kicked off in the water) and if needed, bushwalking lightweight coverall pants, they cost about 20 bucks and can be taken off easily even with shoes on because of the zippers at the ankle. Get good cockpit protection - such as a dodger and a good autopilot and wear less yourself - it is nicer and for me much safer. I also put my inflatable harness on under my rain jacket, so I can get rid of the jacket in the water. That means that I need a manual inflatable and usually go around with the zipper loose. After rescuing a couple of fellow sea kayakers, with lots of guff on their chests, I really like the idea of getting rid of everything heavy if I fall in the water. I may be nude, with the exception of my inflatable harness by the time you get back to me, but I will be ready to lickety split up the sides when you return. Or better able to swim if you decide to keep sailing.I do a bit of canyoning and a fair bit mountain bushwalking. The wet weather gear sailors buy is awfully expensive and super heavy compared to gear that protects you from rain and snow in a freezing mountaintop storm. I can get warmth and a fair bit of water protection with gear that weighs about 1-2kg max. My boat doesn't get waves sweeping across it with me on the rail, so I don't need offshore gear. Most cruisers don't need this gear either. You can get much lighter, cheaper and easier to use gear at a local bushwalking place, and also get to use it when bushwalking, win win. For most East Coast cruisers I would recommend not following the Hobart racers and other serious cold water racers with gear choices, go light, go easy to use and go safer if you fall in the water by NOT using the offshore wet weather gear.

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Kankama said..
I would also consider the problem with boots and pants. Not to say that I run around with no pants on when sailing (although it has been done) but I can't for the life of me do anything when in the water with pants or shoes on. So I don't often wear shoes sailing (maybe velcro sand shoes are okay) but never ever ever boots, and wear shorts whenever possible. Bib and brace wet weather pants and sea boots frighten the willies out of me and seem like a relic of times when old square rig sailors would not learn to swim and happily plummet to the depths - bugger that, I want to be swimming around and hollering for help for days if needed. I would go from being okay to help myself to being absolutely useless in bib and brace with boots. But then again I don't regularly sail down south. On our Tassie trip I didn't need shoes and wet weather pants so it can be done in a boat with good cockpit protection.

I would urge people to consider wearing thin merino under light waterproof layers for protection and then light shoes (that can be kicked off in the water) and if needed, bushwalking lightweight coverall pants, they cost about 20 bucks and can be taken off easily even with shoes on because of the zippers at the ankle. Get good cockpit protection - such as a dodger and a good autopilot and wear less yourself - it is nicer and for me much safer. I also put my inflatable harness on under my rain jacket, so I can get rid of the jacket in the water. That means that I need a manual inflatable and usually go around with the zipper loose. After rescuing a couple of fellow sea kayakers, with lots of guff on their chests, I really like the idea of getting rid of everything heavy if I fall in the water. I may be nude, with the exception of my inflatable harness by the time you get back to me, but I will be ready to lickety split up the sides when you return. Or better able to swim if you decide to keep sailing.I do a bit of canyoning and a fair bit mountain bushwalking. The wet weather gear sailors buy is awfully expensive and super heavy compared to gear that protects you from rain and snow in a freezing mountaintop storm. I can get warmth and a fair bit of water protection with gear that weighs about 1-2kg max. My boat doesn't get waves sweeping across it with me on the rail, so I don't need offshore gear. Most cruisers don't need this gear either. You can get much lighter, cheaper and easier to use gear at a local bushwalking place, and also get to use it when bushwalking, win win. For most East Coast cruisers I would recommend not following the Hobart racers and other serious cold water racers with gear choices, go light, go easy to use and go safer if you fall in the water by NOT using the offshore wet weather gear.

that's interesting. i spent over a grand on boots and wet weather suit but have not yet been in conditions to use them ... perhaps i never shall. i wear light leather shoes and my favourite water proof jacket is the Marlin brand from BCF - $100! i like it so much i wear it cycling and cafe hopping in williamstown too. your post is a good reminder to think things through and not just listen to the sales staff at the chandlers

On the balance of probabilities of staying warm and dry in foul weather gear vs drowning in it I would opt to stay warm and dry.

I did a bay race two weeks ago, only took one wave to go down the neck of my inshore jacket to ensure I was cold and wet for the rest of the race. Glad I was in Moreton bay where the water is about 26 deg.

