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I know with sailing you want your boat to have weather helm so it turns up into the wind and eventually ends up in irons, but if you have autopilot engaged, you

I know with sailing you want your boat to have weather helm so it turns up into the wind and eventually ends up in irons, but if you have autopilot engaged, you can’t forget that. Do you know if any of the newer autopilot systems will head up into the wind if they lose contact with the remote that singlehanded sailors will attach to their vest? I’ve seen lots of videos of singlehanded sailors where they aren’t wearing tethers in nicer weather.

jzwinck 4y ago
The main reason you want your boat to have a bit of weatherhelm is because it makes the boat go faster upwind. And just because you have slight weatherhelm at optimal upwind trim does not mean the boat will fall into irons if the helmsman goes away. There are devices to shut off the autopilot for a MOB alarm, but that won't stop the boat. And even if they did put the boat head to wind or heave to, you can't swim fast enough to catch even a drifting sailboat because it has so much more windage than you.
zaroth 4y ago
My ancient autopilot certainly doesn’t support it. Nor the engine panel. I’ve never worn a tether except at night in “blue water”. It’s a bit of a stupid risk, but it’s absolutely true the most likely moment to go over is when standing right up on the edge so you don’t hit the boat when you relieve yourself! In hindsight you’re definitely gonna be wishing you just got a little piss on the hull.