Ep 45: Harnesses, Tethers & Jacklines 

I sailed with John Kretschmer once. His practice on clipping in is to run the tether from the harness to the jackline and then back to the harness. It shortens the throw and makes it nearly impossible to go over the lifelines. The added benefit is that you don't have the metal buckle clanking along the deck. I've found that to be very effective.

I’ve heard the Y method is best. Keep the lines to the center as much as possible and tether short so you can’t go overboard at all. Great lessons, thanks.

In the past I did not always agree to your suggestions or methods but here I agree a 100%. Well done!

I think in most cases going overboard single handed in rough weather, being tethered just ensures they recover your body more easily. Getting back in the boat is often next to impossible, especially in cold rough water. IMO If you are single handed being tethered should really only focus on keeping you IN the boat. On deck I’d focus on short tethers and extra pad eyes in areas where you likely need to work with one or more hands, ie at the mast or on the foredeck.

Thank you!

Thank you for another great video. Answers most of the questions that I had on teathers. I really appreciate all the work you put into this series.

I'm a new boat owner too. Wife and I were greatly inspired by your journey to make the plunge and buy a boat. We're having issues with our raw water flow out the generator as well. We got a 1982 Morgan 462

Thank you as always for this information. I really enjoy your video's. I'm moored in Blaine Washington.

Another excellent video Marco, thank you; I’m picking up a lot of useful tips. Webbing jack lines secured in the way you suggest will be a useful addition to my boat.

Very helpful and comprehensive. I learnt a lot.

Thank you, well presented and informative.

Great video, priceless information....Thank you!

Another excellent and informative video, thank you

On my 322 I use a 6' tether with jacklines up each side. After watching this video, I think I'll add a shorter tether, maybe 3', for use when going forward. As long as it's not too constricting, it should keep me on board if I fall.

It’s probably worth mentioning that UV degradation will greatly weaken your webbing Jack lines over time if you rig them permanently, so replace them regularly.

Thanks for the info. Top tips 👍

I just bought my climbing webbing. Thank you for the information.

Very helpful video, thanks

Your videos are great. I hope you continue making them.

Awesome explanations, thanks a lot!

Thanks, about to join 3 others for St Thomas to Hampton for first time, and you helped a lot.

Another idea, Marco, is to loop your 6' tether around the jack line and back to your connection on the PFD. This would yield you a 2' 11" tether.

Excellent video.

Very useful!

Good overview. I like the kong double harness for passages. Much more secure. You are never not clipped in.

Excellent episode. I do believe the trailing of a long floating line with knots or loops every few feet is a good idea. I've heard of a person that was trailing their dinghy and able to grab on. Either way this is going to be a terrifying time, and maybe even should be practiced ( with other crew aboard ) like a man overboard situation. Thanks for putting this together Marco.

Great safety point about single handed, I've seen people (and videos of people) single handed with no tether. If you are using an autopilot, your boat is gone. One very big consideration, the easier it is to rig, the easier it is to come disconnected when you're in the water because you have fallen overboard. I 100% disagree with using a snap-shackle for a jackline. It's way too easy for them to unsnap by accident. You are out in the water all by yourself, think about just how safe you want to be. Autopilot is overused, it's great for doing things while singlehanded, but it takes away the boats one safety feature, actually turning away so the sails don't provide any power when you do fall over and stopping the boat so maybe you can get back onboard. Autopilot WILL ensure the boat goes away.

Enjoyed this video. Good information that I have not been exposed to yet. Hope to be able to single hand some day

To run the jacklines through the middle of the boat, I do a triangle with the base on the cockpit and the tip on the baby stay deck attachment. The base is about the size of the companion way’s width. The jacklines go beneath the bimini and around the mast base. I use these jacklines when leaving the cockpit. When in the cockpit, I clip to the steering pedestal, no need for jacklines. The only place I cannot reach with this setup is the genoa furler. For this I use an additional jackline that goes to the bow cleat and I use an extra short tether.

I would also add that leg loops are important on harnesses. Don't forget to use them.

Lots of really good advice and instruction. I definitely learned a thing or two. I've also done a lot of solo sailing, and solo rock climbing, and there are a lot of similarities. Climbing rope or webbing is definitely a good option, but you need to be careful with how you tie and dress webbing knots; you can't always use the same knots as normal climbing rope or sailing line or you risk it slipping. I also wonder why they don't have magnetic release clips like the Black Diamond Rocklock Magnetron carabiner. They are locking, strong, and can be opened under tension.

