The traditional technique for hoisting a MOB back onto a sailboat consists, once you have approached and positioned yourself downwind of the person in the water, of hoisting them with a halyard using their life jacket or a harness.
This method works very well when the person in the water is fully capable, but with a small crew, or if the victim is injured or unconscious, it is a completely different story.
Let's start with the worst-case scenario. You are alone on your monohull and a sudden lurch causes you to fall overboard while you are groggy and taking a nature break. If you are lucky, you won't get hurt. If you are very lucky, there is no wind and your boat is stationary, or you managed to grab hold of something, or you have a remote control to bring the sailboat head-to-wind.
That is already a lot of luck. At that point, you swim toward your sailboat and realize that you have nothing to grab onto and no way to get back on board... You are likely going to end up there...
Unless, being lucky and prepared (as you already demonstrated with your autopilot remote), you have installed a Magic Reboard emergency ladder.
A line hangs 30 cm from the water's surface. You pull it, and a ladder with rigid rungs deploys. You can climb back up.
Phew.
Things are no easier with an exhausted, terrified, or injured person in the water. When someone is hoisted by their life jacket while injured or lacking strength, they risk hurting themselves—often severely—in the back, which can worsen the situation. In these cases, it is better to have the right gear.
This is a mesh cradle that deploys quickly from a protective bag. The victim is slid inside, and you simply attach a halyard to the top and lower it over the side.
The cradle has slats at the base to provide rigidity and help it sink.
Lines are attached to each end, and the fabric sides support the victim laterally. It is easy for a conscious but weakened victim to get into it.
The cradle folds flat, making it easy to store.
This recovery raft floats and features a sturdy attachment point for a halyard.
To deploy it, simply pull a tab on the casing, and the recovery module pops out, inflated by a gas cylinder.
The unit includes an automatic light, a flag, and a ballast pocket for stability. You can also mount a personal beacon on it.
Once they have managed to climb onto it, the victim is held securely and kept out of the water. The Jonbuoy is attached to the pushpit in its bag. Like a life jacket, it requires periodic inspection.
This system simplifies the recovery maneuver (prior to hoisting) and can be deployed directly from the helm.
Catch and Lift significantly simplifies the difficult and dangerous approach maneuver.
It consists of a tackle system that is attached, in the event of an accident, to a loop previously mounted on a shroud. A line runs through the tackle with a float at one end. Once the tackle is rigged, the float is thrown into the water and the approach maneuver is performed. The person overboard grabs the line, then the float, and secures their life jacket to it.
Once they have it in hand, the second part of the device, which contains a sea anchor, is thrown into the water. By adjusting the boat's engine speed, the resistance of the sea anchor pulls and then hoists the person overboard up to the level of the fixed loop on the shroud. The tackle is, of course, equipped with a cam cleat to prevent the line from slipping back.
Practical for small crews, Catch and Lift requires the victim to be conscious and uninjured or only slightly injured.
