Alpha 42 "Be Good Too" rescue 300 miles off Cape Henry Merged

[ontherocks83]

Originally Posted by Cotemar

This is a new $400,000 cat. I think I should hire a private ship and run down there for a salvage operation.

If they had to continuously bail water for 50 hours that baby is long gone.

[smj]

Originally Posted by ontherocks83

If they had to continuously bail water for 50 hours that baby is long gone.

Probably not, though she may be riding really low in the water.

[Cotemar]

Originally Posted by ontherocks83

If they had to continuously bail water for 50 hours that baby is long gone.

Not at all.
This is and offshore rated Catamaran with buoyance boxes built in.
A salvage tow would be all that is needed. She will float a tad lower in the water in a few days, but will float until she runs up on some distant shore in a few months.

She would be a great Salvage.

http://www.aeroyacht.com/sailing-cat...-42-catamaran/

[yeloya]

Can somebody tell me how a cat can loose full steering abilişty ? I am trying to make assumptions;(w/out knowing the details of the boat)

-the mechanism that carry the helm action to rudders broke off.. (either a chain, rope or cables used in recent model of cats) : very easy to fix if it's not a cable. Cable requires more competence and cannot be easy on a shaky water) If this is not possible, auto pilote can steer. (I'll come to power issue)If this is not also possible, there is an emergency tiller.

-one of the rudders were broken or fell down or got loose so cannot steer. No problem in steering the cat with one rudder. (I crossed the Atlantic Med with one of the rudders bended 30 degrees inwards and angled 40 degrees to other rudder)

-if boat of the rudders are lost, the fixed keel could be (never tried this) somehow manageable with sails. If the guru of catamaran was on board , I am sure they must have given a try.

-It seems that they have lost both engines (which I have never heard of),
they didn't have a genset, a wind generator nor the solar panels.
Is anybody setting sails offshore with this power combination ??

-Again even the sail drives fell down the cats can not be flooded because the water will onlt raise 3-4 inches. This happened to me when the shaft of the rudder cut off and I had only 3-4 inches of water in the engine compartment and nothing on the bilges.

All this can be a good reason for releasing a Pan Pan but not Mayday, assuming that the rig was in place and in good shape.

The skipper should have a better reason ıunknown to us.

Cheers

Yeloya

[ontherocks83]

Originally Posted by Cotemar

Not at all.
This is and offshore rated Catamaran with buoyance boxes built in.

I did not know that. I stand corrected

[RainDog]

Originally Posted by yeloya

Can somebody tell me how a cat can loose full steering abilişty ? I am trying to make assumptions;(w/out knowing the details of the boat)

Imagine lifting a boat up by a crane 20 feet off the ground and then dropping it on its rudders. I would expect most any boat will suffer catastrophic steering damage in this situation. It would be very hard to engineer a system that could withstand these kind of forces. Getting dropped off a wave backwards is pretty much the same thing.

I am not sure what the exact failure mode was on this boat, but I would think almost any boat would be vulnerable to this type of damage. That is one reason people resort to sea anchors, drogues, etc. in breaking waves. It helps reduce the likelihood of accelerating rapidly down a wave face backwards.

[Cotemar]

Yeloya,

The crew states a big wave jerked them backwards and they lost the rudders.

At this point anything we can offer is going to be an assumption and most likely a bad one.

We have seen it in the past where after 50 hours of bailing water and bobbing about in 15 foot seas along with going nowhere that the crew just want out. That is what happened here.

The Cat will be salvaged an sail another day, but by a new happy owner that got a great deal on a salvaged cat.

[zeehag]

hay boaty borrow an ultralight and find your boat......
just sayin....

[smj]

Originally Posted by yeloya

Can somebody tell me how a cat can loose full steering abilişty ? I am trying to make assumptions;(w/out knowing the details of the boat)

-the mechanism that carry the helm action to rudders broke off.. (either a chain, rope or cables used in recent model of cats) : very easy to fix if it's not a cable. Cable requires more competence and cannot be easy on a shaky water) If this is not possible, auto pilote can steer. (I'll come to power issue)If this is not also possible, there is an emergency tiller.

-one of the rudders were broken or fell down or got loose so cannot steer. No problem in steering the cat with one rudder. (I crossed the Atlantic Med with one of the rudders bended 30 degrees inwards and angled 40 degrees to other rudder)

-if boat of the rudders are lost, the fixed keel could be (never tried this) somehow manageable with sails. If the guru of catamaran was on board , I am sure they must have given a try.

