A couple of posts in the thread titled "What did you break this weekend, Part III" made me think it might be interesting to find out what kinds of injuries people have gotten from sailing. In that other thread...
Pitchpole Dave posted:
Just about broke my leg! During a good attempt at a pitchpole my leg slid under the boat in front of the dagger. Since the boat was still moving the water slammed my leg against the dagger...5 stitches and lots of bruises..

and Colin posted in reply:
Dave,
I thought I was the only one who did that! I was sailing with my brother last year on our Nacra 5.2. I stuffed the bows hard into a wave (my fault). He stumbled forward on the trapeze and dragged his back foot in the water to regain his balance. The daggerboard hit his leg and instantly caused a black golf-ball sized knot on the side of his shin (which grew to tennis-ball size and more colors). That was the end of our sailing for the day. I was wondering if anyone else ever managed to injure their crew in this manner.
* * * * *
And here is my own list of sailing-related injuries that I can remember:

One time for a Wednesday night beer-can race I was crewing for Darrell McCullough, our local Hobie dealer, on one of his Hobie 18's. We had just left the beach, and I was putting the daggerboards down. On our own Hobie 18 the boards went down fairly stiffly, so I pushed it down hard. Well, Darrell's board went down like greased lightning, taking my fingers down into the daggerboard trunk along with the top of the board. One of my fingernails (which are all very short in the first place) was stripped almost completely off and was just dangling there by a thread. There was blood all over the tramp. We went back to the beach and I said, "Well, I guess that's it for me tonight." But Darrell's father, who is ex-military, said, "What are you talking about? Don't be a wimp! Get out there and sail!" He taped up my fingernail, and Darrell and I went out and raced. Blood was dripping the whole time. Good thing there aren't many sharks on the bay side.

The second injury that was memorable happened while launching the boat at Mid-Americas many years ago north of Chicago. Had to use a concrete launching ramp, and somehow I managed to slip and broke my big toe. Sailed the whole regatta in excruciating pain. (Try trapezing with a broken big toe.)

Third memorable injury I had was also on our Hobie 18, sailing at Bay Week on Lake Erie one year long ago. We had a distance race around the islands. While on a reach, double-trapped, Rick lost his balance and got thrown forward -- right into me, knocking my feet out from under me. I didn't totally fall in the water, but my right shin impacted hard on the rubrail about a third of the way up from my ankle. For many years there was a noticeable dent in my shinbone and no feeling in the area of the dent.

That's about it for me. I'm not counting, of course, all the hundreds of mysterious cuts and bruises over 50 years of sailing. When we are racing, we tend not to even notice when we have been injured until we start seeing blood on the boat. And then we have no idea when it happened or what caused it.

So what injuries have YOU had related to beach cats -- whether on or off the water? Your back or rotator cuff injured raising a mast? Serious infection from sailing in saltwater when you had a cut or abrasion? Long hair caught in a block? Hit in the face by a mast-rotator bar? Shocked by lightning?

And while we are at it, what are the most likely causes of injury while sailing? and also while on shore rigging the boat?

Ironically, all of my sailing related injuries managed to come to me via the mono I race on.

Although, I have been hit in the head by the H17's low boom before....


...a couple times.

On the C-28R, severed my ACL and tore my MCL in right knee last June running to the back of the boat for a screacher gybe--slipped off the seat edge into the **** and THEN my boat shoes gripped and knee bent backwards about 20 degrees with a loud double-clunk. I said, "Darn." We finished the race with ice packs and battens taped over my knee and me trimming main from the **** floor.

Other than that, shins are laced with scars from getting thrown forward into traveller while driving. Wish I'd been smart enough to wear softball knee pads which include a shin guard along with knee protection. Ripped off a nail when main blocks and hand accidentally briefly occupied the same space during a stupid driver gybe (better than my crew's temple when he sacrified his head as a preventer--whatta guy!).

On cat, I've been bruised black and blue and lacerated on extremeties and hands.

Used to say that if I didn't bleed, I hadn't learned anything on a sail. Now I realize that getting injured is just slow; distracts you if nothing else. So I wear neoprene farmer john and knee pads for even a day sail. High performance sailing is definitely a contact sport--dress for it or pay the price!

Our sport is probably higher risk than tennis or golf--they do get zapped by lightning but how many drown with a stuck harness under a capsize or are murdered by a coach/spectator boat? Compared with skiing or snowboarding's potential for limb injury and head impact, sailing risk to life or limb is probably similar. We have a lot of highly tensioned lines and rolling guillotines waiting to slice off a digit. I consider the risk manageable, sail in reasonable conditions, and don't sweat the fact that I might have a really unlucky day. Try not to suffer the same injury twice : )

My brother and I have certainly had our share of bruises, and sore muscles, but nothing too serious in the line of injuries.

