THE HARBOR COLUMN:Tips for docking

Ahoy.

Summertime weather in the middle of winter is a boater’s dream but not a dream for a snow skier. The seas look flat today along our coast, but this weekend we might experience swells up to 7 feet and a nice 15 knot breeze for the rag boaters.

Since it is winter, you have the lazy weekend days to spend aboard your boat dreaming of docking like a pro when you have a boat load of your friends. Often after docking a yacht and systemically securing the dock lines, I overhear other boaters commenting to each other that I am professional skipper, and that’s why I can dock so well. Of course, what the amateur eye might not have seen were a few hiccups with the docking, but I was prepared to compensate for the unexpected.

Just think how many times you have watched recreational boaters dock who approach at a high rate of speed, and then have a few guests jump out to try to stop the boat after the boat bangs into the dock. All the while, you hear a lot of screaming with words this paper won’t print.

First, let’s start with a nautical nomenclature lesson, and I want to start with the ropes, and I hope your neck hair just rose as I mentioned ropes. Delete “ropes” from your vocabulary and insert “lines.” Further, the lines have specific names like bow lines, stern lines, and spring lines, to name a few.

Secondly, it is a fender, not a bumper, for the hanging cushion (flat cushion, ball, or blowup tube) that hangs off the side a boat for protection between the boat and dock. A bumper is a piece of rudder, plastic or similar material that is fixed or mounted on the dock or the boat’s hull.

Now, docking depends on the vessel’s maneuverability and type of vessel, and taking into account all the factors such as wind, current, tide and physical room. Many times while entering a slip, I have reserved the boat back out because of tough conditions with the wind or current and try again. During rough docking conditions, you will see a professional skipper test the conditions, like coming near the slip then putting the engines in neutral to float by, testing the drift, or pace toward and away from the slip to test momentum. After which, you might notice the dock lines and fenders being reconfigured or the placement of additional fenders and lines.

Take the time to look at how the elements will affect your docking, such as how the wind might blow you into or away from the dock. Then before you begin your approach, organize your vessel by hanging the fenders, readying the dock lines, and explain what to do to any guests who might help. Keep in mind how you are going to abort the docking if needed, what if an engine fails, do you need a spring line to be put down immediately, and the experience of your helpers.

Always dock as slow as you can while maintaining steerage, as a slow bump will not cause any damage. This is where the pros shine as they might bump or use a dock wheel to twist in, but it looks natural under control with the slow speed. It is important and very easy to have your inexperienced helpers use a couple of lines at first to simply make fast the boat, and then you can reconfigure the lines with the correct cleat hitch knots after you shut down the engines.

The moral of the story is that planning and proper preparation will help you look like a pro when docking. However, constant planning for the unexpected and continual practice will keep you looking like a pro.

This weekend I will be broadcasting from my Lake Arrowhead cabin studio, so tune in to my boating radio talk show blasting to Southern California with 50,000 watts of power. “Capt. Mike Whitehead’s Boathouse Radio Show” airs on KLAA-AM (830) on your dial every Saturday from noon to 1 p.m. So join me with my motley crew, Chandler Bell and Eric Hovland, as we talk about all things boating, and set your waypoint for www.boathousetv.com .

Safe voyages.