It was a hectic day at the boat yard as usual and they were getting ready to pull two boats out of the water. The yard is a bit on the small side so every time they want to pull a boat out of the water they have to clear out half the trailers that are in the yard to make space for the travel lift to move about. For the non boat people out there a travel lift is a Frankenstein contraption on wheels that is basically a set of huge girders that form a giant box with one open side. They drive the lift to surround the boat, put straps under it and then lift the boat into the air. They can then drive the boat where they wish to move it or into position to put back into the water. Needless to say it is a stressful time for the boat owner to see your boat in the air and also an incredibly stressful time for the lift operator as well.

When I designed the davits I did it like I tend to do all things, I over engineered it. I never knew I had this trait until I was working for one of my friends Erik and he used to always comment on the way I would build a cabinet or an arch or door. He once said “You don’t need to build it strong enough for an elephant to fall on it”

When I worked with the engineering company to design the davits I gave them a few requirements.

1. They had to extend far enough back so that the dingy could be hauled up without dragging on Taniwha’s rudder

2. They needed to be able to sustain 2ton load at 80% capacity and withstand a shock load of 5tons (a 10m breaking wave over the stern)

3. They had to look reasonably nice without making the boat look like a heavy lifting tramp steamer

I was happy with the results and I then added my own “over engineering”. I wanted to have the solar panels sit in an aluminum frame between the davits and chose an extruded aluminum box tubing that was 100cm by 40cm with a 3cm thick wall and then built and welded a box with this between the davits. Was it overkill? At the time yea, I must admit it was but it was all so light I figured why not, it was also the fastest and cheapest way to get the solar panels properly secured so I went with it.

Why does any of this detail matter? Remember that travel lift? It is a giant machine around 15 meters high and 60meters long and designed to carry 20tons.

Today was a hectic day, the lads were in a hurry and not looking closely. I am inside Taniwha as usual doing this or that and can hear the diesel of the lift getting closer. Nothing unusual in this as I am positioned right next to where boats are pulled from the water. It didn’t bother me as it was a common occurrence. Then there was a slight bump. I jump out the hatch to see the steel ladder on the lift (see picture of ladder) connecting with the very tip of our new davits, and before I can yell loud enough the ladder snapped off the lift and the lift moved about one meter.

Luckily the lift moves at less than a walking pace.

Luckily the ladder hit the davit and not the lift.

Of course then all hell breaks loose.

I jump off the boat and look down at the ground in horror, I can see drag marks under the cradles supporting the boat. The stern of our 9ton boat has been dragged 30 cm and lucky for all of us some how both cradles were dragged with it. We almost lost the boat. If the ladder on the lift hadn’t snapped or if the lift itself had contacted the boat it would have been dragged 1 meter instead of 30cm and for sure would have toppled over.

The damage to the davits? The one hit by the lift might be 3mm closer to the other, I think, hard to tell if it was damaged since the elephant didn’t fall far enough to move it.

-jc