Hi Max,

As usual, there is so little we know at this point, but...

An accident of this nature rightly focuses our attention on cockpit ergonomics... I've always liked those on J-Boats, think they're very well arranged for sailing, and of course they're one of the very few American builders to put the traveler and mainsheet where it should be... But, those large wheels on modern boats come at a heavy cost, and that is the vulnerable position crew must momentarily place oneself in, every time one has to step up onto a coaming, seat, or deck in order to maneuver around the wheel... I can't help but wonder whether Ned might have been doing so when CIELITA broached...

This incident certainly reminds me how happy I am to have a tiller, instead of a wheel, on my own boat... In heavier weather, it's just a far more secure arrangement on a small boat, the helmsman is so less exposed...

The other thing that one must question after reading the first account, is why an emergency tiller was apparently not able to be fitted immediately after the knockdown, in order to restore some steering capability? Who knows, perhaps it was stowed in the cockpit, and lost overboard as well? Ned never sailed with anything less than the most capable of crews, I'm certainly not second-guessing anyone here, but one can't help but wonder why they weren't able to fit the emergency tiller sooner... I'm sure there's a good reason for whatever delay might have occurred, hopefully in time we'll all be able to learn a lesson from it...

http://www.thewesternstar.com/News/Local/2012-09-04/article-3066590/Drowned-American-familiar-with-Newfoundland-waters/1

best regards,

Jon