Recent content by Roger Long

Been there, done that. Didn't even call TowBoatUS. Just kept an eye on the low exhaust to be sure water didn't enter it and secured some furniture against the heel. Three hours later, we floated off and continued to our anchorage. Some situations require asking for and giving help. This...

I did help. I anchored in view. I gave him our vessel name and kept my radio on in case he needed a radio relay, had a medical issue, had a power failure after re-floating and was drifting down the waterway. As for the rest, I take it you didn't look at the chart. Doing anything just yards...

I meant an hour or so after dark when slack water would have let us work that closely to the daymark. We encountered him just two hours before low tide that day and he was afloat and anchored peacefully on his own by normal bed time. Do you really think I should have endangered both boats and...

Pine Island just north of Saint Augustine. The tri was grounded at "A", we anchored at "B", and he was anchored the next morning at "C" where the picture was taken. The northen channel is shoaled for our draft. I think he probably grounded sailing into the wrong channel. We couldn't have...

I gave him our boat's name, told him we would anchor in sight, and to call if his situation changed. Also, who doesn't have a cell phone these days? We could see a tower. We would have relayed a radio call if he asked but why embarrass him further by making an unsolicited radio call? It also...

Nope. Seeing him at anchor (where the photo was taken) the next morning confirmed that I made the right decision. As I said in another reply, if the day mark hadn't been just down current, I might have anchored and tried to work something out just for the fun and satisfaction of it. But, he...

We'd planned to anchor there anyway as not an immediate medical emergency (now doing PT). A big factor is not knowing the competence of the person on the other end of the tow line although I was getting some hints. My crew is neither trained nor competent to handle the vessel if the anchor...

We're going down the waterway southbound at 8.5 SOG with RPM set for 7.0 knots on a falling tide when we come across a triamaran close to shore with the solo occupant standing in the water pushing on the bow. He starts waving frantically. I pull in as close as I can and yell if he has a radio...

Yes. Quite simple :) The center of gravity of a typical trawler will usually be between 80 and 90 percent of the hull depth amidships. Depth is measured from the fairbody line to the main deck at midships. The fairbody is where the line of the flattish portion of the hull next to the...

I only worked with USCG regulations for commercial vessels over a decade ago so I'm not familiar with the recreational standards established by various nations subsequently.

Roll period is independent of roll angle. Think of a pendulum. You only need to produce enough roll to be able to see when a cycle starts and stops and time it. If you watch closely, 2-3 degrees will give you a measurement. You are way off base on the initial vs ultimate business but too much...

Yes. Leave that ballast right where it is.

Go deeper into the weeds here if you didn't see the link before: https://www.cruisingonstrider.us/Stability.htm Focus is on sail but much is applicable to powerboats.

Hard to say but it takes very little excitement to produce a good roll if the period exactly matches the vessel's natural roll period. I doubt underwater currents would have a consistent pulsing period. If a cross current, it could be that the particular hull shed a vortex off the keel that got...

Rather than try to individually correct some misconceptions in the two stability / rolling threads, I’ll offer this explanation: The period of a vessel’s roll is a function of two factors, GM and how weight is distributed out from the center of gravity. Think of a vessel with some lead...