Clipper Round the Word Race -Sarah Young

Sarah young was swept off the deck of her boat competing in this race and didn't survive. Condolences to all who knew her....
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/sailor-dies-clipper-round-world-race-n549441

 

Very, very unfortunate she was not tethered on. Individual crew mates sometimes pause and decide to skip tethering on while changing positions on deck. This can obviously be a fatal mistake [especially] in cold, rough seas. Her family opted for a ceremonial burial at sea...all yachts pausing for a moment of silence. RIP Sarah Young.

 

Joseph,as I understand it, this is the second fatality associated with the same boat-do you think there's a problem there?

 

Hi Doug, I have sailed with skipper Darren Ladd. He's a hell of a skipper. You won't find many better for team cohesion and sailing experience. The first incident was a freak accident...hit by the boom at night during a storm...most common accident in sailing.

This accident was different, but I'll say a couple of things:

1. The Clipper 70's are faster, more agile boats than the previous Clipper fleets. They are at their best when heeling over and flying fast. There's always a crew member or two who periodically second guess the ocean & whether to tether when swapping positions. At night you're nuts if you don't tether and will get an earful from crew mates. During the day you had better be acutely aware of every single wave approaching the yacht. Some do it religiously well and even then they clip on. Some occasionally don't and get screamed at. The North Pacific & Southern Ocean in particular are highly unpredictable. Even on the nicest of days a big wave will just surprise everyone and smash into the boat. Curse the sea Gods!!!

2. Both fatalities were from RTW crew (they were sailing the full 40,000+ miles). Every boat has a handful of them. They're the "salty dogs" of the boat. In my opinion, and this is [only] my opinion, some RTW crew get a bit ahead of themselves and bend the rules when they see fit. They try to emulate the skipper. Leggers (those doing only a few legs) generally give them the benefit of the doubt that they know what they're doing. In my opinion, this overconfidence is part of the problem. Sarah was an RTW. Brave and full of confidence. Very energetic. However, even the best though are no match if unprepared for a wave. It's Russian roulette.

I religiously tethered myself and I fully respected the behavior of the Clipper 70's. They are fantastic, tough boats. The deck layout is very safe & well thought out. No question sailors will want to sail & surf huge waves on them for years to come.

 

Thanks very much for your insight, Joseph!

 

Thanks Joseph. That was very helpful and respectfully done.