How to expertly moor a yacht

Ye shall have a fishy on a little dishy when the boat comes in, but you’ll be getting no fishy if they can’t moor properly. Olympic gold medallists Ian Percy and Andrew Simpson, brand ambassadors for Clarks Sports ‘Orson Lace’ boat shoe, help us safely tether our yacht without it drifting away into the ocean.

1) “Make sure that the spot you’ve selected is deep enough to allow your boat in and out of dock at low tide. Approach the mooring from downwind or against a current in order to slow your approach. Well before reaching the mooring, have a crew ready at the bow with a boat hook.”

2) “On your approach, make sure that your bow won’t cross the mooring pennant (a) between the mooring ball (b) and the pickup buoy (c), which could make it difficult for the crew to pull up the pennant. As the bow reaches the mooring, your crew needs to grab the pickupbuoy mast and pull up the pennant. If the pickup mast cannot be reached, use the boat hook to catch the pennant underwater between the mooring ball and the pickup buoy.”

3) “Once the crew grab the pickup buoy, they need to secure the pennant on the bow cleat (d). Pass the pennant through a bow chock (e) to prevent chafe, and secure the pennant’s loop over the cleat.”

4) “For added security, make a cleat hitch over the cleat. This will prevent any risk of the pennant loop ‘jumping’ off of the cleat if tension on the pennant is not continual.”