Boaters: improper anchoring killed the NFL players

[alaskaflyer]

Here is a link to the report on the recent boating incident in Florida that killed the three NFL / college players. Improper anchoring of the boat is the official cause.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4020753

Of course there were, er, other factors too. Call me a wussy but I'm not taking a 21 foot boat into open water that far from shore, and I've been doing this a long time.

Alaska sees a lot of fatalities either from improper anchoring or poor decision making when trying to free stuck anchors.

 

[alaskaflyer]

You would not be called a wussy to take a 21' boat out in the open ocean when the weather was as it was. I talked to people in FL that were headed out that day and turned around at the breakwater because it was too rough. You would be called stupid or suicidal.

Maybe I should have said : "Call me a wussy but I'm not taking a 21 foot boat into open water that far from shore, BECAUSE I've been doing this a long time."

I think the article mentioned it but a lot of folks get away with anchoring from the stern or yanking it out from the transom because they are lucky. Just like in many aspects of life. I saw it all the time before moving to my current boatless location.

I'd rather be good than lucky, I guess.

 

[Geico266]

Maybe I should have said : "Call me a wussy but I'm not taking a 21 foot boat into open water that far from shore, BECAUSE I've been doing this a long time."

I think the article mentioned it but a lot of folks get away with anchoring from the stern or yanking it out from the transom because they are lucky. Just like in many aspects of life. I saw it all the time before moving to my current boatless location.

I'd rather be good than lucky, I guess.

Would not a sea anchor have been more safe on a reef? You know it's gonna get caught on something.

 

[Skip Miller]

Would not a sea anchor have been more safe on a reef? You know it's gonna get caught on something.

A sea anchor just retards your drift, it does not fix you to the bottom. If you are fishing over a reef, more than likely you want to stay put. That's where the fish are....

-Skip

 

[gismo]

Here is a link to the report on the recent boating incident in Florida that killed the three NFL / college players. Improper anchoring of the boat is the official cause.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4020753

Of course there were, er, other factors too. Call me a wussy but I'm not taking a 21 foot boat into open water that far from shore, and I've been doing this a long time.

Alaska sees a lot of fatalities either from improper anchoring or poor decision making when trying to free stuck anchors.

That does seem a fair distance from land but not all 21 footers are created equal. And if you do stupid things in deep water you can get dead no matter how big the boat is. I can't believe they expected their cellphones to work 50 miles offshore! A PLB sure would have been handy to have, eh?

 

[ScottM]

That does seem a fair distance from land but not all 21 footers are created equal. And if you do stupid things in deep water you can get dead no matter how big the boat is. I can't believe they expected their cellphones to work 50 miles offshore! A PLB sure would have been handy to have, eh?

It is a fair distance form land, but the GoM does not get that deep for quite a while. Looking at the chart for that area it was probably only about 100 feet deep. They were getting close to the shelf wher eit would have plunged down, but they were on one of the reefs and that does likely mean more shallow.

http://www.oceangrafix.com/o.g/search-nautical-charts.html

 

[LearDriver]

It sounds as if their may have been some drink involved with this situation. If they didn't have a lot of boating experience they could be in way over their heads inside the harbor.

 

[ScottM]

It sounds as if their may have been some drink involved with this situation. If they didn't have a lot of boating experience they could be in way over their heads inside the harbor.

According to the report they were drinking, had no formal training, nor it would seem common sense.

 

[LearDriver]

Football players can tend to not be the sharpest tools in the shed.

 

[Obi Heed Kenobi]

...

I think the article mentioned it but a lot of folks get away with anchoring from the stern or yanking it out from the transom because they are lucky. Just like in many aspects of life. I saw it all the time before moving to my current boatless location.

....

You mean people do that? I'll be frank - that thought has never even occurred to me before, and I've lost more than a few anchors.

Did I read it right when they said 50 miles out? And they were wearing sweatsuits?

Anybody know what kind of boat it was?

 

[ScottM]

Anybody know what kind of boat it was?

Here are a couple pictures of it.

That is the lone survivor being picked up.

 

[Geico266]

A sea anchor just retards your drift, it does not fix you to the bottom. If you are fishing over a reef, more than likely you want to stay put. That's where the fish are....

-Skip

So snagging your anchor is a better alternative? Drift over the fishing spot, fish it, start the engine, go back , drift it again.