I did white water kayak training in winter about 10 years ago, you were always going to get wet eventually. mereno thermals, poly fleece mid layer and a kag (spray jacket). The kag kept you dry until you had to exit the boat, the fleece was suprisingly good at slowing your cooling and the water traped inside warmed up with your body heat. It was not pleasant but manageable and a good motivation to become a better paddler.

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cammd said..
On the balance of probabilities of staying warm and dry in foul weather gear vs drowning in it I would opt to stay warm and dry.

I did a bay race two weeks ago, only took one wave to go down the neck of my inshore jacket to ensure I was cold and wet for the rest of the race. Glad I was in Moreton bay where the water is about 26 deg.

I am a breathless enthusiast for merino. With just 3 tops - a merino tee shirt, a merino thicker long sleeve top and a waterproof hiking wet weather top for the top and a thin single merino thermal on the bottom under a 20 buck set of rain pants I can get down to about -12 degrees wind chill in the Snowys. I NEVER wear cotton when it gets at all coolish. If you are thinking you may not like getting wet ensure you are wearing merino and you can lighten up the outside stuff. As for a wave, with wool you just don't care, it doesn't work at all like cotton does. I call cotton, KILLER COTTON, as it wicks water and cools you down really quickly. I don't even wear cotton undies in the cool - guess what? Yep merino. It has made a HUGE change in the weight of clothing and the way I cope with wet and rain, by getting rid of ALL cotton and swapping to merino when it is slightly cool. You can still stay dry with lighter gear. My claim is that wet weather gear is made for racers who sit on the rail. Cruisers usually don't wrestle on the foredeck or have waves break over them anymore. I run around the deck, heave to if I have to go forward when beating and hide behind my cabin when a wave comes.

Each to their own, but if anyone reading this has gotten cold with a cotton tee shirt on, get with the program - never wear cotton in any layer whenever you need to stay warm. No cotton undies or track pants, tee shirts or sloppy joe, they will get wet and wick heat away from you incredibly well. Get to Aldi on the next snow sale or get to Khatmandhu and buy yourself a complete merino kit. You won't believe the difference.

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Kankama said..
I am a breathless enthusiast for merino........buy yourself a complete merino kit. You won't believe the difference.

Yeah, go for it.
I grow about twenty-five tonnes of it every year!!

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MuttonBird said..

Kankama said..
I am a breathless enthusiast for merino........buy yourself a complete merino kit. You won't believe the difference.

Yeah, go for it.
I grow about twenty-five tonnes of it every year!!

I am pretty hairy but 25 tonnes is impressive!
Yes the old saying "cotton kills".
I unfortunately find wool itchy, even stuff with a small percentage in it. So I stick to the synthetic stuff. My grandmother knitted me a Woolen jumper that I just couldn't wear.

I too can't do normal wool but the superfine merino tees are totally different. If you haven't worn an Icebreaker or similar tee shirt, give one a go. They are very different from the jumpers we were knitted.

A few months ago I picked up this new neoprene jacket from the Salvos. $12! It's probably 3mm neoprene. It is very comfortable to wear and has two pockets that are ideal for the hands when sitting in the cockpit. When the breeze is cold you need a spray jacket over the top. I wear it with my PDF over the top and I have not tested it in the water yet but I suspect with that amount of neoprene and the un-inflated PDF it would support me. Bonus is the hoodie. The hoodie is effective in the cockpit and in the water would certainly help in reducing body temperature loss through the head. It is much easier to climb aboard if your PDF is not inflated.

Interesting that the first recommendation of the report states that sailors should wear PFD's, harnesses and tethers when the conditions warrant it.
Directly contradicting some of the comments above. Staying on the boat using a tether would prevented the situation, wearing a PFD with Harness would have made it much easier for the crew to grab hold and attach other lifting lines to him even after he had lost consciousness

The report also praises the crew for their quick response, and I feel it should also be highlighted. Being able to reconnect with a MOB in under 5 minutes in the best of circumstances is considered pretty good. This crew managed to do this in 20 - 25 knots and 3 -5 metre seas OUTSTANDING! We should all try to be this good at rescuing people

I'm rambling a bit here, but I'll try consolidate by thoughts on the report and some of the above comments.

