Chapter - 12

Small Boat Handling

Seamanship is a rather elusive term to define. Webster gets around it by saying that it means the skill of a seaman, but that doesn't get us any closer to an understanding of what it's all about. Seamanship as it applies to ships and as it refers to our small pleasure craft are two distinct subjects. A man proficient in either one would probably find that he had much to learn if he were suddenly confronted with the problems of the other. Consequently our discussion here is narrowed down to that phase of seamanship which deals with the handling of small motor-driven craft. Windjammers have their own individual problems, too, and the man who understands the ways of a sailboat is at an advantage when he takes the wheel of a motor boat. If the motor boatman tries his tactics at the helm of a sailing craft, disregarding the limitations of deriving his power from the wind instead of an engine, he soon finds himself in trouble.

Small Boat Seamanship

The practice of seamanship, no matter how small the boat, will eventually develop a certain combination of qualities, required perhaps in no other sport. When a boat casts off from a dock, she becomes more or less a self-sufficient unit, dependent solely on her own equipment and the resourcefulness of her skipper for a safe cruise. She must be well found, with all the necessary gear required to meet any situation. To provide for all contingencies, the skipper must exercise considerable foresight, based on good judgment and experience. If some circumstance arises which could not be anticipated, then he must draw on his own ingenuity to meet the problem. Not least among the satisfactions of a boatman is the recollection of some of these so-called emergencies, ably met.

Learn From The Fisherman

Good seamanship demands keen observation—a capacity to pick up valuable information on every hand, bit by bit, at each opportunity. Weather lore, an understanding of the actions of tides, currents, winds, waves and all the various changing moods of the sea, come within the scope of his interest. Much can be learned from the fisherman, who lives close to these natural elements and depends so much on them for his livelihood that he seems to acquire an instinctive understanding equal to any occasion. Armed with a reasonable amount of knowledge on such subjects, the boatman can use these elements to his advantage instead of blindly working against them.

Every Boat Has Individuality

It should be conceded at the outset that every boat is individual in respect to the way it handles under various circumstances, and that no two sets of conditions are ever identical. Consequently no arbitrary rules can be laid down which will be invariably true in every case. However, we can generalize on certain principles which will serve as a groundwork on which to build. Practical experience with your own particular boat can neither be gained from a book nor learned by word of mouth. You've got to go out and dig it out for yourself. Nevertheless, an understanding of some of the points considered here should help to make the acquisition of that practical knowledge somewhat easier.

Action Of Rudder

Steering is accomplished in most boats by means of a rudder at the stern. The vertical blade is pivoted to swing either to port or starboard, so that water flowing past the hull can strike it and force the stern to right or left depending on the rudder setting. With the rudder dead aft, we proceed in a straight line. With it set to port, the bow tries to continue in a straight line but the stern is thrown to starboard so that the bow seems to act as a pivot around which the stern swings. However, the bow is not standing still but describes an arc of a circle while the stern traces a larger arc outside of it. Setting the rudder to starboard, the bow seems to swing to starboard because the stern has been thrown to port.

If there is a difference between the speed of the boat and the water in which it floats, the rudder will have an effect, whether the hull is driven by its propeller, by sails, or is coasting along under its own momentum after the clutch is disengaged. But if it is drifting with the current alone, the rudder is useless. The strongest steering effect is produced by the thrust of the propeller stream acting on the rudder blade.

Maneuvering In Close Quarters

When the boat is standing still with the rudder hard over and we suddenly apply plenty of power, a powerful stream from the propeller will kick the stern to starboard or port before the boat itself has had a chance to gather way. This is a useful trick to use in maneuvering in close quarters.

Bearing in mind the fact that it is the stern and not the bow that swings in response to the turning of the steering wheel, it immediately becomes evident that in close quarters it is often just as important to look astern as ahead. If we happen to be lying alongside of a dock or float and try to swing directly away by putting the rudder over as the boat moves ahead, the swinging of the stern may give the hull a bad jolt.

