Going Home – A Sea Story

Dismasting A Hobie Getaway

  Once again I tried and failed to keep up with blog updates on my vacation.  There was just way too many things going on.  Places to go, people to see!  One of the things I was looking forward to was renting a Hobie Cat from the Mission Bay Sailing Center.  Mi Jung and I had rented a Hobie Getaway, ( A 16 foot rotomolded catamaran made by Hobie Cat.).  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hobie_Getaway.  While they are not as high performance as the Hobie 16 I used to sail.  They are still a lot of fun and are made to be a social cruising cat.  It is still fun to take out on the water and sail around.

  I made plans to meet up with Kathy at Mission Bay Yacht Club after I rented the boat and was some single-handed sailing in.  I picked up the boat with no problem and made a couple of laps around the bay before sailing to the club to pickup my waiting crew.  We proceded to sail for an additional 20 – 30 minutes.  By this time the wind had really begun to pick up, and we had the boat pretty well dialed in and charging up the north west side of Mission Bay.

  All of a sudden, we heard a loud BANG, as the boat de-accelerated hard, and the mast came crashing down!  We were sitting on the windward “high” side of the boat, so there was really no danger of us being hit by the mast, however if there had  been more people on board, or where in the middle of tacking of gybing things could have turned out quite different!

  So after the mast fell, Kathy asked, “So, now what do we do? I replied, “We drift!”  Fortunately, we were not far from shore, and the wind and current on the upper side of the bay pushed us right up to shore.  We did not have our cell phone on us, nor did I remember the number to the rental company.   There was no way for us to just call the rental place and have them send their boat.  So while I stayed with the boat Kathy began the long walk around Mission Bay back to Santa Clara Point.

  Luck smiled on us again and another rental boat had run aground and the rental company already had their rescue boat on our side of the bay. Kathy was able to have the rental company come and pick us up while they towed our boat in.

  I have sailed boats long enough to know that these things happen, not to panic or get overly excited about it. You now have  a good sea story to tell at the bar later. Kathy was a great sport and didn’t panic or get overly excited. 

  There are always things to learn from your boating experiences, and this was no exception.

1 – Never trust a rental boat.  Thoroughly inspect the equipment before taking it out.  Are all the clevis pins for side stays and forestays in place?  Ask when the last time they inspected the rigging connections on the top of the mast? If they will let you explain that you would like to inspect it yourself and ask if you could have them capsize the boat on the beach to perform the inspection.  Thourally inspect the shackles that hold the forestay, side stays, and other wires such as trapezes if installed.  If you are not satisfied request the rental company make corrections or provide you with another boat. 

2 – Make sure you have a means of communication.  I would recommend a waterproof VHF Marine radio.  That way you can communicate with other boaters, the US Coast Guard, or Harbor Police in the area if you need assistance. At the very least carry a cell phone in a waterproof container and make sure you get the number to the rental company before heading out.

  We still have a good time while it lasted.  I am not sure if I will rent from the same company again, next trip I may just put the word out that I am looking to barrow a Hobie Cat from one of the Hobie Fleets that I have sailed with. 

  Sorry for no pictures to go along with this blog,  I had planned on it, but sometimes life jumps up to bite you in the butt!

  Be sure to return next weekend for another great Brent’s World blog!  If you wish to be notified by email when new content is posted, consider registering by CLICKING HERE!