 

[Clark1961]

So snagging your anchor is a better alternative? Drift over the fishing spot, fish it, start the engine, go back , drift it again.

Anchoring isn't a problem.

Not having a knife handy to ensure release of the anchor line at the appropriate time, now that is the problem. A hand who carries a knife is worth a dollar more...

In my book a substantial knife is required for most outdoor activities including flying. I'm suprised more folks don't feel the same way.

 

[Obi Heed Kenobi]

...

In my book a substantial knife is required for most outdoor activities including flying. I'm suprised more folks don't feel the same way.

Absolutely agreed. In my personal opinion, it's a must. You never know what you're going to need it for - cutting things is actually one of the lesser uses of a knife!

 

[bbchien]

...they tried to power their way off an anchor? They what?

I didn't know we made them so dumb......

 

[Obi Heed Kenobi]

Here are a couple pictures of it.

That is the lone survivor being picked up.

We have a 21' boat that's considerably heavier, beefier, and better-balanced than that (not to say that the above is a bad boat, don't mean to imply that at all), and while it's been in the ocean on good days, it's not something I'd take out there anytime other than a morning on a calm day.

Very unfortunate.

 

[gismo]

It is a fair distance form land, but the GoM does not get that deep for quite a while. Looking at the chart for that area it was probably only about 100 feet deep. They were getting close to the shelf wher eit would have plunged down, but they were on one of the reefs and that does likely mean more shallow.

http://www.oceangrafix.com/o.g/search-nautical-charts.html

WRT to boating safety, anything beyond knee deep is too deep to hang around for a couple days. Distance and time from the protection of land is really all that matters.

 

[Trapper John]

Anchoring isn't a problem.

Not having a knife handy to ensure release of the anchor line at the appropriate time, now that is the problem. A hand who carries a knife is worth a dollar more...

In my book a substantial knife is required for most outdoor activities including flying. I'm suprised more folks don't feel the same way.

That was my question, too. Why not just cut the anchor loose? How can you go fishing without at least a pocket knife in your tackle box?

Very sad that three men died over lack of a knife. Or maybe the lack of presence of mind to find or use one. They could have broken a bottle and used the edge to cut the rope, even...


Trapper John

 

[astanley]

I've been way out in a deep V center console like that; I'm not sure, as equipment goes, it's any more or less safe than your Hatteras-style, or even Downeast-style, fishing boat. I'm not sure their equipment made them any more likely to die; it just helped them do it quicker.

Sadly, their lack of on the water experience coupled with no judgement killed them.

 

[ReverendSlappy]

Anchoring isn't a problem.

Not having a knife handy to ensure release of the anchor line at the appropriate time, now that is the problem. A hand who carries a knife is worth a dollar more...

In my book a substantial knife is required for most outdoor activities including flying. I'm suprised more folks don't feel the same way.

Not to say I disagree at all with your point about always -- ALWAYS -- having a good rigging knife handy, but it would appear that having one might not have helped in this particular situation. From the above article:

Around 5:30 p.m., they went to pull up the anchor and head back to port, but the anchor was stuck. Bleakley suggested they tie it to the transom and use the boat's motor to pull it loose.

When Cooper tried to thrust the boat forward, the vessel became submerged and capsized, tossing the men overboard.

So it sounds like they probably were already able to just leave the anchor... But instead they loosed it from the bow, secured it at the stern, hit the throttle and FWOOOMP, over they went. Bad Idea Jeans...

 

[Dart]

Anchoring isn't a problem.

Not having a knife handy to ensure release of the anchor line at the appropriate time, now that is the problem. A hand who carries a knife is worth a dollar more...

In my book a substantial knife is required for most outdoor activities including flying. I'm suprised more folks don't feel the same way.

!!!!

I never boat without a nearby knife. My fishing buddies and I speculated it was an anchoring accident from the first day we heard it. The stern maneuver in heavy seas is just plain stupid. Three lives and at least 50K of boat and gear were lost to save a $100 anchor and some rope. How sad.

The boat was capable enough, if you don't go far in the Gulf you dont get fish. In that area the bottom slopes about a foot per mile and structure (reef, rocks, etc) is rare.

