The Danger of Dinghies

Before going cruising, most sailors put a lot of thought into safety. For example, what they will do to prevent getting hit by a ship, how they will pick up somebody who has fallen overboard, or how they will respond to water inexplicably coming into the hull. What most cruisers don’t think about is dinghy safety.

But they should. In the September issue of Latitude, coming out on September 1, we report on a number of people who have been injured or killed by other boats while in their dinghies. If you’re going cruising, you don’t want to end up like a sitting duck as they were.

The most recent victim we have to report on is Giles Finlayson of the Encinitas-based Newport 41 Petrel. Late last year, while four years into a sailing/surfing safari, the singlehander was hit by a high speed fishing boat off the popular cruiser stop of Langkawi, Malyasia. His arms, which he put up to protect his head from the prop, were chopped up. He was left in the water for dead, his arms attached by little more than skin.

Miraculously, the 59-year-old Finlayson survived. Read about the incident, Finlayson’s determination to continue on around the world, and what you can do to prevent the same thing happening to you, in the upcoming Latitude. And no matter if you’re in a dinghy at Catalina or Cartagena, dinghy defensively.