1. Wearing an PFD will greatly increase your chances of survival not just because it will help keep your head out of the water, but they are a conveniently bright coloured object that floats further above the water than you'd ordinarily manage by treading water. Also they keep your head out of the water when your waving your arms around or grabbing for thrown lines/slings
You can also find makes and models that will suit a variety of requirements and comfort levels.
And if you think they will prevent you from climbing back on a boat, you can also deflate them at will

2. Seriously practice your MOB recovery and make sure your equipment is ready to use, in good condition and mounted appropriately. Really take the time to work out and brief your crew/passengers on how you would get an unconscious person back on board. It's harder than you think (maybe yacht clubs should have a stock of those OSCAR mannequins available for members to practice with)

3. Don't be afraid to do a practice run of your selected wet weather gear, put it to the test and see how well it keeps you warm while you're waiting to get picked up, 30 minutes should give you good indication. The sea survival courses these days encourage you to do the water element in your sailing gear of choice. So you get to bob around in the water for an extended period and feel the cold seep in.

As an anecdote on how hard it can be to get back on board a boat. A couple of years ago I was on a 45 footer that had finished a 80 mile race, it had been a wet and bumpy ride and I was feeling a little chilled just from the spray I copped while at the wheel for most of it. We had pulled back into the pen and I was standing on the transom to attach the shore power when I slipped and dropped straight in the drink. I managed to bash my arm on the way, numbing it from the elbow down. I was in a fair bit of pain and once my head was above the water I wasn't able to make myself heard on deck and everyone else was too absorbed in their own tasks to notice I had fallen in. I bobbed about in my PFD until the pain had subsided enough for me to raise my voice, the others had a bit of a chuckle at my expense before lowering the swim ladder.

This is where it got tricky, with only one functioning arm I couldn't stand on the ladder and reach high enough with my good arm to grab anything on the transom to pull myself up. It took less than a minute for them to pass me the main halyard so I could clip it to my PFD and used that assistance for me to get back on board.

This brought home to me just how hard it might be to try do it for real, like they had to in that Bermuda Race.

Good points, having a PFD on when offshore is good practice - I am worried about getting someone back on board offshore with a small crew (maybe just one if two handed). (I haven't made one yet but I keep thinking of a doing what these guys who raced a small 32 footer did and wear a little bum bag. It had flares and maybe even a VHF with an AIS - seems logical when racing without tethers or sailing singlehanded and didn't get caught on stuff. My handheld VHF has an AIS style capability with the boat VHF too.)

On our MOB practice runs we found a real issue with our catamaran's stern steps. Our boat has a nice set of steps built into the stern and so on our first few practice runs we would try and heave to 45 degrees off the wind, and get the "person" up the steps. But the transom would be going up and down and crashing about in any sea. It was pretty worrying watching the hull punch into the sea every couple of seconds, how we would get someone safely to the stern in a seaway was troubling.

In the end our practice became to drop all sail to windward of the "MOB" and drift downwind onto them. Small amounts of forward or reverse on the motor would be used and then the motor stopped when close. By going beam with no sail up we could adjust our position really carefully. Best of all, the transom and the MOB were going up and down at the same rate and so there was no potential smashing of skulls by the transom.

Have a heave to and watch the transom in the waves. It can be a dangerous place to be in the water and next to a pitching stern. For our cat, it seems that no sail, to windward and beam on is best but you will have to check for your own boat for the best way to get to that ladder.

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Kankama said..
Good points, having a PFD on when offshore is good practice - I am worried about getting someone back on board offshore with a small crew (maybe just one if two handed).

A neat trick is to attach your lifelines to the pushpit with dyneema and tape a knife to the pushpit.
If you go over grab the knife and cut the dyneema. The lifeline slithers through to the next stanchion where the turnbuckle stops it from going any further. Now you have a nice loop of wire at the beam just under the water you can stand on to boost yourself back on board. If your stanchion spacing is wide cut the top one, if narrower cut the bottom one type thing.
I had one of those rope ladders in the transom in a tube. It works for getting you back on board but can be a mongrel of a thing to stuff back in its little hidey hole .

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D3 said..
Interesting that the first recommendation of the report states that sailors should wear PFD's, harnesses and tethers when the conditions warrant it.
Directly contradicting some of the comments above. Staying on the boat using a tether would prevented the situation, wearing a PFD with Harness would have made it much easier for the crew to grab hold and attach other lifting lines to him even after he had lost consciousness

The report also praises the crew for their quick response, and I feel it should also be highlighted. Being able to reconnect with a MOB in under 5 minutes in the best of circumstances is considered pretty good. This crew managed to do this in 20 - 25 knots and 3 -5 metre seas OUTSTANDING! We should all try to be this good at rescuing people

I'm rambling a bit here, but I'll try consolidate by thoughts on the report and some of the above comments.

