All good questions. First off, practice is key. I am surprised by the number of folks who wait until getting to a bridge to heel for the first time. If one can’t heel out in the bay and not confidently drive a heeled boat out in the bay, then don’t try at a bridge. I am sure the infamous YouTuber was not on their first run about. Someone suggested sailing close hauled. That could be a recipe for ruining your day, week, and more.
Assuming one knows their mast height (MH) above the water and the bridge height (BH), then the angle of heel (A) is a cosine relation: BH/MH = cos(A). But trying to heel to a specific angle is the wrong approach. It is better to fill up the water bag(s) next to your boat, making sure that the filled bag(s) height above the water is greater than the distance you need to heel(i.e., = MH - BH +1ft or more). Then when you swing the water bag(s) out, it will lower as the boat heels. If the bag(s) lower by 3ft then your mast has lowered by 3ft. This is much better than trusting a bubble on an inclinometer. Those who think they can drop an empty bag in the water and winch it up full have never tried. Fill up your bag(s) with a pump. I started off using an old Rule 1500 bilge pump connected to pvc fittings and a long pipe which I would snorkel hook on the bag with the pump submerged. I now also use a wash down pump. Water bags. I know someone who made their own bag and have been using it for years on their Pearson 422. I use three US military water lister bags purchased on Ebay(reminds me of my days as an Army Medic). These lister bags are indestructible, but only hold 36 gallons gallons each. I am now convinced that using multiple bags is a benefit. I purchased 2 lister bags for $20, but when I went to purchase #3, the best price at the time was $40 (i.e $60 total). They should also be readily available at most army surplus stores. I believe in a controlled heel. I use a spinnaker pole with fore and aft guy lines keeping the pole end fixed, a block & line with both ends of the line tied to the water bag(s). Think of a clothesline system to control the water bag going out and coming in. I actually sue two after guys, one lazy, fore of the bag(s), which can be rigged to relax the other, allowing the bag(s) to go out further than the pole length. Don’t skip on control lines. At large heel, the bag(s) will want to move out, but as the heel decreases, the bag(s) want to move back towards the boat. Without a control line, you could have a run away 900lb-ish wrecking ball accelerating towards your boat! That could hurt. - Paul E. 1981 C&C Landfall 38 S/V Johanna Rose Fort Walton Beach, FL http://svjohannarose.blogspot.com/ > On May 4, 2021, at 6:27 PM, Robert Abbott via CnC-List > <cnc-list@cnc-list.com> wrote: > > Interesting video but I can't imagine this is something a first time novice > should attempt....how much weight does your boat need to heel, how high off > the water is the weight, are you confident steering to get the weight from > vertical to mast to heeled over, will the actual heel be enough to clear the > bridge, how do you determine the angle of heel needed to clear the bridge? > > I doubt this was the first time this boat and this skipper did this. > Nevertheless, there still had to be a first time and that must have been > exciting. > > Rob Abbott > AZURA > C&C 32 - 3277 > Halifax, N.S. > > > > On 2021-05-04 6:13 p.m., Bill Coleman via CnC-List wrote: >> That might work, but you will probably shit your pants as you come under it. >> You might experiment with 4 or 500 pounds of garbage hung off your halyard >> and see how much of a lean you get. >> >> 85 Ft Mast Under A 65 Ft Bridge - YouTube >> <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiv0fxFcV3I&t=151s> >> >> >> Bill Coleman >> Entrada, Erie, PA >> >> > > Thanks to all of the subscribers that contributed to the list to help with > the costs involved. If you want to show your support to the list - use > PayPal to send contribution -- https://www.paypal.me/stumurray > <https://www.paypal.me/stumurray> Thanks - Stu
Thanks to all of the subscribers that contributed to the list to help with the costs involved. If you want to show your support to the list - use PayPal to send contribution -- https://www.paypal.me/stumurray Thanks - Stu
