The bowline knot is one of the most important knots in sailing and boating. Few other knots lay claim to being able to save your life. Say, you fell overboard in freezing water, and a mate tosses you a line. You may be too tired and numb from cold to hold on to the line, but not too tired to tie a bowline and put the loop around your shoulders!
There are variations of the bowline that are interesting and have distinct characteristics. One variation is the "flying bowline", which is extremely fast to tie when you need a small loop, but is easy to untie when it is unloaded. It has one extra loop forming the bight. Check out this American Sailing Association newsletter article and see how to tie it, or as experts would say - throw it!
If you research it a little further, you find some controversy in sailing forums about whether the flying bowline is actually better than a standard bowline, or merely better for showing off! (Ya have to admit that tying it looks pretty cool!)
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| Bowline on the left. Flying bowline on the right. |
Alex, I want to see a video of you tying this knot! It's cool.
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