Shorten the tether by going around the jackline and clipping back onto yourself/d rings, shortening your tether by half. God forbid you do go over you at least have a fighting chance of getting back on board instead of dragged through the water. Another idea is lessening the slack in the jacklines by tying down at one or two points along it's length, you will have to unclip to get past tie down point, or buy a tether with two clips or just use two tethers. Love your videos, great info

About to buy safety tethers for the new boat and this is invaluable advice. Thanks 🙏

Good video. Many useful tips. Thank you. I have the Spinlock offshore and a Mustang. To make a crotch harness for the Mustang I used about 9' of webbing. One end I sewed into a loop. This attaches to the Mustang belt with a carabiner. the strap then runs under my leg and up through the back of the vest then down under the other side. For this end I use a double overhand knot and another carabiner. The only possible downside is it's too strong a system. (Buying one is over $100 and it's clearly not worth more than about $7) I'd hate to have to rely on cutting through webbing in an emergency with cold numb fingers. Spinlock keeps the webbing cutter coated in plastic- this is against corrosion. If that came off ( you used the cutter for something) I'd make sure that blade was as sharp as possible and then I'd dip it in Plastic Dip. Stainless steel has a way of getting corroded, even slightly and losing any edge.) For a Jackline - great advice. If you get the right type of webbing (easy to find) it'll have those mountain climbing weight numbers. It's not that expensive, it's easy to sew (Just about any sewing machine because what your machine is really doing is pushing a ball headed needle between the fibers. I've got a $300 Janome and it does just great) or you can tie overhand double knots. But look these things up don't just trust me. The X thing.... I think you covered it. On a boat like yours what I think I'd do is run the jacklines like you did it first, and then I'd run two more lines up along the handrail, and in rough seas use that as a handrail. The dodgy areas are always the gaps between handrails. Webbing is so inexpensive (I'll bet I have at least 500' in various sizes (and colors)) it's a why not just do it? The clip in or not. I'm also a sea kayaker. We wear our pfds all the time. The USCG has statistics that most people who die in boating mishaps drown, and 70% of them are not wearing life jackets. The rule is that a life jacket is in reach. The stats seem to indicate people who end up in the water weren't able to grab a life vest. So clipping in? Just seems like a make a rule and then just always always follow it. (I wore my pfd for every single basic sailing lesson whether I had to or not. When I'm on my boat I'll still look like a nerd.) Steeplejacks always use two safety lines and do not release one until the other is clipped - so they are never ever unclipped. (Sorry to go on so long) I had the thought that to climb back on board maybe tie a loop in the tether, it's easier to hold onto a loop than a piece of straight webbing . But this would shorten the tether and what's the best spot for that loop? and the loop catches onto every nubbin on your deck. Do they make ascenders for webbing? One of these on your tether right next to where you clip in would keep it out of the way, but reachable. Then you would just slide it along the line and pull yourself up. (once you got some length between you and the ascender you can use that as a step. I've got a lot of experience with hypothermia growing up in a cold wet place. It always degrades your ability to use your hands faster than you can possibly imagine. If like me you get cold hands and feet - this can happen in less than a minute. The shivering? That happened to me in less than 15 minutes in 70 degree (22C) water on a sunny California day air temp 75 (25C). (I've swum two miles in colder conditions wearing only a Speedo. Not swimming is very different.) You want to wear the gear, take all the precautions and 15 -30 years from now be able to say, "I never needed to use any of this." Also the way people die wearing a pfd is they get hypothermia, their head drops into the water and they drown. Happened to a friend of mine - sunny day, couple hundred yards off a beach. One thing something like wearing a pfd and keeping a hand on a rail or clipping in does - that no one says - it puts you into a safety frame of mind. Set your rules and then live by them. I once drove to the beach and then discovered I'd forgotten my pfd. I was just going to escort some ocean swimmers no more than 100 m from the beach. Rules is rules. I drove home and got it. Before I launched I'd driven almost 100 miles. But I'd proven to myself that I follow my safety rules. Hope this hasn't been too crazy.

I rig my boat with the same webbing and in the same manner. I use two tethers. Long and short.Added port and starboard cleats so the webbing runs a couple inches aft the wheel with a fixed loop that I clip on. Call me paranoid, but I'm not going over.. Great video by the way.

