Advice: Solo- Panama to LA Aug 2023 ~ 30 days

[llamadingo]

Originally Posted by SailingHarmonie

Whenever I tell people that I will NEVER put a dinghy on davits underway, they tell me I am being silly.

"Everybody" does it, they say.
Nothing to worry about, they say.
Nothing can go wrong, they say.
Don't be a p***y, they say.

Normally, a safety line on any outboard is a good idea. I guess it is a good thing you did not have one. Having the outboard hanging and banging around might have been worse than just losing it.

Well I'm not sure the comments people have made to you are actually helpful. General and anecdotal "advice" rarely is and i can't comment on that.

However, I would respectfully ask for clarification on your statement. Setting aside your personal preferences and risk tolerance, walk me through your thought process. I like to understand the WHY. A few specific questions, if you don't mind

1. When you say "a dinghy" donyoubmean all dinghies both with or without motor¿

2. When you say "never', you mean from one bay to another as a hard and fast rule? I.e. 1 mile vs 100 miles in all weather and sea conditions?

3. Where do put your dinghy? On the foredeck? Towing? Other? Where do put your outboard (if you have one) and how is it attached or stored?

4. What is your crew situation? Do you have crew or are you single-handing?

5. What type of dinghy davit system are you referring to (I assume you mean the one you personally have) Or do mean any and all? Are there additional backup connection systems in addition to the davits? Does it even matter if there are redundant syatems and why?

I'd just like to understand because otherwise iyour advice is...well just more "anecdotal advice".

In my particular case, I have a beefy Arch with 2‐ 3/8 inch tubing. In addition to the davits and line pulley system I run a backup set of 2 inch wide ratchet tie down straps rated at 3,333 lbs each going over both standing Arch tubes. Dinghy is further secured from forward aft movement by lines from bow and stern of dinghy to yacht port and starboard stern cleats. I have ZERO issues to continue hanging and transporting a dinghy *without motor* leveraging the system I currently have in place.

Regarding motor, I contemplated long and hard about removing the outboard from the dinghy and attaching it to the back of the boat on a outboard plate mounted to the stern rail. There are inherent risks there too as it would be secured the same way to the plate as it was to the transom of the dinghy- using the engine clamps (which it was the connection system on the outboard which ended up failing regardless.)

My rationale for my final decision was determined by my particular set-up, situation and circumstances rather than a one-size fits all approach. After reading about abandon ship incidents using the dinghy (in addition to having a liferaft), there are cases of self rescue by dinghy 30-50 miles from shore. Having self propulsion vs "liferaft only"was a consideration. Being a solo sailor, sailing regularly at night and remote locations with poor emergency support infrastructure were additional considerations. In my case, redundancy swayed my decision towards the configuration I ended up with.

Regarding a safety line, I agree that a banging and swinging motor might cause more harm than good. However, there is some merit to strapping the motor directly as way to reduce/distribute load off the back of the dinghy transom and an accommodation I will consider going forward.

Just my thoughts and rational to help the decisioning be made by the circumstance.

Sailing Harmony -I understand you may never donit, but again Im looking to understand the rationale so I may become a better decision maker. I look forward to your thoughts/comments.

Best,
Kevin

[llamadingo]

FUEL UPDATE:

I sailed "the heck out this boat", getting as much speed as possible and leveraging the 20-25 kts of wind over two days, pushing as late as 11pm day 1. While it was a little rough on the body (hours of engagement + tension) and the vessel, I went from 2 kts SOG to 6.5-6.7 kts. So good news is I changed the equation, reducing a few days off ETA. As a result, I bypassed San Quintin without stopping but I felt assured about having the option and a method (flagging panga) and something I will remember in the future.

Things have slowed but it's estimated that I arrive in 24 hours with 2.8 kts SOG now with 66 miles remaining and 40 gallons of diesel on deck before I hit Ensenada.

Thanks again for the good advice on working with locals, locations and backup plans, understanding Mexico authorized fuel stations and well, being scrappy and how to get things done.

Best,
Kevin

[donradcliffe]

Hope you made it to LA by now, and successfully checked out of Mexico and into the USA. There are little details to navigate like what to do with the TIP, DTOPS, and ROAM.

[llamadingo]

Originally Posted by donradcliffe

Hope you made it to LA by now, and successfully checked out of Mexico and into the USA. There are little details to navigate like what to do with the TIP, DTOPS, and ROAM.

Hi donradcliff-

Yes I arrived safely, thank you! Agree and good mentions. I had no communications regarding TIP , other than another cruiser telling me not to give it up (as it's good forn10 years.) No query about it.

I'd used the ROAM app (and had issues before in Puerto Rico, and USVI...) inenddd up Uninstaller and reinstalling.) Thanks for the follow up!

I truly appreciate everyone's support.

Best,
Kevin