Helping dock “crew” do the right thing
Issue 79: July/Aug 2011
When we bring our 1979 C&C 30, Callisto, into a dock, I like to have the docklines made fast and their ends positioned so helping hands on the dock can easily get hold of them.
For years, I’ve tried to find a slip knot that would work with my 1/2 -inch docklines and my 1⁄4 -inch lifelines. I finally gave up. I would much prefer using a knot rather than a device for attaching any kind of lines on my boat, but the solution I came up with has proved to be handy, quick, and secure.
We whipped our white docklines with blue whipping line and added a band of red Rescue Tape to make them stand out.
Next, we added stainless-steel holder rings on both sides of our boat at locations that are the easiest to reach from the dock. We fastened the rings to the lifelines with stainless-steel wire, using a Clamptite tool.
Our docklines are 1/2 inch and are fairly new and flexible, so our rings have an inside diameter of just over 1 inch. If your lines are stiff, you might need to go to a larger inside diameter.
As we approach a dock, all we have to do is push a loop of a dockline into its ring. With the distinctive markings on the docklines, it’s easy to direct helpful dockmates to grab and use the line with the red end . . . rather than “helpfully” yanking on our stanchions or lifelines.
Michael Facius is Good Old Boat’s publisher and advertising manager. He and his wife, Patty, sail their 1979 C&C 30, Callisto, out of Bayfield, Wisconsin, on Lake Superior. They have been sailing since 1986, beginning with an O’Day 20.
Thank you to Sailrite Enterprises, Inc., for providing free access to back issues of Good Old Boat through intellectual property rights. Sailrite.com
