Stuff to faciliate their own resuce:

1. Sealed mast and practice righting from turtle
2. A water bag for solo righting (if the skipper had not got back to the boat

Stuff to facilitate a rescue by others:
1. VHF radio - hail on Ch 16
2. SPOT or EPIRB
3. Flares
4. Cell phone in water proof bag (I use the $20 AT&T Go phone from Walmart - my AT&T sim card works in it).

I'm a little shocked at the rude comments by some of the posters on this thread. I'm sure you have probably done some foolish things yourselves in the past. Does anyone know what safety equipment (if any) was on board this boat?

To right a boat from turtle - get it on its side and then right as normal.

To get it from turtle onto its side take the righting line, pass under one hull and over the top (as you would if righting it from on its side). Then lean on the rope off the other hull. If your mast is sealed you will get the boat back up on its side. It can be a little akward maintaining footing on the curved hull surface while leaning out far enough to make her come back up.

I have seen people trying to both lean off the rear cross bar, or off the righting line direct from the dolphin striker without going round the other hull first. Neither approach seems succesful.

To check the seal on your mast, throw it in the water and see if bubbles come out. It should float. Correct leaks with a quality sealent and recheck. If your mast leaks then it can fill with water when you turtle and you may not be able to right it - even with assistance from a power boat. At that point you may have to derig the mast and sails, wrap the lot up, place it aboard and get towed the lot back to shore with the platform still upside down. (Don't ask me how I know this).

Chris.