Rescue fin

A rescue fin is a device for repairing a broken skeg box on a sailboard without the need to take the sailboard to a repair shop. The rescue fin is strapped to the rear part of the sailboard so that the skeg box of the rescue fin is positioned above the broken skeg box and is strapped in place using straps positioned on both sides of the skeg board. the device can be carried on the sailboard or by the operator of the sailboard and can be installed on shore or in the water.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to wind surfing boards. Specifically, this invention 
relates to a device used with a wind surfing board to replace a broken 
fin. 
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION OF THE PRIOR ART 
Wind surfing involves the application of a sail to a surfing board. Wind 
surfing, in recent years, has become a very popular activity involving a 
large number of people. Wind surfing activity has included travels across 
large bodies of water and recently a Trans-Atlantic voyage was complete 
using a wind surfing device. All wind sailboards require a fin for 
directional control, and also to stabilize the sailboard in the water so 
that the board will move forward rather than slide sideways. Thus, the fin 
performs similar to the centerboard or keel in a conventional sailboat and 
is important in maintaining the sailboard in the desired direction. If the 
fin breaks off, it is difficult, if not impossible, to use the sailboard 
and sail. Normally, this would cause inconvenience, but would not be 
dangerous. However, wind surfers are venturing further and further from 
shore and if the fin on their sailboard should break and the user had no 
means of repairing the board or replacing the fin, the wind surfer could 
be in grave danger of drowning if he happened to venture out so far that 
he would not be able to return by the time darkness fell. 
The standard sailboard fin is attached to the bottom of a sailboard by 
means of pins that fit into groves in a rectangular structure built into 
the bottom of a sailboard which is called a skeg box. The fin projects 
down into the water. The fin is not able to withstand direct blows such as 
those that result from contact with large creatures in the water, sunken 
logs, rocks, or anything that might be present in the water having some 
weight and size compared to the fin. The fin itself can be broken and 
usually the skeg box holding the fin will be also be broken. 
If the skeg box is broken the groves that engage pins on the fin that hold 
the fin in place are also broken there would be no way to hold the fin in 
its place and alignment. The necessary result of such breakage would be 
that the wind surfer would not be able to return to shore using the sail, 
because the loss of the fin effectively disables the sailboard. It would 
be possible to paddle the sailboard, but that would be difficult to do 
because the sail would get in the way, and in any event, it would take a 
much longer time and require a great deal more effort. It is possible that 
in some circumstances, especially if the wind surfer was far out at sea, 
or if tides or the winds opposed his direction of return, the wind surfer 
might not be able to return to shore. 
There are no prior art devices which correct these problems. Kollum, Jr., 
in U.S. Pat. No. 4,325,154 describes a fin that might be carried along and 
used on surfboards if the fin in the skeg box broke. However, it is clear 
that the subject matter claimed in the patent and the disclosure of the 
patent only relates to a fin that is capable of being repaired on shore in 
a workshop and does not provide a method of repair if the surfboard is 
disabled in the water far from shore. It does not suggest a situation if 
the skeg box is broken. Morey, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,422,471 describes a 
surfboard with a removable fin. However, as mentioned previously, if the 
skeg box is broken, it would not be possible to mount the replacement fin 
in the broken skeg box, and the teaching of this particular patent does 
not solve the above mentioned problems. Another invention to Morey, U.S. 
Pat. No. 3,516,099, describes another embodiment of a removable surfboard 
fin. However, its teaching fails to solve the problems of a wind surfing 
device with a broken skeg box. Lambach, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,308,493 
describes another surfboard which provides an adjustable keel for a 
surfboard. However, this disclosure provides merely for the variable 
placement of the keel in a surfboard in order to accommodate people of 
different weight and also to accommodate different surfing conditions. The 
disclosure does not discuss the utility of the device on wind surfing 
equipment, and in any event, does not disclose how the device would be 
useful in case the mounting structure for the keel or fin is broken. 
