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| The tiller pin to hold the rope |
About Us
- Ian and Irene Jameison
- In 1977 we hired our first narrowboat from Anglo Welsh at Market Harborough.From that moment our destiny was set. In 2006 we finally purchased our own brand new 57' narrowboat which we named 'Free Spirit'. Our aim is to travel the length and breadth of all the navigable rivers and canals of the UK. This will be our story as it unfolds.
Monday 26 May 2014
Hmmm.... What to do with the stern rope.
It's been one of those days where not much has gone on. We saw a mad exodus of all the moored boats this morning leaving us very much on our own. No nasty mishaps with the rope today but I have had a few comments, not just on the blog, but from Facebook as well giving some sound advice on how to store our stern rope. Ian has installed another tiller pin on the tiller specifically to hold our rope. He did this for me when I jumped off the stern with rope in hand but not attached to boat! The boat drifted away from me and it was only by Ian stretching and grabbing the center rope that stopped the boat from making a break for it. So having it curled up on the pin works for us. So the loads of advice I have had about leaving it on the roof probably should be tried but... What if I had to jump off in an emergency and found I had no time to first attach the rope it to the dolly. Would I have time to even think about it? After all how many times has the wind taken the stern away from the bank when you least expect it. With no rope attached I doubt I would be quick enough to loop it round the dolly first. So as to yesterdays incident it was just a stupid mishap. Neither of us saw the rope hanging in the water and I'm still unsure as to how it got detached from the pin. For me personally we will continue to rap it round the second tiller pin but from now on check it is well secured.
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2 comments:
Having read Keith's comment yesterday, he's absolutely right. The rope should be coiled on the slide. I always have mine with the loop visible, so it's easy to slip it over the dolly as you get off.
The other part of your story about the tiller going hard over highlights another pet hate of mine -- people who stand in the arc of the tiller. Everyone on the boat should be in front of the tiller. I constantly see people with it tucked under their arm, or standing on the counter. If the rudder hits something they could easily be swept off the back of the boat into water with a large prop ready to suck them in.
As an owner with a trad stern, I used to wrap it around the tiller pin but for several years now I have used the method adopted by working boaters - coiled on the hatch. Hasn't been a problem and it's safe.
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