Hi Kevin -Keith --

more good posts -thanks

-trap lines and hooks are big safety problems -
next are safety lines that keep catsailors attached at high speeds or in big seas .
Last year we were caught in the 50 mph plus winds and good sizes seas on the last Worrell leg to Virginia Bch .
Cold nasty leg last year ,- many hit shore fortunately ,-
We had snapped a rudder earlier and put into shore to replace it ,then pushed off again about 15 minutes before it hit.
Stupidly I thought it would not last long at those high wind speeds and attempted to sail through it seeing lighter sky further North ,--wrong again ,--We sailed in it for a while and were still going forward ,-but also sideways rapidly .
First time I experienced the boat being picked up at the top of the wave and going airborn to the one behind and sideways to it -go up -jump back type sailing .

Dave did get seperated from the boat after we did flip off a wave ,-maybe the second or third time , --remember the boat righting itself after one flip ,-If you were not holding on or attached that could have difficult consequences .
Anyway remember the boat traveling on its side about 4 times faster than Dave could swim ,-he yelled turtle it -turtle it ,-tryed to just submerge the bow to get it to point ,-but that did not slow it much in those conditions ,-
Turtled it and just rode the storm with pelting rain that hurt when it hit ,-felt like hale . -
We finished a few hours latter ,-Christeen gave us a shot of something when we hit the beach ,-and I saw a hotub and ripped off the drysuit and headed for it to thaw out ,-what a cold nasty day -finish . Several teams dropped out with broken gear .
The lightweight boats are much more prone to taking off and drifting at higher speeds away from crew that may get seperated . Turtle them if your the one left is all you can sometimes do .
Have fun -
Carl

Jim's helmet type is a great idea .

Safety lines and types --
we should write more on these ideas and systems set ups