We did get to take our first trip to the emergency room at a regatta down in Iowa this past summer. My crew gashed his leg open on piece of hardware on the tramp of my Hobie 20. At first it didn't seem to be too serious. It stopped bleeding, and everthing seemed fine. Then after swimming during a break, he got out of the water, and his leg was bleeding like a geyser. After having several people look it, including an EMT, a nurse, and an eye doctor, it was determined that he should be stitched up.

So, I took him to the ER, and about three hours later (if you're not dying, you get to wait) they had three stitches in his leg. The worst part was that it meant my crew could no longer sail. We had it all figured out how we were going to waterproof his leg, but were told by all of the medical professionals in attendence that we were taking a big risk of infection.

Along with that risk, we were told the horror stories about a friend on Bald Eagle Lake who injured herself with what seemed to be a minor cut. As a result of getting it wet, she sustained a very bad infection that resulted in a two to three day hospital stay hooked up to iv's and the whole bit!

So...the morale is, that though many have gotten away with it, you are risking death or serious injury by letting your injuries get wet!!

Mary, you're lucky that fingernail injury didn't turn into something worse. Especially in saltwater! Yuck!

Cheers!

Tim

I've had my fair share of cuts and scrapes, but never paid them much attention... they've never been infected, especially when sailing in salt water.

The comment about shin lacerations/bruises reminds me of my first experienced crew on my Hobie 20. She showed up with field hockey shin guards, having been on these boats before. My own worst problem came over time. Two seasons ago I developed bursitis in my left shoulder at the end of the season from hand sheeting the main all the time. I was afraid to cleat it, having gone over a few time when I couldn't release it in time. Anyway, the effort finally caught up with me and I suffered 3 months of limited motion before seeing an orthopod, who scheduled me for surgery. The worst part was the rehab to get the joint mobility back. I've since learned how to cleat the main and release the main. For us older guys the "cumulitive, wearing down" injuries may be the biggest problem.
David
H20

I'll add a couple to the list...

Caught the mast on the under side of my forearm during a demast once. Was trying to protect my crew from being popped in the head. Ended up having a nice black and blue mark that covered half my forearm. On the same day, as we are about the put the boat on the trailer, my brother (crew) was standing behind the boat as I was tying the tiller, one of the rudders popped loose and landed on the top of his foot. I was afraid that it broke his foot but just left a large black and blue mark for 2 weeks.

Another story, not so much injury but pretty funny. About to head out with my wife, we are standing in knee deep water putting on our vests when my wife let out a huge scream and yelled "something bit me". Laughing my a$$ off at her ability to move on top of the water I happened to look down. Out from under the boat was this puffer fish coming straight at me. I started to back up and it continued to come after me. Needless to say I was moving just as fast as she was out of the water. This little bugger ended up biting her on the small toe and left a nice little welt. We laughed about it the entire sail on just the fact of how aggressive this little fish was.

I had another fun time when on a 20 mile reach. It was on the open Lake Ontario, at the eastern end and it can get pretty rough. This day it was about 15-17 knots of wind, 6' rollers. I wanted to push it pretty hard, so I didn't cleat the main and so had to hold it for almost an hour in each arm (there and back on a reach)...I ended up having tennis elbow...Then to make matters worse I went back out sailing a month later and re-injured it.

Hi Mary,
I used to live on Lake Mangonia in West Palm Beach, Florida where most of the beach cat sailing was done especially in the winter. The boat ramp was just a couple of blocks away from my house where all of the action originated. When the H14 and H16 first came out there were two fatilities associated with sailing these beachcats. The prone to pitchpole boats pitchpoled and people sailing without life jackets drownd on two windy occasions.
When these boats first came out, there was no mechanical connection between the mast step and mast base to use while stepping the mast. It took two persons to raise the mast. One person attempted to hold the lower end of the mast near the cup where the mast base fit while the other person pushed the mast up from the back of the trampoline. More than once the mast base got away from the holder and they were hit in the face with the base of the mast as the mast was being raised/fell. There were bloody noses and knocked out teeth etc.
Safe Sailing,
Bill

I have collected a couple more injury stories. David White got a nasty gash in his hand during a Worrell 1000. He had a fixed-blade knife in a sheath, and somehow it fell out onto the tramp at night. He did not realize it had fallen out. When he grabbed a sheet, he got the knife, too, and it slashed his hand. (Of course, if we start talking about the Worrell 1000, there are all sorts of injuries, including broken bones.)

In just normal situations, David also gashed his hand on a Hobie 17 Sport. He says it has jib tracks on the main beam. He lost his balance or something and his hand ended up skidding down the track, and it sliced his hand pretty good. (He was not wearing sailing gloves at the time.)

