Is it dangerous, sailing at sea?
Safety at sea, a good example to look at is the Vendee Globe, it has started last weekend. The Vendee is a race I closely follow, and one of my favorites is Boris Hermann. In 2021 he had a good position for he podium when he was close to the finish. But during his last sleep he collided with a fishing trawler. He wasn’t hurt, but his race was over.
The Northsea has changed
I remember sailing in the end of nineties on the Northsea. There were no windmill farms and there was much less traffic. Routing was easier, but on the other hand, we did not have AIS, Epirb or Internet. We had VHF and DECCA.
Technology has developed, especially on the electronic side. But risk will always be there and the most important thing is to acknoledge it and concider the required measures and preventions.
Racing and cruising is not the same. In a race yachts are pushed much harder and the risk level increases. Therefore formula one races are a good example to look at, in the perspective of risk.
Safety at sea, do we need more?
When I summarise the safety devices and features on our boat, there is quite a lot. Answer on the question do we need more, is Yes, a lot. This is because we start commercial cruising. We will write another article about this. But you can check our Safety page for a start.
Keep your eyes open
The picture above is from our return trip from Woolverstone end of October. When I look at it now, I think, OK the yellow line of the lifesling should be tied up better and onto the hull. Always keep your eyes open.
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