How can we minimize head injuries due to boom / jibe impacts?
- Thread starter Pete M
- Start date
Snaggletooth
SA's Morrelle Compasse
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Cane we gette these with additionalle paddeng and mabey some rigide reinforsente?
"Soy el mejor puto marinero!!!!"
"Soy el mejor puto marinero!!!!"
Mambo Kings
Super Anarchist
I love my Viper
8.7 (iv) A fabric sleeve, line or tape may be added to the boom to prevent the mainsheet drooping between blocks.
Mostly we all use fabric sleeves.
I am in the market for a helmet. What do folks recommend? I like what Grace wears because it looks strong,light, compact and does not block the ears.
Mambo Kings
Super Anarchist
Im liking the Gath Gedi with the peak. , provided I can lose the ear pieces.Last I looked I thought the Gath helmets were the best option that provided protection but minimized the risk of the helmet being so big it catches the boom when your bare head would not have done so, the sides taper a bit to reduce catching a mainsheet, and the straps are better thought out with clips and adjustments at the sides, not direclty under your chin like many brands. It is also one of the lightest.
But they are popular and thus can be difficult to find the size you want. And I just checked their online store and for the first time since I started looking in 2020, they appear to have a supply of everything. I'm putting in an order, nice to have one around for when I'm out in ill-advised conditions.
Edit: Haha, the Gath SFC, the one I have wanted, except for matte black (hot and sunny where I live) is out of stock until later 2023. This is normal...
I dont feel I need the suction cup feel of the SFC, and might not like it at all.
Mambo Kings
Super Anarchist
Whooaa garth are more expensive than anything else on the market. WIP, Zhik etc are all less money in the US than the Garth
The low end starts here
Have a “safe” zone, where nothing can hit you:
All proas have one. Some bigger than others.
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Bored Stiff
Member
If you can lead an international event in an Olympic class, helmets can’t be too bad.
Having said that, the helm’s chin straps straps need tightening.
Having said that, the helm’s chin straps straps need tightening.
hobot
Super Anarchist
gee, that one post sure came back to bite me in the ass.
still not onboard with helmets though.
Yep, which is a classic example of why many "safety improvements" aren't.
One study of sailing injuries indicates that about 20-30% of head injuries are to the eyes. Given the small proportion of the face they take up, that may underline how much of the head is left unprotected by a conventional helmet. On the other hand, from experience with a Gath if you wear one with a visor you lose a tremendous amount of vital sensory information and a lot of vision, and if you try a cricket helmet you end up with a lot of weight and a potentially dangerous bit of ironmongery that could catch on things.
knh555
Member
- 111
- 110
Sail a Snipe.
floater
Super Duper Anarchist
my first boat had a boom that was designed as shown - it actually looked ridiculous as the main was just a tiny little thing - way up there. but all the time - like every jibe and especially every tack - I thought good thoughts about this boom. You could comfortably stand fully forward in the cockpit and manage the sheets with the tiller between your legs. and anybody could stand up anywhere in the cockpit on any maneuver and be completely safe. I was often giving rides to all sorts of non-sailors and this just made life on the boat much much easier. iow. I'd say Yves got it right:
since then I've owned a boat with no boom at all. even better. but I always give consideration to the boom - almost first thing - when evaluating any boat at all.
since then I've owned a boat with no boom at all. even better. but I always give consideration to the boom - almost first thing - when evaluating any boat at all.
