June 2, 2019
Sir Robin's conclusions
In recent days, our colleagues working on the #EsmeraldaOK page talk about the report of Sir Robin Knox-Johnston on the results of the Golden Globe Race.
So we got to the part of the report where Sir Robin makes the final conclusions. We give them to you with some clarifications.
Sir Robin begins with a remark that each of the boats participating in #GGR or # GGR2018 is individual and has its own characteristics (even different instances of the same model). However, the vast majority of tipping cases (except for the case of Gregor McGuckin and the first two cases of Uku Randmaa) fit into the same scheme.
In most cases, the boats were not kept either by a floating anchor or pearls. At some point, they either turned over to the breaking wave, or broke into the brocching.
Everything is more or less clear with broking. A modern or fast classic yacht, if it is not hampered by a floating anchor and / or pearls, rolls down from the slope of a big wave, like a surfer. At the same time, it develops a much higher speed than in normal conditions. If on her way there is a rather steep wave, the boat can simply crash into it and, as it were, bury its nose in the water. The result is an almost instantaneous stop. In this case, the boat either turns around its axis and stacks sideways into the water, or tries to tumble through the nose.
As for the reversal side to the wave – there can be many different reasons. The wave may come from an unexpected side (in this case it does not matter much whether you are using a floating anchor or not). A boat may lose control because the steering wheel suddenly appeared not in the water, but above its surface …
Big waves are tricky stuff. On a stormy surface, water moves differently. Now the boat is moving forward, overtaking the water, but the next time the water (surface layer) already quickly runs off the steep slope of the wave going from the stern and begins to overtake the boat. At this moment, the steering wheel either stops working or starts to work in the opposite direction, because the boat, as it were, is moving back towards the water. Here a lot depends on the yachtsman's readiness for such a development of events.
As you can see – there are many nuances. But this does not prevent us from making an important conclusion: the use of floating anchors or pearls increases the chances of successful passing of the storm.
From our side, we add that good preparation, experience and understanding of the processes occurring in water and air during a storm are no less important.
173 June 2, 2019 # 9061
Chief Editor
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What do you think?