It is the object of this invention to provide a wind surfing rescue fin 
which may be easily mounted on a sailboard that has been damaged by the 
breaking or loss of the conventional fin and its skeg box. It is a further 
object of this invention to provide a device which is easily put on a 
surfboard when the wind surfer is in water some distance from the shore. 
The aforesaid, as well as other objects and advantages, will become 
apparent from the following description, the adjoined claims and the 
drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown the rescue fin 10, the rescue fin base 
12, the replacement fin 14, the skeg box 16, the aft straps 18, and the 
forward straps 20. It is apparent that the rescue fin 14 fits into the 
box-like structure known as a skeg box 16, which is embedded in the base 
12 of the rescue fin. The entire rescue fin is mounted on a sailboard 22, 
by means of forward straps 20 and aft straps 18. The aft straps 18 pass 
through foot inserts 24 on the top surface of the sailboard 22. 
Referring now to FIG. 2, the rescue fin 10 after the replacement fin 14 is 
inserted into the skeg box 16 of the rescue fin base 12 is positioned 
under the sailboard 22 with rubber protuberances 34 being in contact with 
the bottom of the sailboard 22. The rubber protuberances 34 serve to 
provide non-slip contact with the sailboard 22, and thereby keep the 
rescue fin 10 in place when the operator resumes wind surfing. 
FIG. 3 shows the rescue fin with the forward straps 20 and aft straps 18 
stretched out. The aft straps 18 and the front straps 20 have buckles 36 
which engage their opposing end straps and enable the straps to be drawn 
up tight over the top of the sailboard 22 and hold the rescue fin 10 in 
place. This aspect of the invention is shown in more detail in FIG. 5. The 
protuberances 34 are positioned along the top surface 35 of the rescue fin 
base 12 in any suitable pattern. The pattern shown in FIG. 3 is one 
suitable arrangement for those rubber protuberances. 
Referring to FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the rescue fin is strapped to the sailboard 
22 through straps 18 and 20 as shown. A broken skeg box 16' is illustrated 
in FIG. 5. The front straps 18 conveniently pass through the foot straps 
24 on the sailboard. 
Referring to FIG. 6, the replacement fin 14 has a rescue fin base 25 which 
has a pin 26. Referring to FIG. 7, the skeg box 16 has a entry slot 28 and 
a longitudinal slot 30. The pin 26 in the replacement fin base 25 engages 
the entry slot 28 and is pushed into that slot until it reaches the 
longitudinal slot 30, and is then pushed forward until it reaches the end 
of that slot 31. The tape 32 on the replacement fin base 25 helps to 
provide a tight friction fit of the rescue fin 14 in the skeg box 16. 
The rescue fin 10 is usually carried with the replacement fin 14 disengaged 
from the skeg box 16 in the rescue fin base 10. It is conveniently carried 
in a back pack or any suitable container usually of a fabric or vinyl 
type. The pack can be carried by the wind surfer or it can be strapped to 
the mast of the sail. 
If the regular fin in the wind sail board is broken, the wind surfer 
removes the rescue fin base 12 with its accompanying straps from any 
container that it is in and positions the replacement fin 14 in the skeg 
box 16, and thereafter, the rescue fin 10 is positioned on the bottom of 
the wind surfing board and the straps 18 and 20 are tightened up by means 
of the buckles 36. The aft straps 18 are passed through the foot straps 24 
on the sail board 22. After tightening the straps, the wind surfer can 
then resume his position on the top of the board and return to the shore 
to obtain repairs on the equipment or if desired, can continue wind 
surfing. 
While this invention has been described for use on wind surfing equipment, 
it is clear that the invention can also be utilized on regular surfing 
boards and would allow the surfer to continue his activities without the 
need to seek repairs. 
The means of attaching the device to the sailboard has been exemplified 
using straps, however any means of attaching the rescue fin to the 
sailboard is intended including, for example bolting the device to the 
bottom of a sailboard if the board is adapted to receive bolts. Likewise, 
the device can be made of fiberglass, wood, metal or any plastic material.