anyone Who has experienced a broken mast, will never forget. What makes a Yacht only, together is just a hiss and a roar in itself. All of a sudden, you realize how sensitive and vulnerable the rig is but in reality. In short: With the Mast a piece is original trust on Board.

Only a single wire

In my case, the shock to the ship, fortunately, was the worst, because the insurance paid for the broken mast. Although the damage was not come out of the blue: The Kiel migratory bird on Hamburg's outer Alster lake, we were on the way, had a defective Mast. That was when you Drop it, everyone can.

There is no boat TÜV – therefore, the owner must inspect your rig regularly. © Schomacker Float magazine

felt But neither the Skipper nor the crewman really in charge – maybe that is typical for the School. And who would believe that a single damaged wire, so just the Veins of the whole rope, it would cause at the end of the collapse of a eight-Meter-high Alumasts? In fact, no one had interpreted on Board, this warning right.

With a cheerful "Ping!" of a piano string, the back Board-Mast

tears Instead, we sailed on the port bow at Beaufort 2 and a half wind course. Little pressure in the sail, as usual, not a wave in the internal area. The boat krängte almost zero, us a boring Dämmertörn seemed imminent.

The sound of a piano page

Then, two kilometers up river, on the Wind revives a little. We turn to. Suddenly, a gust of wind filled the Big, 5,80 Meter long keel of bird lays on its side, the rudder pressure is rising immensely. Since the crewman was happy in the first Moment a bit of "Action".

Actually no area for hard material tests: Dinghy sailing on the Alster © archive H-Dinghy-Vereinigung Float magazine

The promptly comes With the cheerful "Ping!" of a piano string, the back Board Mast breaks at the height of the Bulwark. And almost instantly, the Mast breaks at the tow-point. While the boat immediately goes from the heel back into the Horizontal, and the Crew must hold on to the Mast with the sails and ropes, in the Alster.

to The MOT for boats there is not a

luckily no one is hurt. We save the destroyed rig. Then we need to look for the help of a towing service, such as, for example, SeaHelp in the Adriatic sea and the North sea and the Baltic sea provides, not on the Alster. Finally, we can wave a motor boat that drags us to the pier back. Then the big clean-up after the broken mast begins: What you can recycle? What needs to go away? And when the Club can expect of the school boat belongs – with reimbursement of the damage? The insurance pays weeks later without circumstances. This, of course, is Gross negligence can lead to a reduction of the Indemnity. But what is "negligence"?

A Boots-TÜV: The rig can stand years and decades, without the owner could be said to violate his duty of care. A damage can be reversed quickly: the failure of a component on Board, and there are consequential damages, this will lead at least to a critical Rundschau.

The rig can stand years and decades, without the owner breached his duty of care.

As the boat looks overall? A Yacht is a total of in rather deplorable condition, should the review of the register commissioned in the case of mast breakage on a regular basis with a of Expertise the also. Also, the information of the neighbour to be queried. Woe it is to do now contradictions: Then you can forget the regulation.

In General, the Yacht's hull insurance is for the damage is responsible. It is a material error is excluded, the damage to the directly affected part, the result of damage insured. In clear text: Breaking a Rigging screws, for example, because of a wrong alloy or a manufacturing fault, is not insured of the Rigging itself. Of consequential damages, so the resulting broken mast, but it is taken.

What to do the owner?

In our case, the situation was straightforward: The undamaged hull of the Zugvogels was in apparent good condition. And when exactly is the Kardeel was broken, I could not more see.

This Yacht sank off the coast of Kiel-Schilksee and was introduced. © Maritime search and rescue Float magazine

Ultimately, the responsibility lies with the owners: at the Latest with the beginning of a new season of the Mast and rigging should be thoroughly checked for breaks, cracks and corrosion. Actually, this is a matter of course.

but in fact, any yacht insurance defined the duty of care otherwise. And also, the demands on the rig are not in the reality of the regulatory auditor is the same everywhere: In Central and Northern Europe, the rig, which is stored in the Winter, often together with the Yacht – master in a dark and cool experiencing a different wear and tear than, for example, on the Mediterranean sea. Here the season is much longer: temperature and UV-light to make the often year-round rigged in the harbour, past boats to create more. And violent storms can tug at the boat.

So kinked as to be Mast: the Skipper in tow © SeaHelp Float magazine broken mast to Overload

Also, the type of use plays a role: those Who go only on the weekend on a family trip, will take his rig is quite different than the ambitious regatta sailors. Even more, the duty of a Charter yacht through the often-inexperienced crew.

Finally, the ship type has an influence on the service life of the asset: long-Kiel put softer in the lake as a short Kieler, resulting in significantly lower Riggbelastung. Here is a mast fracture is significantly less likely.

What helps? Also in the meantime take a look at shrouds and stays.

The regular renewal and state documentation is not required. However, Skipper in the event of damage, the better cards, if you can prove that your Material was before the broken mast properly.

rig regularly

check "no one wants to risk a broken mast," says Volker Reichelt of the Hamburger yacht insurance Schomacker. His tip: Always behaviour, so, if you were not insured. So "also in the meantime take a look at shrouds and stays, the Rüsteisen and also on the fixtures the same, under the Deck".

a broken mast in the middle of the Aegean sea © Valerian Dahmen Float magazine

The experience of a person skilled in the art does not replace the while – but at least could quickly be responded to, if at a superficial inspection, in fact, impairments are identified. If Yes, is the worst of the Dämmertörn. The damage is due to a broken mast could be bigger.

experienced A mast breakage in the middle of the Aegean sea float-author Valerian Dahmen on a Multihull. The last seconds in front of the broken mast in the Video has his Action Cam captured – an action to which he would have dispensed with as a sailor in the Überführungstörn for the winter like.

This article was written by Roland Wildberg

*published The contribution "is If the Mast comes down" by float magazine. Contact with the executives here.

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Date Of Update: 03 August 2020, 13:27