1. Wearing an PFD will greatly increase your chances of survival not just because it will help keep your head out of the water, but they are a conveniently bright coloured object that floats further above the water than you'd ordinarily manage by treading water. Also they keep your head out of the water when your waving your arms around or grabbing for thrown lines/slings
You can also find makes and models that will suit a variety of requirements and comfort levels.
And if you think they will prevent you from climbing back on a boat, you can also deflate them at will

2. Seriously practice your MOB recovery and make sure your equipment is ready to use, in good condition and mounted appropriately. Really take the time to work out and brief your crew/passengers on how you would get an unconscious person back on board. It's harder than you think (maybe yacht clubs should have a stock of those OSCAR mannequins available for members to practice with)

3. Don't be afraid to do a practice run of your selected wet weather gear, put it to the test and see how well it keeps you warm while you're waiting to get picked up, 30 minutes should give you good indication. The sea survival courses these days encourage you to do the water element in your sailing gear of choice. So you get to bob around in the water for an extended period and feel the cold seep in.

As an anecdote on how hard it can be to get back on board a boat. A couple of years ago I was on a 45 footer that had finished a 80 mile race, it had been a wet and bumpy ride and I was feeling a little chilled just from the spray I copped while at the wheel for most of it. We had pulled back into the pen and I was standing on the transom to attach the shore power when I slipped and dropped straight in the drink. I managed to bash my arm on the way, numbing it from the elbow down. I was in a fair bit of pain and once my head was above the water I wasn't able to make myself heard on deck and everyone else was too absorbed in their own tasks to notice I had fallen in. I bobbed about in my PFD until the pain had subsided enough for me to raise my voice, the others had a bit of a chuckle at my expense before lowering the swim ladder.

This is where it got tricky, with only one functioning arm I couldn't stand on the ladder and reach high enough with my good arm to grab anything on the transom to pull myself up. It took less than a minute for them to pass me the main halyard so I could clip it to my PFD and used that assistance for me to get back on board.

This brought home to me just how hard it might be to try do it for real, like they had to in that Bermuda Race.

Excellent post.

It's pretty clear in the rules.
I have done enough safety courses to know wearing a PFD massively increases your chance of survival. Still not great but better.
Staying on the boat is the golden rule. You must be able to clip on before coming out of the companion way. Lots of people have gone over the side coming on deck. Your still not properly awake, your eyes haven't adjusted and that one wave or gust hits as you step on deck.
RORC make these rules because they have studied so many accidents over the years they know what situations are most likely to cause deaths.
If as the rules say he was wearing a PFD with hood he may well have not drowned and they could have clipped onto it. He would have stayed alive longer giving them more time to get him back onboard.
At the end of the day as others have said you have to practise it on your boat.
Check your safety gear. I have pulled throw lines and MOB devices out of bags that had rubber bands around the line or just packed in a way that they wouldn't come out easily.
Best advice I was ever given from someone that has done a lot of offshore racing, "be safe and finish".

What's the year on those RORC rules? The PFD's we see these days don't have any arrangements for harnesses. For legal requirements for crossing bars I wear a PDF. When the weather is unpleasant I wear a buoyancy vest {dinghy type} with a built in helo lifting harness and pocket for a double tether.

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This is the 2022 rules. They have been the same for years.
RORC tries to stop people dying.
Your insurance company dosn't give a ****.
As we are crossing the bar together at night in ****ty conditions. We take a bad wave. You go over the side. I am clipped on.
Who do you want to be!
The golden rule! Stay onboard!
Again I can't remember the numbers but they are massively better if you stay onboard. As soon as you go in the water they are not good. If you don't have a PFD on they are slim.

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D3 said..
2. Seriously practice your MOB recovery and make sure your equipment is ready to use, in good condition and mounted appropriately. Really take the time to work out and brief your crew/passengers on how you would get an unconscious person back on board.

I had an interesting chat with a senior instructor from one of the flasher yacht clubs here, who described his experience in being the MOB for one of the divisions to practice with. The idea was to jump off the first boat, be picked up by the second, jump off again and so on. A decision to wear a wetsuit was wise as it took over an hour for him to be recovered by anyone!

