Published
Sea Danger Guide
Following seas, breaking following seas, surfing, broaching, bow-bury, pooping waves and pitchpole risk.
SailingKSF Safety Articles
Safety Guides
Sailing Safety Guides
Practical sailing safety articles, written for sailors who want plain words before the weather, fatigue or gear failure makes everything harder.
This page collects the safety guides into one calm place so the main site can stay clean while the article library grows.
Published
Heavy Weather Readiness Guide
Preparing the boat, gear and skipper before bad weather arrives: reefing, jacklines, drogues, food, water, checks and recovery after the blow.
Guide
Night Watch And Singlehanded Sleep Safety
When short rest is acceptable, when it is not, and what must be true before a singlehanded skipper goes below or sleeps.
Guide
Water In The Boat
Hit something, water entering, finding the leak, slowing the inflow, bilge pump limits, emergency patching and outside help.
Guide
Autopilot Failure And Emergency Steering
What to do when steering automation stops helping: hand steering, sail balance, emergency tiller, crew roles and fatigue management.
Guide
Anchor Watch And Dragging Anchor
Setting anchor alarms, understanding swing room, wind shifts, lee shore risk, reset decisions and waking up before the boat is already in trouble.
Guide
Squalls At Night
Night squall warning signs, conservative sail plan, alarms, first actions, rain, lightning and recovery checks.
Guide
Power And Battery Safety On Passage
Energy budget, critical loads, charging failure, bilge pump power, inverter use, lithium behavior and emergency reserve.
Guide
Man Overboard And Staying On Board
Staying clipped on, jacklines, lifejackets, cold water shock, first MOB actions, recovery and singlehanded risk.
Guide
Calling For Help At Sea
Mayday, Pan-Pan, VHF/DSC, PLB, EPIRB, phones, position, crew briefing and emergency call scripts.
Guide
DSC And AIS Emergency Communication
MMSI, GPS position, DSC testing, distress alerts, AIS setup, CPA/TCPA alarms and checks before relying on them.
Guide
Fire, Gas And Carbon Monoxide On Board
Boat fire, LPG gas, carbon monoxide, alarms, first actions, smoke, evacuation and recovery checks.
Guide
Collision Avoidance And Lookout
Proper lookout, AIS, radar, constant bearing, night traffic, fishing vessels and early clear action.
Guide
Engine Failure Under Sail
First actions, sea room, anchoring, fuel, cooling water, batteries, tow preparation and recovery checks.
Shared vocabulary
Some sailing words are used internationally, and some are difficult to translate cleanly. The article system will keep short vocabulary blocks near the end of each guide, with the local word, the common English term and a simple explanation.
App Connection
Use this together with KSF Passage Companion
The articles are easier to use on a real boat when your own boat details are already written down.
- Store where safety gear, tools, spares and manuals are located.
- Keep boat-specific checklists for night, heavy weather, departure and emergencies.
- Use logbook notes for failures, chafe, repairs and weak points that should be checked again.
Feedback For The Safety Guide Section
If you have offshore or heavy-weather experience and see a missing subject, I would be glad to read it.
Build the library slowly
The safety section should grow one useful article at a time, with enough detail to teach, but still written in language a tired skipper can understand.
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