Action Of Propeller

Disregarding any influence of wind or current, a motor boat running in smooth water, if left to her own devices, will maintain a reasonably straight course unless something in her underwater construction is out of line. There is normally a slight tendency for the bow to fall off, to port if the propeller is right-handed, to starboard if left-handed. But this effect is not usually very serious, even though provision is made in some installations to counteract it by splaying the shaft to one side of the center line, the motor being offset a few inches while the stern bearing remains in the center line.

Reversing

When reversing, it might be expected that the boat should back in a straight line if the rudder is held amidships. This is seldom true, in a single-screw boat. When a right-handed propeller is reversed, the ascending blade throws a stream of water toward the bow, but not exactly parallel to the keel. Striking the starboard side of the keel and the boat's bottom at an angle, it pushes the stern to port. This is not counteracted on the port side because the descending blade throws the stream down away from the bottom and under the keel. Facing aft, the boat has a more or less decided tendency to turn to the right in backing, depending on the propeller and the particular construction of the hull under water. In some boats, this effect is so radical that the boat will not back to the left (facing aft) even with the rudder hard over on that side.

Summarized

Summed up, then, if we are backing with a right-hand wheel, and put the rudder hard to starboard (facing aft) we make a quick turn in the desired direction because we are using both rudder and propeller action toward the same end. If we put the rudder dead aft in line with the keel, we back, not in a straight line, but to the right because the rudder effect is neutral and the propeller stream controls the action of the boat's stern. When we put the rudder hard to port, we will probably turn to port, but not nearly as well as to starboard. Somewhere between the rudder positions of dead aft and hard port, we can find by experiment a rudder setting in which rudder action and propeller action offset each other, and we back in a straight line.

Most boats use a right-hand propeller. Facing the driving side of the blades from aft looking forward, the top of such a wheel swings clockwise, to the right. When a left-hand wheel is used, all of the above conditions are reversed.

Checking Headway

So much for going ahead and astern. Since we have no brakes on a boat, we must depend on the reverse gear for stopping. If the boat has headway, going into reverse will bring it to a stop; stern-way can be checked by throwing the propeller ahead. In maneuvering, a propeller of generous diameter and area is advantageous as it gets a grip on a large volume of water. The practice of jamming the reverse gear suddenly from full ahead to full astern, or vice versa, without throttling down when passing through neutral, cannot be recommended as good seamanship, despite the spectacular landings sometimes made in this manner. This sort of thing is hard on the gear and, with the excessive load, if it happens to slip when needed most, the boat may carry enough headway to do considerable damage. The intelligent and seamanlike method of stopping would be to close the throttle gradually to reduce the boat's headway, slipping into neutral when the boat has just enough way on to reach the float or mooring, and then depend on the reverse gear only to check the last of the headway if necessary, or kick it ahead a little if you fall short. Stalling the engine may be just as embarrassing afloat as ashore so it is important when the propeller load is thrown on the engine to see that the motor is turning fast enough to take the wheel.

Turning In Close Quarters

Paradoxical as it may sound, some of the best seamanship is often displayed not at sea but around docks and moorings and in crowded quarters. A good test of a helmsman's skill is to turn a boat in a narrow canal not much wider than the boat is long. If faced with such a problem, remember what has been said about backing to port (or to the right if facing aft). Slowing down on the left hand side of the canal, swing the rudder to starboard and check the headway by reversing when necessary. Then back up to port and finally go ahead to starboard. This way we take advantage of the quick turn to port in backing. The other way might take ten times as much maneuvering if, in fact, we succeeded in getting around at all.

In a case of this kind, we would naturally expect to have the rudder to port in backing to make the turn quicker. But this involves swinging the rudder from starboard to port and back again every time the direction is changed. In close quarters, with only a few feet to spare, this might be hard to manage, calling for much spinning of the helm when the hands are needed for reverse control and throttle. Since the boat hasn't time enough in backing to start decidedly in one direction, it is entirely practical to leave the rudder set hard to starboard throughout the maneuver. Successive powerful kicks ahead will throw the stern around on the go-ahead and propeller action will prevent the stern from backing too much off a straight line on the reverse.

