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When sailing a traditional twin mast ketch, what are the recommended crew requirements?

Let's assume the following for simplicity:

  1. Captain has 6-pack maritime license.
  2. Captain and passengers total 5 people.
  3. Crew has 1-2 years sailing experience.
  4. Sailing within 20 miles of shore, not in commercial shipping lane.
  5. Boat bow to stern is 45 feet.
  6. Prevailing wind is 10-15 knots, seas 4-5 feet at the bell.
  7. Visibility is 5 nautical miles.

What are the responsibilities of each crew member?

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  • Skill matters a lot. If you're asking this question, I'll guess you're at the low end of the scale.
    – Jay Bazuzi
    Commented Jan 26, 2012 at 19:45
  • Setting matters a lot. Blue-water sailing in heavy weather is different than lake sailing on in fair weather.
    – Jay Bazuzi
    Commented Jan 26, 2012 at 19:49
  • 1
    And, of course, size matters.
    – xpda
    Commented Jan 26, 2012 at 19:51
  • 1
    Thanks for the feedback, I've actually grown up on the water, but wanted to get some sailing questions seeded. Changed the question to make it more pointed and useful.
    – dangeranger
    Commented Jan 26, 2012 at 20:01
  • @Dangeranger Yeah, I assumed thats why the private beta is so small...to seed.
    – Justin Self
    Commented Jan 26, 2012 at 22:57

1 Answer 1

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Every boat is different, and every crew is different. There is no set standard. Some people go single-handed on a ketch, some have fairly large crew. Bernard Moitessier used to sail a 39-foot ketch single-handed and with his wife.

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  • 2
    is right. Can you raise & trim sails from the cockpit? I've sailed a 35' New Haven Sharpie (nominally a ketch) solo by holding a sheet in each hand, and letting the rudder do what it wants.
    – Jay Bazuzi
    Commented Jan 26, 2012 at 19:51
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    Bernard Moitessier lost three ships.
    – Floyd
    Commented Dec 29, 2014 at 18:12

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