-It seems that they have lost both engines (which I have never heard of),
they didn't have a genset, a wind generator nor the solar panels.
Is anybody setting sails offshore with this power combination ??

-Again even the sail drives fell down the cats can not be flooded because the water will onlt raise 3-4 inches. This happened to me when the shaft of the rudder cut off and I had only 3-4 inches of water in the engine compartment and nothing on the bilges.

All this can be a good reason for releasing a Pan Pan but not Mayday, assuming that the rig was in place and in good shape.

The skipper should have a better reason ıunknown to us.

Cheers

Yeloya

My guess is, that the only thing that could cause loss of steering, loss of power and a substantial leak would be the rudders were jammed against the saildrives making it impossible to move the rudders, impossible to motor as the rudders would be fouling the props and taking on water from the impact on the saildrives.

[Cotemar]

Jan 3,2014 Aeroyacht Alpha 42 sea trial
Extreme winter testing of the Alpha 42 continues as the boat has completed half of its circumnavigation of Long Island. The crew of 3 consisting of Gregor Tarjan, his partner Marc Anassis and Kenny have faced arctic gales in the North Atlantic with winds up to 35 knots and walls of 8′ seas. The boat has proven to be extremely strong and stiff. In spite of the rough conditions, the very high bridgedeck clearance of the boat assured that not one single time did a wave pound the main deck. Conditions are harsh and the crew only ventures outside the heated interior if absolutely necessary. The Alpha’s decks have been covered with ice and walking on them has become extremely hazardous. The Alpha 42 might be the only cruising catamaran which has been tested under such harsh conditions. The plan is to sail the boat via Manahattan to New Jersey were she will be handed to her owner, who will take her to warmer climates.

[SkiprJohn]

Glad the crew is safe!
I have to agree with Boatman's assessment of visual appeal.

[mbuckely]

Originally Posted by yeloya

Can somebody tell me how a cat can loose full steering abilişty ? I am trying to make assumptions;(w/out knowing the details of the boat)

-the mechanism that carry the helm action to rudders broke off.. (either a chain, rope or cables used in recent model of cats) : very easy to fix if it's not a cable. Cable requires more competence and cannot be easy on a shaky water) If this is not possible, auto pilote can steer. (I'll come to power issue)If this is not also possible, there is an emergency tiller.

-one of the rudders were broken or fell down or got loose so cannot steer. No problem in steering the cat with one rudder. (I crossed the Atlantic Med with one of the rudders bended 30 degrees inwards and angled 40 degrees to other rudder)

-if boat of the rudders are lost, the fixed keel could be (never tried this) somehow manageable with sails. If the guru of catamaran was on board , I am sure they must have given a try.

-It seems that they have lost both engines (which I have never heard of),
they didn't have a genset, a wind generator nor the solar panels.
Is anybody setting sails offshore with this power combination ??

-Again even the sail drives fell down the cats can not be flooded because the water will onlt raise 3-4 inches. This happened to me when the shaft of the rudder cut off and I had only 3-4 inches of water in the engine compartment and nothing on the bilges.

All this can be a good reason for releasing a Pan Pan but not Mayday, assuming that the rig was in place and in good shape.

The skipper should have a better reason ıunknown to us.

Cheers

Yeloya

According to the story:

“Charlie's comments to his wife was that the wave was so big it pushed the boat backward,” he said.
As a result, Cavanaugh said, the boat sustained damage to its rudders and apparently lost its steering capabilities. The engines to the boat also failed, he said.
Those aboard the vessel were then forced to manually pump water out of the boat for more than 50 hours in a row, said Cavanaugh.

Sounds like they lost both rudders, both engines and were taking on water. Maybe since we weren't there we give them a break?

[Cotemar]

Originally Posted by SkiprJohn

Glad the crew is safe!
I have to agree with Boatman's assessment of visual appeal.

The tomahawk bows (wave-piercing-bows) (reverse bows) are even more reversed then a Gunboat.

Here is the explanation as to why they are a good thing.

Wave-Piercing Bows - Aeroyacht

[Vasco]

Guess we'll have to wait to get the real story. Just so strange. Good crew, good boat.

[Flamingo1]

Is it possible that they saved the cooler because it contained a dog or cat that had been on board?