Popular marina lashing

[BelleSerene]

I made the silly mistake the other day of buying a copy of Sailing Today from the news stand. Don't ask - I honestly can't remember why - I know there's no excuse for it.

Anyway, I was amazed to read what ST was passing for sound advice in an article by some instructor, about warping your boat round on a mooring and then tying up again. It advocated a bowline to a figure of eight around a bow cleat - and then *the same line* back to amidships as a spring. And the same arrangement at the stern: stern to pontoon cleat, figure of eight and carry on knitting forward to tie it off amidships. All complete with photos of the finished pontoon embroidery and a description of the author's OXO method: one loop all the way round the cleat, figure of eight on the cleat and a further loop all the way round it, before shooting the warp off in the direction of your next deck cleat.

Would fellow forumites say:
(a) "that's ridiculous. Your boat'll be secure but a bugger to move when you want to. For God's sake, any instructor not showing people that one line for one job is best for all purposes should be stripped of his ticket"
(b) "what's wrong with that?"
(c) "it's really a subjective matter and it would be equally fine for an RYA instructor to publish an article explaining to newbies that you should take your mooring warps to a round turn and two half hitches around the masts of the fore and aft yachts on the pontoon if he thinks that system has merits"

[NormanS]

(a)

[DogWatch]

b and c

I have often used a single spring (my properly long strops for tidal walls) to make off the fore and aft and bring back to the centre cleat to act as springs.

I am not going to empty my rope locker to tie up to a pontoon.

[oldfatgit]

I have an eclectic method of securing my boat which I have been forcefully told by a YM Ocean Instructor is “incorrect”. I use it when in my own mooring and in other locations when I am sure that it does not interfere with other boats lines. So I am in the c) camp as long as the method is safe, adequate and reliable. I do not ascribe to dogmatically following the book method for such things. I might add that my method makes leaving a mooring easier, rather than more difficult.

[VicS]

Definitely one line to one job.

Also not keen on the amidship cleats. I prefer springs to run the full length.

[Ubergeekian]

Originally Posted by BelleSerene

Would fellow forumites say:
(a) "that's ridiculous. Your boat'll be secure but a bugger to move when you want to. For God's sake, any instructor not showing people that one line for one job is best for all purposes should be stripped of his ticket"
(b) "what's wrong with that?"
(c) "it's really a subjective matter and it would be equally fine for an RYA instructor to publish an article explaining to newbies that you should take your mooring warps to a round turn and two half hitches around the masts of the fore and aft yachts on the pontoon if he thinks that system has merits"

(b) and (c). Also

(d) Aren't there more important things to worry about than how other people choose to tie up their boats?

[DogWatch]

Originally Posted by VicS

Definitely one line to one job.

Why?

EDIT>> And I am presuming you meant one line per job rather than agreeing with my earlier post.

[mcframe]

Originally Posted by BelleSerene

Would fellow forumites say:
(a) "that's ridiculous. Your boat'll be secure but a bugger to move when you want to. For God's sake, any instructor not showing people that one line for one job is best for all purposes should be stripped of his ticket"
(b) "what's wrong with that?"
(c) "it's really a subjective matter and it would be equally fine for an RYA instructor to publish an article explaining to newbies that you should take your mooring warps to a round turn and two half hitches around the masts of the fore and aft yachts on the pontoon if he thinks that system has merits"

(d) Whatever the skipper wants - being able to dictate the *precise* method is one of the perks of the job.

I learned from a friend[0] who likes light-lines OXO'd to the pontoon, then replaced with heavy lines with big (out-of shore-side reach) bowlines (with a turn round the cleat upright) and OXOs onboard - specifics for the way springs go to windlass & primary winch.

Other skippers like midships lines to stop the boat, etc.

First time out (If I can't remember how we were tied up originally) I'll stop the boat from drifting away, then ask.

On *my* boat, well, it gets done *my* way.
( I use colour-coded bow/stern lines & springs, and make them adjustable from on board and even cheese them on deck sometimes 'cos I'm borderline OCD ;-)

For extra fun - on a fully crewed boat - practice the "flick bowline"[1] as you saunter down the pontoon and drop a loop on a cleat and shout "Made!" to onboard crew to take up the slack ;-)

When rafting, or passing a line ashore, *always* pass a bowline or soft eye, so you retain control.

[0] 'tis fun when we raft on *his* anchor, and I insist that *he's* the pontoon (bigger boat), so we do the lines *my* way ;-)
[1] Hard to describe, but if you have a loop with towards-standing-end in your left hand and a bit of working end in your right hand, you can flick the working end under-towards-you-then-over whilst pushing right-hand bight towards and through left-hand bight, then pull it away with left hand to leave an upside-down bowline.

[marklucas]

I'm in the if the boat's still there then it was OK.

This obviously depends on the boat, the mooring, nearby hazards, weather and tide.

But please don't use a bowline to tie up a boat - it can't be undone under tension - round turn and two half hitches is the way to go, and as it incorporates a round turn, it will minimise chafe.

Best initial mooring technique (at least for the stern line) is to simply drop a loop of warp over the aft pontoon cleat. It allows you to instruct the helmsman or, if singlehanded, secure the stern whilst SWMBO steps gracefully off amidships to do the bow line. After a few practices, it's a doddle.

[BelleSerene]

Originally Posted by Ubergeekian

(b) and (c). Also

(d) Aren't there more important things to worry about than how other people choose to tie up their boats?

For clarification: absolutely. The question is about what trained instructors should be teaching newbies, not what an experienced, competent person should do on his own yacht.