A point to add into your video would be to not use a line in place of webbing. A line is easy to step on and roll your foot and fall.

most boats built in the last 20 years have a sugar scoop ... or you can have a folding boarding ladder mounted with a rope to unfold .. as someone who has fallen overboard I have thought this out...lol

Ohhh. Now I'm getting into trouble. I don't use a safety line, when I have to move forward or backward on the boat I have them and can use them to secure me in the cockpit, or on the deck, but back and forth they are too much in the way. You must always have control of the line and be careful not to fall into it. Then I'd rather have both hands to hold on. But I have 20 meters of orange floating line with a small fender at the end that I can put out from the boat. It is set up in such a way that if there is a rough pull in the line, my autopilot is deactivated. The boat will then go up into the wind and probably also go over the stay and lie reasonably still. I've tried it in practice and can easily catch the line and it doesn't take that much force to hold on if you're just lying on your back. Should everything go wrong, I still have my PLB. I'd much rather bet on this than a safety line that gets in the way and requires me to release the boat with one hand to steer the line. And if I fall overboard and hang on the side of the boat, I am not much happier than if I had simply fallen into the water. So I rather bet on having both hands available on the boat and good places to hold onto the boat. Next, my float line, which also disengages the autopilot. Finally there is my PLB.

Probably keep alcohol off the boat as well. I broke a couple toes in past few years just walking around my tiny apartment barefoot after 2 beers. You lose caution when you''re buzzed. 🤷🏼‍♀

A shorter leash is an option if they give you enough room to move around. Your leash looks too long for that boat. Another suggestions is If someone goes over on the leward side, tack immediately to pull them out so they aren't dragging in the water.

My friend and skipper Robin who circumnavigated lost a crew member overboard crossing the Atlantic. She grabbed the Walker Log’s line (old-fashioned knot meter) and despite mangled fingers held on and was rescued. A trailing line Is worth considering offshore.

Great video but what is the point of the safety if you have to cut the line anyway? Because pretty much no one can be dragged in the water and climb back on.

Great video. I recommend a much shorter tether. One that will not allow you to reach the toe rail.

X on jacklines works by crossing it just aft of the mast BUT the reason it works is because you can use a two arm tether.

Why not attach the jackline to the handrail 1/2 forward to the bow? This would prevent stretch of the jackline if you went over. As far as the tether goes would it be wise to have a tether just long enough so you can stand and walk along the boat? i.e. when you use a jackline in a piece of platform high lift equipment it is there to stop you from falling off the platform due to restricted movement so you are not able to fall off in the 1st place due to its length. But great presentation with lots of ideas for my jackline install. Thank you.

hi Marco, have you ever heard of running the jack lines outboard of the lifelines? I saw a talk by a Bluewater sailor, who said if you go overboard this way, the jackline allows you to slide all the way back to the stern where you can board safely

I wonder if tether with a loop or two either knotted into the lines or sewn in as a feature to make climbing easier would be a good idea. I could never, probably even on the dock, pull myself up with only a thin line to grab onto.

Thanks for the information. I plan to add jack lines next season. I've never worn a harness/tether before. You mentioned a 3 foot option for the tether. Would the 3 foot work with the x figuration?

Great information and demonstration, Marco. I have a spinlock deckvest and had heard that the hook knife provided will not cut a tether (especially with the protective cover on). I had also heard that it's challenging to cut a tether with a knife while hanging overboard and the tether tight against the hull. I tested my knife and spinlock hook knife on dyneema line and they failed to cut. So I purchased a Gill Harness Rescue Tool Knife MT011 and it performed to my satisfaction cutting the same dyneema line. But I haven't tried it on an actual tether. Any thoughts? Would be great to see a video actually testing the performance of a knife and hook knife while simulating hanging over the side of a boat.

I don't understand the X method either. Simpler to do it the regular way and always clip into the high side.

A couple of excellent links from Practical Sailor that answer a lot of questions www.practical-sailor.com/blog/jackline-installation-tips www.practical-sailor.com/safety-seamanship/the-pros-and-cons-of-chest-high-jacklines

I like the idea of running the jackline outside the life lines so you end up behind the boat. However, I wonder if having two loops in the tether would allow a self rescue. One loop to pull yourself up with, and the other to step your foot into. This would been akin to a crevasse self rescue with use of a prussic loop. I'm not sure if carrying the loop in the line while onboard could cause any trouble by getting accidently hooked on something?

I really like your videos and I have question about something here. If you go overboard when wearing a harness and you can't pull yourself up and back onto the boat, then what's the point of wearing it? It seams like a jackline and tether would just get in the way and a hassle and would be better to just plan to use a PLB on your life vest.

Great video! Love the suggestion of the climbing webbing 4400lbs. Do you have a link to where you purchased it? So many options, not sure what to get. In addition, I am unable to click the "bell" for your notifications, is it my end or yours? Thank you.

Why not double the tether back to your harness, effectively halving the length? If the system is not going to keep you on the boat, what is the point (if solo)? I would also employ the same concept while resting in the cockpit. Attaching the tether to the jackline (as demonstrated) leaves way too much slack and potential for MOB if a knock down or wave swamped the boat. Thanks for the video and kick starting the discussion.

