bertram31.com

Because my right arm aches and my left index finger is throbing.

Yesterday was a tough day.

The wind was out of the NW at 10 to 20 with gusts to 25. Bertram weather! I wanted to go out for a ride and do some practice with trhe cast net. I could have done the casting from the dock but I was itching for a ride. Well, in the middle of the bay, three miles out, I deployed the anchor for the hell of it and after two trys, it would not hold. The gusts caught the full tower and I was drifting a maybe three knts. With a lot of line out, I used the anchor winch, helping the winch out by using the engines. To make a long story shorter as this could easly become a full blown story, now the fun started. I wapped the line around one wheel and the line went over the other shaft with the freek'in anchor wedged against the hull. So both engines were down and we are going to the sand bars at high tide.

I'm f#@ked! And I'm 73 yrs old. Soon to be 74.

What to do. What else could I do. The water is 55 degrees and the boat is broadside at 3 knts and rocking with the one foot waves. The sand bars are coming up soon.

I went over the side and started to cut the line. The line to the port wheel holding the anchor to the hull was cut and the anchor dropped. The stbd wheel had too much line on and with the cold water and rocking boat, I had to stop. With one engine only I had trouble coming into the marina but there were 5 or so other guys there and helped me to a slip. There I went in again and cut the line. And my left index finger. The cut was bad enough for the hospital. They gave me a tetnus shot too. The whole day was one of bad judgement. I should not have left the dock.

So that's what going on here in New York.

dick
glad your ok, iam going to have to talk to your wife to keep a shorter chain on you. see you in montauk

Many a man spending eternity with Davey Jones cause they thought "bertram" weather was no big deal.

frankly....theres worse things than hitting a sand bar...lots worse. im the last person to lecture on judgement (see photo of ice kayaking) but jumping in the water while alone on the boat this time of year is a no no. im glad you are here to post today. the first thing i would do is go buy two new anchors. i have three on the boat....the lunch hook, the im not on the boat anchor and big bertha.........which i have never used but is sittin there for exactly the situstion you described.....i also have a hacksaw...very good for cutting line and not you...........geez dick....i really am glad you're OK

Dick you need to be careful buddy.

Dick...your a crazy man!

I'm not sure that I would not do the same thing (I'm not all that smart either)... but I'd like to think I wouldn't.

Going over the side by yourself in 55 deg water then diving under the boat is just not a good idea, in case you didn't know that already.

A second hook is not a bad thing to carry, I always have...just in case. Maybe it would not have grabbed well but it would have slowed you down some and given you a chance to think, call for help.

I glad to hear your okay, that throbbing finger is there to remind you not to do that again.


On another note your lucky you didn't yank the shafts and struts from the boat when you wrapped the rope up in the shafts. Another piece of advice...don't run over your anchor line. Sorry, I could not resist saying that...I'm really glad it worked out okay, that whole ordeal could have gone so much worse. I guess you'll have something besides the high cost of fuel to talk about with your dock buddies...

Dick- whew...................
all I can say.

ditto on the hacksaw,rr

That explains why you didn't answer your phone yesterday.
Glad your still with us .

Quite a few years ago several of us were at a houseparty of an old salt who has forgotten more about boating than I will ever learn. He invited us down to his slip in his back yard to look at his boat. Most of us who accepted were boaters, one wasn't.

In the forward cabin nestled in the cutout of the v berth was a large yachtsman type anchor. It probably weighed 50 pounds. The non boater asked about it.. the old salt said it was a spare anchor, the third one on the boat.. he already had one Danforth on the bow, and another under a berth. He also mentioned he had never used the anchor in question.

The non boater asked innociently.. "Well, if you never used it, why do you carry it?"

The old guy looked with disdain at the innocent non boater and said...

"It ain't going to do me any good in my damn garage!"

I carry three anchors!

Dick glad you made it, 55 degree water is a little cold it be swimming in. I only carry two anchors, the other is in the garage. I thougth I would have won the bone head of the week award for having both engines crap out 25 miles off shore, but you win..hope we have better next week....Russ

Dick I know you like to go swimming. You always jump in at the AC Rendezvous; but that was a little extreem. Glad you are still with us and the boat did not wash up on the beach.

