TOWING ASTERN
1 PASSING THE LINE
Throwing a heaving line is the safest way of making contact.
It has to be very calm to come alongside in order to pass the towline by hand. In any kind of sea the rigging is going to get tangled if you get too close. Remember heaving lines only go downwind.
Hopefully the crew of the towed vessel will understand that the actual towline will be on the end of the heaving line when they have pulled it in, although it’s surprising how many crew cleat the heaving line and signal they’re ready to go.
A heaving line is a light line with a soft weight on the end; traditionally a monkey’s fist knot. The length is usually a total of about 10m. Many yachts have a heaving line with a quoit or weighted bag attached for man overboard emergencies. It will go further if you throw overarm but it takes a little practice to master the technique.
To attach the heaving line to the thicker towline you should use a double sheet bend. Both working ends should emerge from the same side to make the bend more stable.
2 ATTACHING THE TOW [TOWING VESSEL]
The traditional way of attaching the tow is with a bridle. This is a line led from one quarter to the other to which the towline is attached via a bowline around the bridle line. The reason for this is first to allow a quick release by dropping one side of the bridle, and secondly the bowline will slip to one side as the towing boat turns, assisting the turn. Commercial tugs attach the towline forward of the pivot point making manoeuvring much easier.
On a yacht the pivot point going ahead is usually near the leading edge of the keel, so attaching the tow forward is normally impossible. For tows of short duration the towline can be attached to the bridle with a bowline, but if the yachts are in for the long haul, chafe is a problem and a double sheet bend is the best connection.
On the towing yacht, it is worth spreading the load of the bridle via the stern cleats to the primary winches and other strong points on the boat.
Most of a sea tow will be in a straight line but the length of one side of the bridle can be adjusted to assist steering if necessary – adding more weight to the side you want to turn towards is much the same as one of the methods for steering after rudder failure, so works well, and might help stop the bows being blown off course.