Twin Screws

With a twin-screw boat practically any kind of maneuver can be executed with much more facility than with only a single engine. In a situation such as the one just covered, the skipper of a twin-screw boat could throw his port propeller ahead, and his starboard wheel astern, causing the boat to swing completely around without making either headway or sternway. To secure the best steering effect from the propeller streams when maneuvering, the engines ordinarily turn right and left, the tops of the propellers swinging outward. If a twin-screw boat suffers damage to her steering gear, she can still be handled with the throttles well enough to get into port. The steering is done by adjusting the engine speeds to hold a straight course or make a turn, as desired. For best control, twin rudders, one astern of each propeller, are better than a single rudder on a twin-screw boat.

Handling The Boat At Docks And Moorings, And In Open Water

Some of the problems involved in handling boats around moorings and docks under various conditions of wind and current have been considered. The difficulty is that these factors cannot be relied upon to act always in the comparatively simple ways we have assumed.
 
Actually the forces of wind and current will usually be combined and may act at varying angles to each other with relation to the boat's heading. To complicate the matter further, they act on different boats in different ways, depending on the relative shapes and areas presented to wind and water fore and aft. Judgment enters into the picture here along with a skipper's experience with the particular boat he is handling. Boats with deep draft and low freeboard are less affected by wind than the high-sided type that sits on the water rather than in it. The proportions of freeboard to draft on the average cruiser are such that the bow is usually more affected by wind than the stern.

In any case, whenever the forces of wind and current must be reckoned with, the basic idea is to take advantage of their effect in retaining control of the boat. Should the engine accidentally stop for any reason during your maneuvering you want the boat to drift out where you can come to anchor, and not be blown down into what may be an uncomfortable berth if there is any sea running.

The forces of wind and current may sometimes be used to advantage in turning a boat around at a dock. Suppose a case where a boat is lying against a dock with the stern toward the north and the wind is blowing from that direction. We may wish to swing her around, with bow to the wind. Casting off the stern line will permit the stern to swing out and around with the wind and the boat's position will be reversed, without effort. Current can be used in the same manner. Casting off the down-stream line of course will have no effect, but letting go the upstream line will permit the boat to swing on the other. If it is the bow that is being swung, it will be necessary to protect the transom carefully with fenders.

Turning At Dock With Engine

When wind or current will not serve, we can turn a boat at a dock by using the engine. A bow line is made fast to the dock and the stern line cast off. Going ahead easily, the slack is taken out of the line and the rudder set hard over toward the dock. Since the stern is free to swing, the kick of the propeller wash against the rudder throws the stern out into the stream. It may be necessary to slack off a little on the line as the stern swings since the forward bitt is usually some distance aft from the stem. This puts the line under considerable strain when the boat swings. If it is being swung completely around, another line from the bitt to the dock in bridle fashion will hold the stem against the dock and prevent its sliding after the stern has swung more than half way around.

Leaving A Dock With A Beam Wind

In a situation where the wind is pinning a boat against the windward side of a dock, or the current is setting it hard against it, with a similar effect, the principle described above can be used to get clear in a seamanlike way. In fact, one man can do it single-handed if necessary. With a bowline or eye splice in the bow line, dropped over a cleat or spile on the dock, the boat's stern can be swung out into the stream until it comes up into the wind. Now the rudder is set dead astern and the engine holds the bow up against the dock with the boat in this stern-to-wind position. The bow line can now be cast off and the boat will readily back out into the stream to a point where there is room enough to swing around and go ahead. As a matter of fact in many instances with the bow hard against a dock or pier but with no lines whatsoever made fast to the dock and with the motor working ahead the stern will swing around to starboard. When the swing is sufficient in amount the motor should be reversed for a short time until the boat is sufficiently clear of the dock. Then by going ahead with the rudder to port the boat will clear.

Use Of Lines

The boat can be warped around the end of a dock without the necessity of casting off lines, getting under way and maneuvering back into her new berth. This is done by means of what is called a spring line, which is a line run aft to a dock from the forward bitt or forward to the dock from an aft bitt. Assuming that the boat lies port side to the end of a dock and you want to bring her back around the corner to a berth alongside, bow out, the spring line is run from the after bitt (port side if there are two) and made fast near the corner of the dock. The bow line can be slacked away to permit the bow to swing, the rudder is set hard to port and the engine is reversed. As the boat backs around into her new berth, the spring line is carried along the dock to make the stern fast while the bow line can be used to control the bow and is made fast as desired in the new position alongside.

Small boats are seldom equipped with bitts or cleats amidships which will stand the strain of warping, but some of the larger craft will have a chock in the rail amidships through which a spring line could be led. In such cases, when a boat is being brought up to a dock, this line is carried ashore and made fast before the bow and stern lines are secured. Then if necessary the boat can be warped in under power, even against wind or current, by going ahead or astern with the engine as necessary.

Making Fast

Spring lines are useful not only in warping, but also in securing a boat properly to a dock when slack must be allowed to take care of the rise and fall of the tide, or to protect the boat against the surge caused by a sea or the wash of passing boats. To allow for tide it is obviously poor seamanship merely to carry lines from bow and stern ashore to positions abreast the bitts. If such lines are made long enough to prevent the boat from hanging herself at low water, at high water the slack will permit her to surge back and forth, even to the extent of catching bow or stern in the dock, if the range of tide is great enough. It helps some if the bow line is run to the dock some distance ahead and the stern line run well aft, instead of directly abreast. But it is better to use two spring lines in addition, one running from the after bitt to the dock abreast the bow, the other crossing the first from the bow to a point on the dock abreast the stern. With such a rig, a minimum of slack is required and bow and stern are prevented from swinging too far in or out. A variation of this practice is to use a single spring line running from the bow to the dock and then back to the stern, making the line fast ashore at a point that will make both springs of about equal length.

Heaving Line

Frequently it becomes necessary to heave a line some distance, perhaps to get it ashore or to pass it to another boat which you may be taking in tow. Improperly handled, the line will merely get itself into a snarl and fall short. A seaman will coil a line carefully, holding half loosely in his left hand, free to run off, while the other half is thrown from the right hand in such a way that the end runs on ahead, with successive loops uncoiling naturally, much as a wire spring would be stretched out into a straight line. A weight or heavy knot helps to carry the end. If the line should be too heavy to handle, you can heave a light line first and then bend a heavier one on at the end. Sailors use a heaving line which has a weight worked into the end by means of an intricate knot, known as a monkey's fist.

Handling Lines

The subject of ground tackle, proper line equipment, its handling, stowage and care, all logically a part of seamanship, has been dealt with elsewhere at some length. There are, however, a few random thoughts in connection with the use of lines which may be mentioned here. Frequently when lines are wanted aboard a boat they are needed quickly. Aside from the unsightly appearance fouled lines present on deck, there is not always time to clear them before use. Consequently, they should always be kept in neat coils ready to run without preliminary attention.

Ropes (a term seldom used by seamen) are ordinarily laid up with a right-handed twist. For this reason, they are consistently coiled down in a clockwise direction, with the sun, as the colloquial expression runs. Kinks, due to excessive twist in handling, thus tend to work out instead of becoming worse. Unnecessary knots in line should be carefully avoided. It may be worth remembering that the average knot that stresses the fibers with a sharp kink will reduce the strength of a line about forty percent.

Lines Stowed On Deck

Lines kept on deck should be so stowed or lashed that they cannot accidentally be blown or rolled overboard. The inexperienced boatman is often branded by the loose end of line left carelessly hanging over the side. Sooner or later he is sure to pay the price for this breach of seamanship by getting the line hopelessly fouled in the propeller. Eel grass and drift picked up by the propeller can often be thrown off by reversing, but a line generally succeeds in wrapping itself so thoroughly around the shaft, hub, and blade that only a sharp knife will clear it. Loose rope ends and other round objects such as boat hooks that might roll under foot should never be left where they may be accidentally stepped upon. Dinghy painters are a common offender in fouling the propeller but the blame cannot be laid on them. Any kind of maneuvering calls for a shortening of the painter to a point where it cannot be sucked down into the reversing propeller.

Coiling, Faking And Flemishing

Lines which must be stowed on deck should be coiled down, faked down or flemished down depending upon the use which will be made of the line the next time it is needed. (See page 46.)

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