Watch systemssleep is safety equipment
Fatigue is a cause, not an effect
On a passage of three or four days, fatigue is the risk you can most easily reduce yourself. A rested crew reefs in time, spots that ship earlier and makes better decisions.
There is no rota that works for every boat and every crew. What does apply to all of them:
- decide on the rota before you leave, not when everyone is already tired;
- start it immediately, even if the first evening on deck is still sociable;
- keep to it, even in fine weather — the rota exists for the day it is not fine;
- make sure one person is always awake and responsible, and that this person knows it is them;
- hand over the watch explicitly: course, sail trim, traffic, weather, anything unusual. Actively ask for confirmation that it has been understood, especially in the dark.
Four on board: two watches of two
The most comfortable arrangement. Two pairs, four hours on and four off. To stop the same pair standing the graveyard watch every night, split one evening watch into two two-hour stretches — the classic dogwatch. The rota then shifts every day.
| Time | Watch |
|---|---|
| 20.00 – 24.00 | A |
| 00.00 – 04.00 | B |
| 04.00 – 08.00 | A |
| 08.00 – 12.00 | B |
| 12.00 – 16.00 | A |
| 16.00 – 18.00 | B (short watch) |
| 18.00 – 20.00 | A (short watch) |
Three on board: rolling, four on, eight off
Everyone stands four hours and then has eight off. That gives plenty of sleep, but everyone stands alone. That requires clear agreements about when to wake someone — and the agreement that waking someone is never wrong.
Two on board: short at night, long by day
With two, three hours on and three off at night usually beats four and four: you sleep less, but you are sharper. Lengthen the watches during the day so the other can really get a block of sleep. Rest in the bunk is worth more than rest in the cockpit.
Practical things that make a rota work
- eat before your watch starts, not after;
- do not wake the person coming off for something that can wait;
- lay out warm clothing so getting dressed does not take half an hour;
- agree when a lifeline is compulsory — at night and alone on deck is a common boundary;
- use an alarm clock, not a feeling;
- keep the log. It helps the next watch, and afterwards it is the best document of the voyage.