A shorter tether would be handy

Great information. It seems to me that your blue tether should be no more than 3 feet long, and certainty not 6 feet, that is way too long. The objective is to not fall overboard in the first place. I think it is fair to assume that dragging in the water on autopilot is death, even more so if you have to release and swim away. The PLB is to find your dead body. When sailing solo, overboard is death, tethered or not. Anyway, that is how I approach it. Thanks for all those great videos!

Perfect! I was about to toss my 8 foot zodiac that came with my boat as a dinghy. Where does a guy find that little roller gadget? What’s it called?

Also it seem a double tether with a one 2' and one 3' or 4' is a superb away to get ones self back in the boat if they fall or washed over as you can pull your self up and clip one rest the pull up again and clip the other to higher or further in board attachment point creeping your way up and in. Another way to aid one self or crew is to tow a paddle board on a strong line a 100-200' behind the boat. lets please admit it, there no chance to pull one self back to the sailing boat or against a current if the boat rounds with weather helm. It is simply physical impossible. But with my paddle board towing option, one could catch the line and swing up unto the paddle board great reducing one brag. They could pull themselves back to the boat or a crew would have a much easier time bring the individual back to the boat with M/COB with the greatly reduce drag weight. Even at 4 knots it impossible to pull one self as the PFD tries to drown you.

I tried to recognise your boat, but could not… first 310 beneteau... Am I right? If not, can you please share what is it? Thanks a lot!!! 👍

I have read accounts of people who have gone overboard while tethered and they speak of getting drowned while being dragged through the water at 5 knots or more. There would be very few people who would have the strength to pull themselves back on board, especially in cold wet clothing and life jacket. Jacklines on the decks do nothing to prevent this. I am trying to come up with a line running down the centre of the foredeck, one between the dodger and the mast and another between the mast and the bow. The system needs to prevent you from ever going over the sides. Perhaps a shorter tether is the answer as well. I don't understand why yacht builders don't install attachment points down the centre of the boat for such a thing, when it is a fundamental piece of safety gear. Its like automobiles being sold without seat belts. I tie a boom preventer through the forward cleat on the deck and back to the cockpit. Having jackines tied around the cleat will prevent this. Again, the manufacturers really need to engineer this important safety consideration into their boat designs.

there's no way I would disconnect myself from the boat I would just let it drag me, at some point the boat will do something like fall out of favour with the Wind

Curious; I do roofs. We use rope grabs. Rock climbers do too. Basically they grab the lifeline so you don't fall more than the length of your tether which is clipped to the grab rather than the line itself. You could even do a prusik knot, clip in and slide it along your lifeline. With two, you can even climb and self-recover.. a video on using two prusik knots to ascend a rope. Not sure what wet conditions do though for the bite. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-bscpdQ6fcPQ.html

just my thought. A 2' tether max 3' seems all one needs. A 6' tether seems to give one far too much freedom for wanting to stay on the deck.

Food for thought, thank you. As a Key Grip and Rigger in the film industry, I think cats tails and hard clip in points are the way to go, with the length of the tethers only long enough to keep you against the side, rather than around the stern and dragging, out of reach of the boat, should you fall overboard. With a little planning and practice you can move very quickly and stay safely clipped on 100% of the time. Jacklines dont make me feel safe. Eyebolts and climbers bolting plates are more my style.

Why not use high lifelines, as demonstrated by Mahina offshore services, with a short teather?

Trailing a long line with knots should be rigged to trip the autopilot

Run it down the centerline of the boat. Also re-vamping the life-lines with higher stations and solid-rail life-lines seen on larger vessel's mounted inboard of the toe rail to prevent dockside damage is another option. These flimsy flexible low-knee life-lines are in fact a bit of a joke in heavy weather situations. Hip high stations / rails can be a aesthetically done while adjusting the jib lines around them. $$$ is a factor

Your tether is dangerously long. If solo sailing you could end up dragging yourself to death. Better to loop the tether around the jack line, thereby shortening it by half, so that if you fall you won’t be dragged in the water. The safety surely compensates for the inconvenience of a short tether.

9:29 regarding the various ways of rigging jack lines, Marco, what is your opinion of this method? Seems sensible to me, but I'm no expert, so I'd be interested in a skilled sailor's opinion of it's plusses and minusses. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-LS06AKfIkIk.html Thanks for your videos, they're very educational.

Should I mentioned you messed up your first tieing to a cleat with your red webbing jackline on the bow. You made the locking hitch with the loaded part of the red webbing. 😉