To redirect this thread on how to prevent injury.
I capsized in 30kn of wind with a green crew.
Upon righting TheMightyHobie18, I MISSED grabing the dolpin striker with the
second hand. Therefore I was yanked out of the water by one hand.
Once the pain in my arm reached a high level, I figured my body
was trying to tell me something and let go.
This resulted in almost pulling my bisep off the bone, $7000 & 3 mo rehab.
(right biseptual tendon)

So, NEVER grab the dophin striker with one hand.

I think I've told this here before, but I was on a nice run back to Quonset Point Rhode Island, when a very large cabin cruiser out of Wickford roared up at full throttle to port. The boats wake was so large I thought it would flip my h17, so I shoved the tiller over to turn into the wave. I didn't turn soon enough, and was thrown up in the air. When I landed, the boat was upright, but I had sliced my foot on something, and was bleeding like crazy! I take an anticoagulant for a heart valve, and when the blood starts running, it really runs! I made it into shore, and enlisted the Fleet's help getting the boat up, and getting my foot taped up. I missed the awards dinner, and the next day had to get my mother to let me take her car to pick up the boat, because I couldn't use the clutch in my GTI. The next weekend was our annual Island Hop(The high holiday of New England cat sailors). I taped the dam thing up and crewed without incident in 25knot winds. Back at the beach I was talking with a friend when I heard my name being shouted.I turned to see a jet skier on the boat ramp. The high winds were driving waves directly onto the normally protected ramp. The guys whole trailer was bouncing around as he tried to get his ski onto it. At one point his legs were washed under the trailer wheels! My friend Ray and I sprinted over to help! I was glad we made it before any seriuos injury occurred! The guy had helped me right my first H17 the first time I flipped it. Nice to give back! Anyway, the sprint split my foot wide open again! I missed about a week of work!

I think I can top the injuries in a hobie 16. I went out hoping to try out a new harness I had bought. Unfortunately that day there was no wind. So we decided to go out father, we left at about 10am it was lunch time and we were in the bay waiting for the afternoon wind to pick up. we waithed andn waited all the time getting taken father out by the tide. We started to get worried about not returning but werent panicking. after a few more hours the sun started to go down. We new then that we had a problem and tried in vain to get assistance from other motor craft. It was starting to get cold and dark so we mored next to a beacon in the channel. I was getting wrestless and thought I felt a small puff of air...it was small I was cold and made a decision to go for it to the nearest land even if it was mossie and sandfly infested. so we were off again into the channed. we saw the water bus approaching, they were doing about 22knots and yes full of passengers. Next thing I knew my crew had abandoned ship and I was hit bby the water bus. No they didnt see us even though I had full sail up (main and jib) I came off second best with a punchured lung and broken ribs. Police came and gave a lift back to the mainland with ambulance waiting at the boat ramp. The boat was a right off with the mast broken in three places and one hull broken in two, even the tramp frame snapped in two!12 months on an out of caught settlement in my favor...socilitors got half the settlement but all the same I am back on the water. moral of the story have a light on board and sail in a group if going out far!

Injuries to me are fairly minor, nearly pitch polling a H16, as I swung forward on the trapeze, I managed to make sure both legs went the same side of the mast, which is always my main priority, then as I swung back toward the boat my legs struck the front beam, leaving two dents on my shins for the rest of the year.

The first time I sailed my own H16, we capsized, as we righted the boat, the crew was looking up to grab the dolphin striker, but was still under the hull, the hull came down hard on his face, potentially very dangerous, but luckily he got away with a black eye and some bruising.

The worst injury I heard of was to our old commodore, I believe he was trapezing at the back of the H16 and slipped, he landed on his butt on the corner of the rear corner casting so heavily that he needed stitches , and I am told by him that due to the place he landed the stitches were practically internal, ouch!

Who was that nice lady that suffered the compound Tibia/Fibula open fracture at the beach landing of the Worrell about 3 years ago? Last I heard she was up and around, but haven't seen her sailing as of late... Any news from the Worrell veterans?

I was fairly new to Catamarans and very new to the H-20, and sailing with a crew who suffered from epilepsy. Though it was well controlled with medication, mild siezures could happen without warning.
We capsized in about 20 knots of wind, which made righting the boat easy despite our combined 295 pounds. We had the righting line tied to the mast and around my waist, while she sat in my lap, more or less. When the boat came upright, the hull landed right in front of us, while the righting line was still wrapped around us. The tangle sheets caused the sails to fill and the boat took off, pinning us against the hull. My crew was forced under water and despite pushing on her head, I could not get her free of the hull. We went plowing along like this for several seconds (seemed like minutes) until I was able to reach the tiller extension and get control of the boat. With less water pressure I was able to free my crew who was in the midst of a seizure. Thank God for PFDs. I got her on board and sailed the boat back to shore. We both recovered and sailed later that day, and in the next day's races.