Backing Up

[dave6330]

OK - I need to pick your brains, all you long-time Pearson 365 owners.  How in the heck do you back up your boats? 

Helming out new (1979) 365 around the small boat harbor this weekend was somewhat of a nightmare...easily controled in forward, does fine in reverse (as long as you want the back of the boat to vear to port, but if you want the to back towards starboard...good luck!!!!  Absolutely wouldn't answer the helm unless you had a good speed up... not possible in tight quarters...made backing into our slip impossible (for us).

Hints???

[RayNWanda]

Yep- they are an evil minded witch in reverse. The stern walks to starboard. I go hard a port before I shift into reverse when backing out of our slip. She will back sort of straight. Once you are moving, you can go into neutral and she will begin to answer helm. You can also use bursts of power in forward to kick the stern in the direction it needs to go. Bottom line- it ain't easy. It takes some practice. Find a place where you have some room to manuever, and play with it.

[slokat]

I've had some time to play with this over the past 9 months of getting to know Wind Tamer.

I have good response in several scenarios:

Full speed ahead in the open - can switch into full reverse and back a completely straight line. I'm pretty sure this is because of all the water that you are already dragging along with you, keeping you in the same aspect.

Coming out of the slip, with a shove off to generate a little backwards motion, can nudge in and out of reverse at just above idle, with a little bit of rudder counter steer and can back a completely straight line.

The shape of the hull and the rudder work just as well in reverse, but if you try to power out, the prop acts like you are paddling to the side before the water starts acting against the rudder & hull.

If all else fails keep crew ready to push the bowsprit away from obstacles.

First time I ever backed her out of the slip - did a tight 270 degree spin to starboard and motored out to the channel, my wife thought I planned it, and wondered why I spent an hour stopping and backing up out in the channel.

There's probably a reason that dolphins don't swim backwards...

[zaya]

Hi,

yes it is HARD!! stern will walk to starboard, or back into wind. I never experienced with currents, I don't really want to know how bad it is.

patience and planning is the key to success. It there is too much wind/current : good time to stay at the marina or check your bank account/insurance!.

I always try to play it safe, I leave the marina at a time where the wind is usually lowest. In that case, it is "quite" easy to do a 360 turn if the boat don't want to back in the proper direction.

Philippe
Zaya

[EdHouston]

I find short bursts will do the trick so long as you can get just over a boat length go hard over to where you want to be and go full forward she will spin on a dime.

Ed
S/V Moonlight Mile

[dutchie]

Backing up only on engine power is for sure a pain up in the ........ it took me 2 years off learning. luckily the first owner of mine had added a bow-truster in. So when backing-up I steer her with some burst of this truster. Marina's in the Netherlands are ferry tight, a small country with plenty of water and people does drive prices per square meter up so the do plan as much berthing places if possible in the marina's. I was always against these bow-truster and thought it was a lack of seamanship but by now I love it. I now can turn her on the spot only by engine power and make advantage of this propwalk and by using the propwalk and the bowtruster she will go sideways to starboard to.

[dave6330]

I'd sure be interested to see photos of your bow thruster...did you install it yourself or have a yard work it up for you?

[dutchie]

it's from Vetus and mine ques is it's done bij a pro. The disadvantage is they used the front water tank.

[jackjanos]

Why is the thruster not in the center of the boat?

[slokat]

I saw this thread open again, and must add that the easiest way I have found to back out of my slip is to push her out & jump on (with the engine idling in neutral, rudder locked straight), conservation of momentum does the rest when I reach the helm and shift into reverse...