Seamanship, Rigging and Vessel Handling
This domain covers the practical seamanship the examiner expects of a Category A skipper: anchoring and Mediterranean stern-to mooring, line handling and knots, rigging checks, man-overboard recovery and the effect of wind, current and propeller on a hull with plenty of freeboard.
Ground tackle and anchoring
Lay chain at 5:1 in moderate conditions and 7:1 or more in strong wind; mixed rope-and-chain rode needs about 7–8:1. Set the anchor with astern power, then fix transits and use an anchor alarm. In Greek anchorages the depth often shelves quickly from 4 m to 15 m, so choose the spot before dropping, and avoid anchoring over Posidonia meadows where protected.
Mediterranean mooring
Drop the bow anchor 40–60 m out while stemming any crosswind, reverse slowly to the quay, take stern lines ashore and set springs before tensioning the anchor. To leave, keep a stern spring on and use ahead power with rudder to swing the bow out, then recover the anchor.
Handling forces
A right-handed propeller gives transverse thrust astern that pushes the stern to port; the pivot point sits roughly a third of the length from the bow and moves forward with speed. High freeboard means windage dominates at low speed, so berth into wind or current, whichever is stronger.
Ropes and rigging
Nylon for stretch (anchor snubbers, towing), polyester for mooring warps, Dyneema for low-stretch halyards. Know the bowline, round turn and two half hitches, clove hitch and reef knot. Check standing rigging at swaged terminals for rust bleeding and hairline cracks (crevice corrosion), split pins taped, toggles free, rigging screws not bottomed out, and running rigging for UV damage and chafe.
Worked example
Anchoring in 4 m of water with the bow roller 1.2 m above the surface: total 5.2 m, at 5:1 requires 26 m of chain. The horizontal rode lays out to about 26 m, so the anchor's swinging circle is roughly 26 m radius; with an 11 m hull the stern sweeps a circle of about 37 m - which is why the neighbouring boat's buoy must be well outside that arc. If a meltemi surge raises the depth to 5 m, recompute before the wind arrives.
Traps that cost marks
- Anchoring without setting the anchor under astern power.
- Too little scope in deep, steep Greek anchorages, then dragging at 03:00.
- Leaving a stern-to berth without a spring line and losing control of the bow.
- Rope trailing near the propeller during a bow-to or stern-to manoeuvre.
- Checking only the rigging screws and not the swaged terminals.