Heavy Weather Tactics (from Surviving the Storm)

(Following is an excerpt from Surviving the Storm's 162-page section on Tactics.)

Choosing the Right Tactics

In any given heavy-weather situation, there will be a variety of choices you can make, or not make.

In moderate gales those choices will typically be dictated by comfort and the need to maintain schedule--because there is worse weather on the way or for personal reasons.

As sea state deteriorates, safety becomes a prime concern. Now we are talking about not only the external forces of wind and wave, but also the skill level of the crew and capabilities of the boat.

With this in mind we are going to start this section of the book with a recap of the major factors that influence the heavy weather decision making process. All of these are important, and should be constantly re-evaluated as conditions change.

Staying alert:

* Nothing is more important to safe heavy weather sailing than staying alert to the interplay of the various forces at work. This requires that the crew and skipper be as well rested as possible and not hypothermic or dehydrated (both of which contribute to mental lethargy).

* When you are belowdeck the wind noise is less, it is difficult to tell wind direction, and you cannot see the sea state.

* It is important to keep track of these external factors, and how the boat is dealing with them.

* This means a periodic inspection of conditions outside the cabin. It only takes 30 seconds with the companionway hatch open, but someone needs to check outside on a regular basis--preferably every 10 to 15 minutes.

Understand Your Vessel

For every boat design there is a safe way and a more dangerous way of dealing with the sea. The goal is to reduce the risk of damage from a breaking sea as much as possible.

Equally important is understanding what the boat's likely reaction will be to a changed set of conditions. If the seas build and begin to break from a different direction will you be stable in your present attitude? What happens if there is a frontal passage and the wind and seas shift 90 degrees?

If you are running is there a windspeed beyond which you should heave to, head into the seas, or deploy a drogue? If you are lying to a parachute anchor, will you be all right with another 10 knots of wind?

Until conditions have moderated, the need to keep analyzing the possible changes and the best way to deal with them will remain ongoing.

Watch Weather Trends

A key factor in the tactics you adopt, and direction you head, is what you assume the weather system is going to do. In some cases, where conditions are potentially dangerous or could get that way, the best approach may be to adopt the course which gets you away from the worst of the wind and seas.

The answer may lie in beating to windward--as it did for many of the yachts in the Sydney-Hobart Race just discussed. Or, it may be better to heave to or head away from a developing compression zone as with some of the boats heading to New Zealand in November of 1998.

To make a reasonable stab at understanding the weather you need a good handle on the process of onboard weather forecasting. This can be surprisingly accurate using just wind trends and the barometer.

At the risk of repeating ourselves, one of the keys to this process is keeping a written log of the barometer, cloud development, wind strength, and wind direction. By analyzing this data you will probably know better what is happening than a government forecaster thousands of miles away.

Water Temperature

If you are passaging in areas with large currents or eddies of warmer or cooler water, keep a log of the temperatures. Small changes, sometimes as little as 3 or 4 degrees Fahrenheit (1 or 2 degrees Celsius), can have a major impact on the development of the weather around you.

Frontal Passages

When you are dealing with an extratropical depression and its associated front, there will be a major wind shift accompanying the passage from warm to cold sectors. The wind will probably increase for a while, and then die off, rapidly or gradually.

If the sea state is not threatening, the frontal passage is simply a sign that it's time to get some more sail on the boat and resume your course.

But if you are dealing with breaking waves, the passage of the front may bring on the most dangerous phase of the storm, where you now have to deal with crossing seas.

In this situation passive tactics--such as being hove to or lying to a sea anchor--may have to be changed to those which are more active, so you can maintain better wave alignment.

When the Wind Drops

Equally important is that point when the wind starts to drop. If the drop-off is gradual in nature, the waves will slowly reduce their size.

However, if the wind drops rapidly, as sometimes happens, the waves can become unstable and break just when you are heaving a sigh of relief.

Stay in tune with the wind strength, and then get the boat underway as soon as it begins to fall off (with either sails or engine) until the sea state has stabilized.

Changing Sea State

Obviously it is breaking seas which create the problems. And in most cases these will not be an issue. However, there are many factors which can change a benign sea condition to one which is threatening.

Current or tide running against the seas (as opposed to with them) is one factor. Another is bottom shoaling or undersea mounts and plateaus. We've already discussed rapid changes in wind strength and wind shifts.

You may find that the wind conditions are steady, but a crossing swell from a distant storm moves into your area. This may create an occasional breaking crest where you would not otherwise expect one.

Any of these factors, if they come into play, will require you to re-think your approach to heavy weather tactics.

Correct Tack

The wind frequently blows at a 15- to 20-degree angle to the primary sea. This means on one tack your bow or stern will be more aligned with the waves than on the other. Throughout the rest of this section on tactics and the following section on drogues and sea anchors, you will find numerous drawings, photos, and descriptions of picking the correct tack. Some of these take a little studying. However, if there is any single issue that most impacts your safety in severe weather, being on the correct tack to minimize wave risk is probably it.

Once again, you need to be alert to the changing conditions and adapt as required.