mast climbing solo under way

[phildowney]

hi,
as i intend to race solo im trying to work out a method of climbing the mast easily and safely to be able to sort out any problems that should arise.
id also like to be able to use the system to pop up a mast on my own whilst alongside to save the bother of getting someone to winch me up.

the one time i did it before was using a block at the mast foot and a jerrycan full of water that weighed the same as me that i hoisted up the rig first . it worked a treat but was a bit of a faff
any ideas?
im sure the solo ocean racers have it sewn up but i cant find anything
apparently on big boats wireless remote controlled electric winches work well!
all the best , phil

[Michel]

Phil,

There is a thread elsewhere on this board about mast climbing, both solo and assisted. Using water ballast is also discussed.

Best,

[AlanK]

I use an ATN mast climber when alone. Very secure but takes a bit to set up and get used to. After that works well.
I have an electric winch so when I am not alone I use that (witha harness not a seat) and that of course is easier.

[THATBOATGUY]

I screwed up and lost both our halyards off of the main mast. Looking at the bare pole I actually investigated the tie-your-feet-together style of climbing coconut trees... briefly. I borrowed a 24 foot extension ladder that is lashed down to the sprit and lashed laterally to the mast. While standing near the top of this arrangement I'm less than 30 feet from the masthead and have two 15 foot boathooks duct tapped together with a clip at the end. I have a drill bit taped to some string that I'm trying to fish into the pulley up there. So far, wind has kept me from success. I've had the drill bit into the slot, then pulled down on the pole to release it but unfortunately this tilted the bit down on the string end and that caused it to simply fall back out. :/ Once the wind calms again, I'll give it another shot, this time with the clip arranged for an upward motion release. Wish me luck.

All this is my long way of wishing I had mast steps. But it has also born some interesting design notes for steps that can be deployed and retrieved, even on masts such as ours, without drilling a hole. Unfortunately we are far from my shop. Maybe this spring I'll have some show and tell for the group.

George

[numbknots]

George,

Both halyards, really? I would think there must be a 17 yr old near by that woud be able to shinny up that mast for a reasonable price. After all they are
good for something. Saw a guy at the marina do it on a dare the other day, brilliant display of abandon. Main thing....be careful! Numbknots

[GeoffSchultz]

George, forget the mast steps. They do terrible things to the wind flow. And I can basically assure you that you won't repeat this mistake! Good luck!

-- Geoff

[phildowney]

hi
stuff ladders and stuff , what you need is a bosuns chair and the main halyard of a larger boat alongside, have a`word with someone with a bigger boat!
either that or pull a bigger halyard through the flag halyard block
phil

[phildowney]

ive heard of some realy nasty stories about people getting kiled using mast steps and would never have them, at least not the enclosed variety
phil

[THATBOATGUY]

No flag halyard.

I could go up the mast of a bigger boat along side and that would give me a real nice view of it... heh heh

I had the drill bit into it again this morning, but couldn't get the release right. Next calm, I might just put a loop of webbing up there with another block on it that has a line through it already and hoist my self up the rest of the way. I still have plenty of other stuff going on so I'm only working at this when it's calm and then only taking a couple tries at it so I don't get too aggravated.

George

[phildowney]

hi i meant you put the masts level abeam, put a strop round your mast then use the other boats halyard to winch you up
phil