My fishing friends and I routinely head out 20 miles off Canaveral in our 21 footer because that's where the shelf drops begin. Once, we strapped on extra fuel and teamed with another boat to go to the tuna grounds, 100 miles out. It was fun but way too brutal a trip to do again (we only caught a 30 lb tunny and some schoolie dolphin). Down Palm Beach way you can go out five miles and be in the Gulf Stream. Lots of folks head across to the Bahamas in 21 footers from Palm Beach, Ft Lauderdale, and Miami. So, many you are rarely out of sight of another vessel for long.

 

[astanley]

My fishing friends and I routinely head out 20 miles off Canaveral in our 21 footer because that's where the shelf drops begin. Once, we strapped on extra fuel and teamed with another boat to go to the tuna grounds, 100 miles out. It was fun but way too brutal a trip to do again (we only caught a 30 lb tunny and some schoolie dolphin). Down Palm Beach way you can go out five miles and be in the Gulf Stream. Lots of folks head across to the Bahamas in 21 footers from Palm Beach, Ft Lauderdale, and Miami. So, many you are rarely out of sight of another vessel for long.

Ahhh... brings back memories. I swear, salt water sports, especially fishing, makes aviation look like bowling.

Cheers,

-Andrew

 

[Dart]

Ahhh... brings back memories. I swear, salt water sports, especially fishing, makes aviation look like bowling.

Cheers,

-Andrew

I always get a kick out of "turbulence" complaints from airline passengers on a "light chop" day. Yet, many of these same folks will gladly pound into a two foot chop at twenty knots for two hours to get to their favorite fishing holes, only to wallow at anchor for four hours before heading back.

 

[astanley]

I always get a kick out of "turbulence" complaints from airline passengers on a "light chop" day. Yet, many of these same folks will gladly pound into a two foot chop at twenty knots for two hours to get to their favorite fishing holes, only to wallow at anchor for four hours before heading back.

So... as one of those people who was scared s-less of turb when I first started flying, I can relate to the "other" category. I'm not "scared" of a 5, or even 10' set (assuming I'm not in a 21' cc ). I can see it, plan for it, and roll with it. It's the random mechanical turb that always got to me, especially in the 152, because every hit sounds like metal is going to tear off.

Cheers,

-Andrew

 

[Bob Noel]

I've been deep sea fishing twice - got sick Sick SICK both times.

I don't enjoy chop in the airplane either (but haven't blown chow yet).

 

[Frank Browne]

A sea anchor just retards your drift, it does not fix you to the bottom. If you are fishing over a reef, more than likely you want to stay put. That's where the fish are....

-Skip

I think the most often used method is to drift fish over the reef or wreck. It's not easy to anchor with your position fixed perfectly over the exact spot you want to fish.

 

[astanley]

I think the most often used method is to drift fish over the reef or wreck. It's not easy to anchor with your position fixed perfectly over the exact spot you want to fish.

Fishing the drift is a great way to follow smaller feeder fish, too. Just requires more attention... As my uncle said a few years ago, "An anchor is not "set it and forget it!" "

Cheers,

-Andrew

 

[gprellwitz]

Plus, drifting won't damage the reef.

 

[Henning]

Would not a sea anchor have been more safe on a reef? You know it's gonna get caught on something.

Sea anchors just slow your progress and hold your bow into the wind and seas. The way everybody else does it is pulls the anchor line in until vertical, leave it secured to the bow, and drive forward on it. If it's still stuck, cut it off at the water, or tie a float to it, throw it all in the water and come back with dive gear if its valuable (you can buy full anchor tackle for a 21' boat for about $100 or less). The mistake was tying it to the stern because the transom is always where the least reserve buoyancy is and when he pulled forward, it pulled the transom under, and since the engine is there, it filled losing static stability, and since the powerhead on the engine is high and heavy as are 4 football players, she just rolled right over.

 

[Henning]

Fishing the drift is a great way to follow smaller feeder fish, too. Just requires more attention... As my uncle said a few years ago, "An anchor is not "set it and forget it!" "

Cheers,

-Andrew

Depends where you are. Wrecks and artificial reefs are poppin full of fish and life, but if you get off just a bit, especially in the GOM, you're in a vast desert with mostly shrimp and some flat fish.

 

[Henning]

I always get a kick out of "turbulence" complaints from airline passengers on a "light chop" day. Yet, many of these same folks will gladly pound into a two foot chop at twenty knots for two hours to get to their favorite fishing holes, only to wallow at anchor for four hours before heading back.

I just ran 10 hrs at 31.7kts in 2-4s, If I could always have 2 to 4s I'd be a happy camper.