Safety is core to everything we are doing.  We are aware that sometimes the jovial nature in which we portray this challenge might suggest to some that we are either extremely bold or just downright stupid; neither are true.  Right from the start we decided that if we couldn’t afford to do the trip safely then we couldn’t afford to do it at all. The old addage of there are old sailors and there are bold sailors, however there are no old bold sailors - our aim is undoubtedly to become old sailors one day.

In this section we will cover the key safety precautions we are taking.  We have broken this out into 2 sections, equipment and operational safety.

1. Safety equipment

• Boat - The sydney 40 was designed as a serious offshore racing boat, more than capable of handing and racing in severe weather conditions. Needless to say we will not be racing, and therefore sailing with a greater margin of safety than the boat is designed to handle (see the About the Boat section for more details).  The boat was previously coded to Blue code level 4 (this means it was approved to work as a commercial offshore vessel, most charter boats are only coded to Blue level 3 which is a coastal classification, and therefore has to meet certain offshore safety (amongst other) requirements).  See the MCA website for more information :
• Rig - we have removed the rig and bought a new mast. Based on repairs made to the old mast, we have preemptively reenforced the new mast in key areas.  We are also changing all the standing rigging (the steel rods and kevlar that hold the mast up).  This will give us almost a completely new rig, the only parts of the current rig we will be reusing are some of the fittings.
• Hull - We have had a complete survey done, and have thoroughly inspected the hull.  All minor scapes and scratches have been repaired.  All fittings will be removed and re-sealed to the deck (to ensure no leaks) and we are looking at options to construct watertight bulkheads both fore and aft. These bulkheads will help us deal with the highly unlikely events of crashing into something or suffering rudder damage that leads to a hull breach.
• Emergency kit includes: EPIRB, portable satphone, boat and handheld GPS, lifejackets (manual CO2 inflatable types), liferaft serviced Summer 2008, full RORC set of flares, VHF DSC radio, spare VHF radio, handheld VHF, laptop based chartplotter with full set of paper charts, easy access emergency steering system, full set of storm sails, drogue, personal MOB system and jackstays
• Gas installation - we are replacing the whole system, and planning to install a solenoid based shut off at the bottle to minimise the chance of leakage into the hull.
• Comprehensive Grab-bag: including handheld VHF, satphone and GPS, spare batteries, solar charger, food, water, seasickness tablets, suncream etc etc

2. Operational safety

• Experience - both yacht owners have decades of yaching experience and have completed trans-atlantic or trans-pacific sailing crossings, with a combined experience of well in excess of 15k nautical miles.  See about us for more details on our sailing experience
• Watch - there will always be 2 or more people on watch during night hours, with at least one person qualified and capable of skippering the boat
• Lifejackets and harnesses and MOB units will be worn during all night hours and whenever the skipper deems necessary
• The skipper’s decisions is final, there is no such thing as democracy on board a boat!
• Practice, practice, practice - We will periodically do MOB and abandon ship drills. Crew members joining us for legs will always get a full safety briefing from the skipper and will know where all the kit is located and how and when to use it.

If you have any questions over the safety precautions we are taking, please feel free to email us at info@thelongsailunder.com or leave a comment below: