IN THE ACCOUNT of the service by Padstow lifeboat to the coaster Skopelos Sky which appeared in the summer edition of the journal, there was an unusual addendum. Unlike most reports that begin with words to the effect that 'the lifeboat launched at . . .' and end 'returned to station' or 'was rehoused at' whatever time, the Skopelos Sky report ended with an account of how the men responsible for recovering the lifeboat had the frightening task of securing the winch wire and hauling the James and Catherine Macfarlane to safety in exceptionally rough seas. Coxswain Trevor England who had been at sea for over eight hours in conditions reliably described as 'the worst in living memory', is prepared to admit that he was happier to have been aboard the lifeboat than among the shore crew during that particular recovery. Here, and in the following two issues of the journal, it is hoped by studying the vital and often dangerous role of shore helpers, the full implications of the words launch and recovery will emerge.

There are three basic methods of launching conventional lifeboats, either down a slipway, or by tractor and carriage or on skids over a beach. Each method requires considerable skill from the launchers, built up over years of experience and passed down the generations. When generalising about any type of launch, it is important to appreciate that every station prides itself on its individual interpretation of the slipway, carriage or beach launch and recovery methods. These small differences are determined by local conditions, traditions and the class of boat at the station; however for the purpose of these articles, three stations are featured: Padstow (slipway), St Ives (carriage) and Walmer (beach).

Padstow Padstow lifeboat, James and Catherine Macfarlane, a 48ft 6in Oakley, is housed at the foot of the cliffs on the east side of Trevose Head. A narrow rocky spur stretches out to sea parallel to the slipway on the north side making this an ideal location as it protects the launching area from the worst of the Atlantic swell, although on the night of the Skopelos Sky rescue seas were breaking clean over the top of this 60 foot natural barrier.

When there is a 'shout', head launcher Pat Raby and winchman Ernie Bennett with their team of helpers must reach this remote site as rapidly as the lifeboat crew themselves. A slipway launch is the quickest way of getting a housed lifeboat to sea; once the crew are aboard the winchman hoists the lifeboat a foot up the slipway to take the strain off the preventer chains which secure the lifeboat to the slipway within the boathouse. These chains are detached and the lifeboat is lowered down to its original position; the engines are started, propellers spinning in preparation for the first contact with the sea, and at the whistled signal from the coxswain, the retaining pin is hammered out by the head launcher and the lifeboat accelerates quickly away, rumbling over the rollers which provide the initial speed at the top of the slipway.

The lifeboat's strangely slow motion impact with the water is a spectacular climax and one of the most famous sights of the RNLI.Patience must be one of a shore helper's chief attributes; there can be no way of telling how long the lifeboat will be on service; together with the honorary secretary the launchers must wait for messages from and to the lifeboat. Head launchers and winchmen have often had sea experience, some have been lifeboat crew members; many of their helpers are future lifeboat men. They will all only be able to use their imagination as to what is going on aboard the lifeboat. Hugh Williams and John Williams, respectively the head launcher and winchman at Porthdinllaen station, North Wales, were once asked whether they would not rather be out with the lifeboat herself during a rescue. They agreed that although they had both spent many years at sea as merchant seamen, their experience with the winch wire made them of more value to the station on shore than at sea. Certainly the head launcher's role is a highly responsible one and the essence of the successful recovery of a lifeboat back on to her slipway is dependent on his judgment and the teamwork that exists between him and his winchman.

At Padstow the lifeboat prepares for rehousing by picking up two breasting buoys, one to starboard and one to port of the bow, passing a line through each and moving slowly astern on these two lines towards the slipway. Les Vipond, inspector of lifeboats for the south west, describes this manoeuvre as 'the most unnatural thing to ask a seaman to do. It goes against all his instincts to drive the stern of his boat straight at a rigid slipway'. However, the fortified keel of a lifeboat and her housed propellers are specially designed for this treatment and although it takes considerable skill by the coxswain, a second attempt at 'finding the keelway' is very rare indeed. It is now up to the head launcher's skill; he will be standing at the foot of the slipway, watching the lifeboat keel like a hawk, ready to throw the heaving line to the crew at the right moment. This can be extremely tricky in bad weather with nothing to hold on to when it is slippery under foot and with waves and strong winds threatening to sweep you off your feet at any moment. Coxswain Trevor England at Padstow will know that all is well if he hears nothing. They say about Pat Raby 'he won't say a word if it's going okay; if he yells, you know there's something wrong'. The heaving line is thrown aboard; attached to this is the V-shaped bridle, made of special flexible wire, which in turn is attached to the winch wire. The two ends "of the V are secured to bollards aboard the lifeboat and at the blow of a whistle and what seems to be a telepathic message from his head launcher, Ernie Bennett activates the winch which hauls the lifeboat clear of the water. This is a dangerous moment for anyone on the slipway; particularly if it is rough; the winch wire is now at the level of the lifeboat gunwale, high above the heads of the recovery crew.

If a wave forces the lifeboat to surge up the slipway as she is half in and half out of the water, the wire will slacken then tauten and as it waves around, launchers have to be careful not to be struck by it.

Once the lifeboat is high and dry— usually about a third of the way up the slipway—the winch is stopped, two thick ropes called quarter stoppers are secured to the slipway at one end and to the port and starboard quarters ofthe lifeboat at the other. These support the entire 32 tons of lifeboat as the bridle is dismantled and the winch wire secured to the keel extension at the base of the rudder. As the winch takes the weight of the lifeboat the quarter stoppers are removed and steadily the lifeboat is then hauled up the remaining length of the slipway into the boathouse where the preventer chains are re-attached. During this entire exercise the winchman must be alert to every signal from the head launcher, ready to react instantly to each one and above all to be conscious of his wire and how it is behaving, especially when the weather is bad.

From the instant a coxswain has manoeuvred his lifeboat to the bottom of the slipway the responsibility of the shore helpers begins and a coxswain needs tremendous faith in his head launcher and winchman. It is impossible to doubt Trevor England when he says that his recovery crew are the finest in the land, except that there are 40 slipway stations and therefore 40 coxswains who are likely to have the same esteem for their own launchers.

(to be continued).