Hey. It's uncomfortable to wear a pdf with attachments. But I think it's more of a problem not being fit for purpose. I've always been safety aware. When on the water, you should attach to your PDF; A bright light, with flash, a portable handheld radio, a small curved knife. It's a lot of gear isnt it, We must kit for the worst. Maybe a better way would be to have not only this gear, but a harness that goes between you legs to realy lift people out of the water. Safety is no accident.

I must join John's praise, excellent post, D3!

Determination, persistence and training are paramount!
It is possible, I was the only single hander on Sydney Harbour and everywhere - while I had Rhapsody - who was always wearing my Secumar PRO PFD (with strobe and GPS) and never, ever, left the cockpit without a double tether clipped to the jack line, while under sail.

It was "my (mad)way or the highway" to say so, drawing funny looks from ferries and other sailors, however, it made me the wearing of the PFD and thethers a second nature and all work on board was drilled into my being. I persisted. It worked for me.
It took a while to work out the methods but it was paying huge dividends when I was sailing in rough weather along the coast. I was a good student of Andrew Evans.

The MOB situation is the one nobody wants to be in, but few is prepaired to take serious measures to avoid. I guess, it is human nature.

As Chay Blyth said once:
"Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence.
Talent will not, nothing is more common than unsuccessful man with talent.
Genius will not, unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
Education will not, the world is full with educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."

Fair winds!

Wow. So true, thanks for that. PFD.

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Tikker said..
Hey. It's uncomfortable to wear a pdf with attachments. But I think it's more of a problem not being fit for purpose. I've always been safety aware. When on the water, you should attach to your PDF; A bright light, with flash, a portable handheld radio, a small curved knife. It's a lot of gear isnt it, We must kit for the worst. Maybe a better way would be to have not only this gear, but a harness that goes between you legs to realy lift people out of the water. Safety is no accident.

Dunno - Kankama and I have discussed this and know people who could have died because they had so much stuff strapped to them that they could not be pulled back on board.

I've worn a strobe when sailing offshore since the '70s but certainly wouldn't wear one most of the time in daylight since it's additional weight and something else to slow down my swimming and make it harder to get back on board. I struggle to see what a knife is really going to do in 99% of situations so whether one "should" have it attached to a PFD is an open issue. Getting people back aboard normally consists of sliding a wet person up a wet, slipped, smooth topsides - UNLESS they have something on their body that gets caught and makes the whole procedure much more difficult.

It's interesting to tally up the number of people who have been killed in offshore racing; estimate the manhours involved in offshore racing per annum; and then look at the normal risk of death associated with sitting on shore for that many manhours. When I've done the rought sums, sailing doesn't seem that dangerous.

HOWEVER I say this as someone who has lost a father sailing, did my first long offshore race at 17 and been out on my first unsuccessful SAR attempt for people I knew when I was about 20...... neither of them made it, nor did others I have known. So it's not a case of ignoring the danger but, IMHO, a situation where one can't just fall back on wearing a lot of stuff designed to help other people help you after you have fallen in the water. As a small-boat sailor I have been involved in lots of incidents where someone's PFD or trap harness caught on the rail and made it extremely difficult to get them aboard.

My history is of Kayaking. I allways wore a high wasted PFD. Attached to it, a Standard Horizons tranciever, a very small Serated claw knife in hard sheath with finger hole, 4 inch in total and a small strobe. Total weight, 750 grams, if that. Weight is not a factor. All PFD's are weight rated, no issue with that one. If one in unfortunate enough to fall overboard in a regatta, likely, no need for such things besides a PFD, inflatable, no problem, still should be worn. If sailing offshore coastal or otherwise don't waste the energy trying to catch the boat, it's gone if single handed. If two people are on board and one has watch and falls overboard forget that to. I agree totally with all the safety gear attached its likely to get caught up, there are solutions available, if not now there will and should be. For example, smaller radios you slip in a pocket, easy out of the way. I've not heard yet of a small epirb. But I do believe if one where made the size of a match box you should also put that in a pocket. Different tools for different pursuits. Technolgies that reduce the size and weight of item should be taken into account and used. As for a persons weight and size. Studies have suggested that a person of 175cm and 76kg has about 15% less muscular strengh than a person of 6ft and say 100kg. Take into consideration that that 15% extra strengh has to be carried about, so more fatigue. Take the SAS, average height 5.8 to 5.9 weigh 80 to 85kg's. Thats the stats. And truly I dont think its important if you paddle or sail, completely irrelevent. Do what makes you happy, for Me it's saftey first.