LINES AND KNOTS
Knowing the “ropes” is essential to good boating. Rope, or line
as sailors call it, serves three purposes; lifting, pulling and holding. There
are hundreds of knots, bends, and hitches, but knowing just a few of the more
important ones will make your day on the water more enjoyable.
- Square Knot – two overhand knots used to join two lines of equal size
- Clove Hitch – simple hitch used to secure the line to a railing or
cylindrical structure
- Bowline – universal bend used to make a temporary eye in the end of a
line
- Securing a line to a cleat – make one complete round turn around the
base of the cleat and then make at least 3 figure eights. A locking hitch
may be used to complete the process by twisting the last figure eight before
securing the looped end onto the cleat.
Use, Types and Care of lines
A line serves 3 main functions:
- Holding – mooring a boat to a dock or anchoring
- Pulling – skiing, tubing
- Lifting – lifting equipment from a boat up onto a dock.
Types of line
- Natural fiber rope – quickly rots if exposed to moisture for an extended
length of time. Keep dry and out of direct sunlight.
- Synthetic rope – nylon line comes in 3-strand and double-braided.
Three-stranded is easy to make eye splices for mooring or tow lines.
Polypropylene floats and is commonly used for skiing and tubing.
Double-braided is the strongest.
- Breaking strength – the boater should know the breaking strength of the
lines they are using. Consult the manufacturer ratings for various types and
size of line. A line that exceeds the breaking strength may suddenly snap
and can create a very dangerous, and unsafe situation.
Parts of a line
- Bitter End – the very end of the line.
- Standing part – the area between the two bitter ends, or between the
bitter end and the working part
- Working part – the part that is around a cleat, railing, etc.
- Eye – a man made loop in the end of a line or a natural loop that occurs
when line is coiled.
- Bite of an eye – an area of the line that has looped around itself.
NEVER place your foot or hand into the “bite” of an eye. Any sudden tension
on the line can injure a person.
Line safety
- When “paying out” line (as when letting out line to a skier), watch that
the line does not chafe on sharp objects.
- Be careful of rings and watches as they may be caught on the line.
- Any knot in a line reduces the breaking strength of the line by 10%.
- If the line begins to pay out rapidly, let go of the line to prevent
skin abrasions or fingers being caught in the line.
- Too much strain on a line may cause it to “part” (break). The snap-back
effect can cause serious injury
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