Dick...In the words of Lou Costello...you are a baaaaad boy! You saved the boat and yourself, but don't ever do that again. Glad all worked out OK. Walter

Where there's no sense there's no feeling.
I'm only 65 and too cold for me.
I would have prayed to the insurance gods and called for HELP!

dick that is scary at your age jumping in the water alone!!!! please dick next time call my cell i will take one of the 75mph boats be there in a flash just call.one day i was on brewster`s boat and notice the mask and fins ---no need to ask the man was prepared!!to defeat murphy`s law you have to sit down and think before it happens.thank god all you have is a cut it could have been -----------------------

Dick
I really glad that it all turned out good for you. All I have to say is that you must have very large BALLS............I'm only 56 years old and I don't think that I would try that.

As I read your story I could feel your pain.........bad situation to be in....

Glad you are Okay

Harry

years ago when i had my fbc i caught a semi submerged pot off shore, same situation, had to go in and gut it free. thew a saftey line in the water for myself, didnt have a mask, but i carry 2 on board now

Dick-

Really happy that your OK. I love my B31, but in the end, its a boat. Take care of yourself. I hope to hear your story firsthand in AC.

John

Shrinkage Dick?
Pardon the pun.

It is a great thing that learning is a lifelong endevour. At 73, you learned something, then had the humility and wisdom to share it with the rest of us. Most of us have done something that at the time seemed vital, but upon reflection was dangerous and ill advised. The lesson tempered with time is either forgotten or diffused.

Thanks for having the courage to share your story and remind us how quickly things can go from Hunky-dory to game over. I'm very relieved that it was not game over, but it sure could have been. I tend to be impulsive and hands on and need to be reminded that it is okay to not be Danger Boy every once in a while.

I hope the finger heals up and I also hope that at your age I'm physically capable of pulling off that stunt and mentally capable of not attempting it!

Thanks for posting your story.

Cheers,

Rod

Glad youre ok Dick... Hey I know how hard it is to cut thru a line tightly wrapped.. I try to carry a serrated pocket knife.If not in your pocket in your boat for sure. It cuts like a hack saw. Get one with the serration all the way to the tip !
Wayne

Dick- You were lucky.. I am very glad it all worked out in the end. I was just talking to my dad about your story (he's 72) and we were discussing how after so many years on the water it is easy to slip into complacency, especially inshore.

Please, be careful, and if you need help doing something remember I'm one town over in West Islip. Don't hesitate to call.

John

Ironman wrote:Glad youre ok Dick... Hey I know how hard it is to cut thru a line tightly wrapped.. I try to carry a serrated pocket knife.If not in your pocket in your boat for sure. It cuts like a hack saw. Get one with the serration all the way to the tip !
Wayne

or...just get the hacksaw....and leave it on the boat. if you ever need it once you will be real happy its there. i did the dive and cut last summer and it worked great.

Dick

Glad everything worked out. I have kept a hacksaw on the boat for the past 33 years just for that purpose. Lucky I have never had to use it.

When I was younger I probably would have jumped in offshore to cut a line loose. Now that I am older, I might send the younger guy in the water. Hopefully there's a younger guy on the boat.

But like John said, its just a boat. Some times you need to let the bookies pay up.

Dick,
First glad your OK, BTW don't do that again. 55 degrees will screw you up fast.

Your must be a confident guy to post that mis-adventure, hats off.

Once I....never mind.

one year in port eads dick was the only guy to sleep at the old big game club.....a fairly isolated and somewhat spooky move....no question about hair......sense is a different topic....but he thinks im crazy for kayaking in the ocean so who's to say?

Dick,

I will carry two anchors now. Thank you. My spare is in the garage...lots of good that will do!

I have always carried fins, mask, snorkel and a dive knife with a lanyard. I would hate to go over the side, and drop the knife...

I am more glad than you know that you will be here to continue to regale us with your escapades. I am very glad you are ok. Thanks be to God for letting you come back and tell the story. 55 degrees!!!! Jeepers!

Dug