You do not need wind to have waves.  In crowded waters you will inevitably find inconsiderate large power boats making 1m waves.  Put a few together and there is a mighty mess.  A river entrance with a bar can easily have 1m waves without wind when there is a bit of swell.  A moderately fast flowing channel can have standing waves exceeding 1m. 

There is also the situation where swells can become much steeper joggle.  The worst I have experienced is a gentle 1m swell turning into a messy joggle with peaks as high as 3m in the vicinity of a bulk loading berth where waves bounce off the vessel and steep shoreline to collide with the incoming swell. No wind but steep messy waves.  

Then there are the circumstances where sailing is impractical due to tight navigating conditions or there is a problem with the rig, sails or rudders.  

Outboards need to breathe.  They suffocate when immersed.  Outboards are usually not speed governed so they rev madly when the prop is out of water.  When they get back in the water they just suck air or actually cavitate when fully immersed and will not bite unless revs are reduced.  In 1m waves a swinging tender would be like a bucking bronco. 

Has anyone got experience using a tender for propulsion on a HP?  If so please inform on experience.

A novice sailor is likely to find many situations where there is a need to motor in waves above 1m.   It could be just trying to pick up a mooring.  It is not easy to sail onto a mooring off a lee shore.  Miss the mooring and you could be on rocks before you are able to sail out of the situation.  

Rick

 

On 15 Aug 2019, at 2:49 am, '.' eruttan@yahoo.com [harryproa] <harryproa@yahoogroups.com.au> wrote:

I am not a sailor. So I have two questions.

Why would you use a motor when seas are over 1m?

Why would the HP's tilted tender be useless in seas over 1m?

Thank you.

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