Storm Tactics Handbook, 3rd Edition & DVD
Modern Methods of Heaving-to for Survival in Extreme Conditions Revised and Expanded Third Edition
“In a storm at sea, luck is highly biased toward the sailor who has a plan.” So write Lin and Larry Pardey in this, the third edition of their highly regarded Storm Tactics Handbook. As in the first two editions of this book, they describe their concerns about the tendency of modern sailors to discard the classic methods used to bring sailing vessels of all sizes—from vast clipper ships to tiny yachts—through amazingly strong winds and heavy seas. “There is only one storm tactic that has the ability to sap the power of breaking seas,” they explain. With clear and concise diagrams, they proceed to show how heaving-to works and how even the most modern of yachts can be made to heave-to, whether with only sail power or with the assistance of a sea anchor. A discussion of the many ways heaving-to can be useful at sea—as a way to help the crew keep well rested, to effect repairs, to steady a vessel should outside assistance ever be necessary—will convince even those who plan to run before their imagined “ultimate storm” that heaving-to is still a “must know.”
A series of user-friendly checklists will help sailors from the moment they start looking for their perfect offshore boat, through outfitting, and as they encounter their first storms at sea. Highly readable stories of the Pardeys’ encounters with storms, and of experiences related by several other modern sailors, help illustrate and expand the points made in this book.
Since writing the previous edition of Storm Tactics Handbook, Lin and Larry have voyaged an additional 35,000 miles. This has taken them as far north as Norway, twice across the Atlantic, south to Argentina, into the Pacific, around Cape Horn against the prevailing winds, and then on a circuit of the North Pacific. With insights gained from these recent voyages, they have fully revised and expanded this text by more than 40 percent, including nine completely new chapters. New material includes:
Lessons from Cape Horn
An interview with the late Sir Peter Blake, on storm survival and heaving-to
Heaving-to using a Galerider on 55-foot Morgan’s Cloud
Adding rudder protection stops
Discussions on avoiding chafe, building and using storm staysails, choosing storm gear, deploying para-anchors, avoiding the worst areas of cyclonic storms, and many more have been expanded to answer many questions posed by readers and seminar attendees.
Mario Vittone, a U.S. Coast Guard rescue swimmer for 14 years, in an unsolicited testimony, wrote: “I have been on several rescues (and heard of many more) that would have been completely unnecessary if the sailboat captains aboard would have . . . practiced the skills taught by Lin and Larry Pardey. Not knowing how to heave-to in bad weather is as inexcusable as not knowing ‘red, right, return’.”
Previous editions of Storm Tactics Handbook have sold more than 32,000 copies worldwide. As recently as November 2007, the second edition—ten years after its publication—was consistently #1 on Amazon.com for instructional sailing books and #2 for atmospheric science.
ABOUT STORM TACTICS VIDEO
"One of the reasons I wanted to sail east-to-west around Cape Horn was to take video shots proving that small vessels can safely weather storms if they are well outfitted and efficiently handled," Larry Pardey stated after his record-breaking voyage. Lin and Larry completed their against-the-wind rounding of the Great Southern Capes on board their engineless 29-foot Taleisin earlier this year, weathering nine days of storm-force winds to reach Puerto Montt in Chile. There they interviewed several high-latitude voyagers, prepared the narrative, and shot further detailed footage to complete the Storm Tactics video, a project Lin and Larry conceived almost ten years ago.
"Too many people see their cruising dreams derailed because of their fear of storms. We wanted to product a program that encouraged people by giving them a plan of action-one that showed storm sails working and a small boat coming through some major blows without drama or damage. Even more important, I wanted to show how the sailor's safety valve--heaving-to-works, and the slick it creates. It's hard for people to imagine the almost magic effect of a slick as it saps the power of breaking waves," Larry says. "Now I have video to show it."
When Lin and Larry began editing the final program in New Zealand, their work caught the eye of television director and editor Chris Gurr, who added his artistic talent to the project. Working with team New zealand, Grant Dalton and the late Sir Peter Blake, Chris has created several award-winning sailing programs that have aired in eleven countries.
Additional footage for this 90-minute program has been provided by Australia's WinzTV. Their dramatic images include aerial and off-the-boat views of small boats sailing in 70-know winds (Force 12) in the Bass Straits, north of Tasmania. "It is important to encourage sailors to take a 'can-do' attitude when they encounter storm-force winds," says cameraman Peter Harmsen, who was in the helicopter during the infamous 1998 Sydney-Hobart Race. "These pictures do just that."
Figuring that many sailors will want to carry Storm Tactics on board and view it on their laptop computers, the Pardeys have produced the program in both VHS and DVD formats. "This program is designed to illustrate and expand on our Storm Tactics Handbook," adds Lin. "We tried to add information and ideas we picked up from the folks we met at the bottom of the world."
Besides actual storm tactics, the program includes information on securing gear, checking rigging, and gaining confidence before setting sail. The para-anchor setup is shown in detail for Taleisin as well as for modern boats, such as Beth Leonard and Evans Starzinger's water-ballasted 47-fotter, Hawk.
Lin and Larry Pardey have now voyaged more than 170,000 miles, including both east-about and west-about circumnavigations. They have made passages on 20 different boats, ranging in size from their own 24' 4" and 29' 6" self-built cutters through modern racing boats to 85-foot classic schooners. As Herb McCormick, editor of Cruising Word puts it, "The Pardeys have received more awards for their pursuits than Tom Hanks has for his."
Editor and author Roger Taylor wrote that their Storm Tactics Handbook "could save lives and dreams." Reviewers are now making similar statements about the graphic demonstrations of gear, tactics, and advice presented in the Storm Tactics DVD.
Categories
Information
Site map