Posted by David Bamford on April 20, 2009 at 11:13:39 user David.
In Reply to: Peter Duck - an alternative. posted by Owen Roberts on April 20, 2009 at 00:53:09:
Most of the Swallows seem to have pocket knives, so let's work on what can be done with them. Firstly, cast off the halyards from the belaying pins and pull the upper end through the masthead sheave. For a longer delay, cut the halyards in half. Even if they were re-spliced, a short splice won't go through the sheave. It would not be necessary to cut them all, just the peak halyards of the main and foresail would do it. Someone who doesn't mind getting wet could go overboard and with the pocketknife again, unpick a length of caulking from between planks just below the waterline. The leak caused would not be discovered until the Viper was well out to sea. As the Viper settled in the water, the leak would be deeper and under greater pressure, causing the inflow to increase. Take it from me, working a bilge pump is exhausting work! The Viper would have to return to Crab Island to be beached and careened.
David