Sailboat sinks in Avalon NJ

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permalink_child@reddit

My guess is that there were two boats scheduled to go out for sailing lessons - with five students each - and most likely the second boat had issues with engine - so the two instructors decided to “save the day” and combine all students into one boat for lesson - a boat which also had engine issues. Not smart.

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Blue_foot@reddit

From my recollection, there isn’t much room for 10 people on a J24.

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mrthomasfritz@reddit

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SomeSchmidt@reddit

3 to 524 is quite the range

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heddalettis@reddit

It’s 3-5.

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trevbeeemcg@reddit

One less J24 in the world

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Scooter87942@reddit

J24’s are overcrowded with 5 aboard. 10 is irresponsible!

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heddalettis@reddit

Thank you. I didn’t want to be quick to judge, but just to the naked eye, the boat looked crowded to me.

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MissingGravitas@reddit

Yep, I'd be uncomfortable having 10 people on a boat twice that size.

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Candygramformrmongo@reddit

Presumably also a breach of USCG Regs

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casacuervo@reddit

Engine issue. No sails were raised. It was a lesson from the local club

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kdjfsk@reddit

Im wondering if they tried to drop anchor at all, or if there just wasnt enough space (or time) for the scope required to hook.

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WaterChicken007@reddit

My club does a lot of racing. None of them have anchors of any kind to save weight. If this was a class then they were likely on a simple race boat that probably didn’t have one either.

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kdjfsk@reddit

Yikes. That seems....not smart. Race or not safety is still #1. Imo anchor weight is way, way, beyond negligible. Its way less than the difference of one more crew, or even less than the difference between a skinny crewman and a portly one. If your not bringing anchors, you better be selecting crew like fighter pilots, horse jockeys and submariners. No one over 5'6" 150 lbs. Lol. Weigh-in's at the dock, if were being that anal about weight. sheeeeeeit, the boat i race on might carry as much weight in bottles of alcohol (beer, liquor, wine combined) as it does anchors, and its has two regular anchors and a storm anchor. If you wanna be that anal, carry the anchors and move them locker to locker as ballast.

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WaterChicken007@reddit

From what I gather, it is fairly common. Not crazy at all. These aren’t cruising boats. Just very basic keel boats with a huge cockpit for 4-6 crew to work the sails. Down below is just used for stowing things while underway. No kitchen, head, bunks, or anything. Just the minimal amount of things required by the coastguard.

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kdjfsk@reddit

Common and crazy are not mutually exclusive. Again, anchors weight less than any long list of things already in/on the boat, and all we need to make a good case for them is the very incident this thread is about. Sailing with no anchor is like driving without brakes. Insane, regardless how common or not, and again, doesnt even make the slightest bit of logical sense. This sounds like bad habits handed down for generations that everyone does because 'thats how its always done'. If everyone used that kind of logic, we'd still be rowing.

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Odd-Condition-4528@reddit

Anchor drop would have been the right choice for sure not sure why it wasn't deployed. It's possible it was deployed but failed due to the large current that flows through Townsend inlet

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TheOperaGhostofKinja@reddit

Back when my dad would take his boat down to that area, he always took the channel between SH and Wildwood even though it was a longer trip. Said Townsend was too rough to sail out of.

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MissingGravitas@reddit

On a J/24? Probably some combination of a) left ashore to save weight, b) buried in the bilge, or c) a small mushroom attached to 30 feet of line.

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ZaaK433@reddit

Did they even have room to raise the sails with 10 aboard?

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Odd-Condition-4528@reddit

No sails we raised probably due to the lack of room in the channel where they were probably would have only accelerated the issue of going into the rocks

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Firm_Objective_2661@reddit

“Ok class, tonight’s lesson will be a practical demonstration of what we mean by ‘lee shore’. Take notes throughout as it will be on the final exam.”

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eight13atnight@reddit

This is precisely why I always have my main and halyard ready to go, in case of engine failure. You can always raise the sail and try to get some control of the boat.

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frak357@reddit

This is a good reminder that disaster like this are because of a series of bad decisions. Also, a good time to review our own safety plans for “what to do” scenarios when things go bad. 🤔

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ppitm@reddit

They can name the replacement boat Wet Exit.

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4runner01@reddit

Glad everyone was rescued. The debriefing will illustrate the many examples of poor seamanship.

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FlickrPaul@reddit

In the video you can see a power boat coming towards them (@1:49). So given the fact that no one was able to secure a line and they took 10 people out on a J24, there is a very good chance these people had no idea what they were doing.

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Sailboat sinks in Avalon NJ

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27 Comments

permalink_child@reddit

Blue_foot@reddit

mrthomasfritz@reddit

SomeSchmidt@reddit

heddalettis@reddit

trevbeeemcg@reddit

Scooter87942@reddit

heddalettis@reddit

MissingGravitas@reddit

Candygramformrmongo@reddit

casacuervo@reddit

kdjfsk@reddit

WaterChicken007@reddit

kdjfsk@reddit

WaterChicken007@reddit

kdjfsk@reddit

Odd-Condition-4528@reddit

TheOperaGhostofKinja@reddit

MissingGravitas@reddit

ZaaK433@reddit

Odd-Condition-4528@reddit

Firm_Objective_2661@reddit

eight13atnight@reddit

frak357@reddit

ppitm@reddit

4runner01@reddit

FlickrPaul@reddit