Have you ever wondered what you would do if you were flying along and heard a giant THUD as debris in the water put a hole in your hull? If not, you should. Part of proper seamanship is preparedness, and to me that means a lot of playing the "what if" game.
These two videos were fascinating to me. In the first video we see what kind of strength it takes to put a hole in the hull in the first place - good to know. We also see what it looks like when a big hole is below the waterline. I'm glad that I haven't seen this in real life thus far in my sailing career.
What really surprised me was that the best tool for stemming a leak was a small tarp held in place with light lines. I still really like the idea of the Forespar plugs, but what an easy trick that tarp is. I never would have guessed it to be more effective than a sail used for the same purpose.
Watch the videos below, and spend a little time pondering what your plan is if this should happen to you...
