Safety at Sea

St. Partick's day weekend in Newport. The Safety At Sea Seminar also took place. The weather outside was some of the worst we have experienced in some time;sixty knots of wind and over 5 inches of rain.

Personally the trellis I built blew over and broke in several places. It had with stood many storms and I had developed a false sense of security about it sturdiness. Nothing that can't be repaired.

I am now certified for the next five years as far as US sailing is concerned. On sunday I was certified in CPR and First Aid.

There was some new gear exhibited. Of note was the clothing made by Ursuit.

Overall this was the best organized and best presented Safety at Sea Seminar I have ever attended.

Finally Peter Becker and Stan Schreyer were also being certified before they take off in IMOCA 60's to set a record between New York and Barcelona.

Lirakis safety Harness

The 1972 Bermuda race convinced me there was a better design for a safety harness, I am an inveterate tinkerer, always trying to improve on something. Simplicity is the key. Over the next few years I worked in my spare time on developing and refining my ideas. The first harness was sold in 1978. Shortly thereafter I left my job and started producing them full time, I continued to sail until finally the company grew to the point where I was forced to choose.

The harness was simplicity itself; which made it practical and user friendly in today's words. It was followed shortly by the bosun's chair, which brought the position of the bowman on a boat into the modern world. It redefined the responsibilities and activities of the man on the bow. Again it just made sense.

The Business continue to expand into many other areas, and responsibilities followed, sailing became a distant memory, but never gone.