Saved a life today!

badvinny

badvinny

Location
Saskatoon,SK
Pretty sure he wouldn't have made it! Went skiing with my neighbor attention lake, pretty rough and windy on our large lake. We saw what looked like a small homemade houseboat but as we got closer we saw it was an overturned catamaran with a small 18 foot boat circling it.
This 60ish very fat and unfit guy flipped the boat and couldn't get it righted, the boat circling was no help with women and kids and everybody to chicken or cold to jump in and help. So we jumped in, righted the boat, and the guy was so spent he couldn't get back in, he could barely hang on and I am sure he would have slipped under in 10 more minutes.
We lifted him onto the boat and let him rest, but he didn't think he could sail it back, 4th time sailing and he really. Had no business being out there. So i skied back to land and had a boat take me back out so I could get him back in safely as he clearly couldn't. My neighbor had to calm me down because I don't relate well to utter stupidity.
I think he was in shock besides being worn out, pretty sure he knows how close he came to the light today.
Lost his camera, hat, hearing aids but that's nothing compared to how it could have turned out. He said thanks to me and I went off skiing, didn't want to miss the waves!
 
Big Kahuna

Big Kahuna

Administrator
Location
Tuscaloosa, AL
If he was on a Hobie 18 without a righting bag he would never get it righted. If it was a 16 then it takes about 220 lbs to right one if you know what your doing. Good job.
 
badvinny

badvinny

Location
Saskatoon,SK
It was an 18, he was hanging on to the hull with his head above water when we showed. The 2 of us got it righted and had to lift him on after, he was very disoriented and my buddy had to tell me to let him relax because he saw the distress, I was cheezed somebody would be so stupid with no skills and possibly putting other people in jeopardy like the other family, I don't think they could have done it. In cold rough water the job gets 10 times harder than on land.
No harm done though, happy he's safe! Just changed my afternoon plans a bit.
 
Big Kahuna

Big Kahuna

Administrator
Location
Tuscaloosa, AL
18's are a handfull if single handing in heavy air..... Hell, My 16 gets scary sometimes when the wind picks up. I went out one day last summer, a storm was about 30 miles away, alot of side draft winds. Did not know how hard it was until I crossed a point where the wind was blocked. Took everything I had to keep her down on both hulls, did not even try to fly a hull, I was worried how I was going to Tack with it so strong but was able to get across and waited until I passed an area that blocked the wind some......... Turned around, went back, made one more pass across, and then barely made it back, the wind had died completely!
 
steve-uk

steve-uk

Manners cost nothing
Location
Barrie - ontario
badvinny said:
Pretty sure he wouldn't have made it! Went skiing with my neighbor attention lake, pretty rough and windy on our large lake. We saw what looked like a small homemade houseboat but as we got closer we saw it was an overturned catamaran with a small 18 foot boat circling it.
This 60ish very fat and unfit guy flipped the boat and couldn't get it righted, the boat circling was no help with women and kids and everybody to chicken or cold to jump in and help. So we jumped in, righted the boat, and the guy was so spent he couldn't get back in, he could barely hang on and I am sure he would have slipped under in 10 more minutes.
We lifted him onto the boat and let him rest, but he didn't think he could sail it back, 4th time sailing and he really. Had no business being out there. So i skied back to land and had a boat take me back out so I could get him back in safely as he clearly couldn't. My neighbor had to calm me down because I don't relate well to utter stupidity.
I think he was in shock besides being worn out, pretty sure he knows how close he came to the light today.
Lost his camera, hat, hearing aids but that's nothing compared to how it could have turned out. He said thanks to me and I went off skiing, didn't want to miss the waves!
Click to expand...

good job man! see not all jet skiers are dinks! :)
 
badvinny

badvinny

Location
Saskatoon,SK
I sail a fair bit in rough water on 16s and never a problem. That 18 handled horrible, and the wind was a mess, it sat dead facing the wind. Once I finally got it moving it was fine.
We had an 18 years ago, but I liked it, I hated this thing.
 
tor*p*do

tor*p*do

Squarenose FTW
Site Supporter
Location
NW NC
Good job!
I have towed in many a boat/ski on my SN, but never saved a life.
Biggest boat was a 24 foot cuddy cabin that broke down full of women and kids.
Pulled them a mile back to the marina
 
Big Kahuna

Big Kahuna

Administrator
Location
Tuscaloosa, AL
kswiatk said:
I think flipping it is the fun part.
Always remember to have enough tension on the line to be able to pull it out of cleat...
https://instagram.com/p/5XO_pXPcik/


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
LOL. Only time I flipped one was back in 1992. I was soloing out in the gulf, weighed about 160......... Pop, over I went. nobody else out. not enough weight to right it normally, put the bows into the wind, pulled the jib up top, then let the wind do the work!!!!!!!!!!! I know I need to "Flip" mine to get some practice. But I got 220 lbs on me now! Knock on wood, in 3 years I have not flipped it yet. came close a few times. Memorial day we had some strong winds, had someone else with me, he was hiked out..... buried the nose, could see the bottom of the leeward rudder!!!!!!! No Pitch pole though.
 

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