Stroll. Don't rush. "From the Tsimtsum all I had seen were dolphins. I had assumed that the Pacific, but for passing schools of fish, was a sparsely inhabited waste of water. I have learned since that cargo ships travel too quickly for fish. You are as likely to see sea life from a ship as you are to see wildlife in a forest from a car on a highway. Dolphins, very fast swimmers, play about boats and ships much like dogs chase cars: they race along until they can no longer keep up. If you want to see wildlife, it is on foot, and quietly, that you must explore a forest. It is the same with the sea. You must stroll through the Pacific at a walking pace, so to speak, to see the wealth and abundance that it holds." - Life of Pi by Yann Martel The long way "And in the tales of the Far East, there is also a monster who tries to kill the god in us. But it can't harm him as long as we love the earth, because the god in us is a part of earth, the whole earth protects him. My Chinese nurse would say that the earth could not protect this god in us unless we respected both the earth and the god. She said we should give offerings to the earth, that it honoured at once the earth and the god in us. She said many other things. I did not understand very well; I thought they were just stories." "How can I tell them that the sounds of water and the flecks of foam on the sea are like the sounds of stone and wind, and helped me find my way? How can I tell them all those nameless things... leading me to the real earth? Tell them and not frighten them, without their thinking I have lost my mind." "Dear Robert: The Horn was rounded February 5, and today is March 18. I am coninuing non-stop towards the Pacific Islands because I am happy at sea, and perhaps also to save my soul." - The Long Way by Bernard Moitessier On gusts and forecasts "...Like nearly everyone involved with the race, he refused to accept the bureau's contention that yachtsmen should have understood that gusts could exceed average wind speed by 40 percent. (In fact, a survey of competitors undertaken by the CYC for the report indicated that nine in ten thought winds would be 'slightly stronger or slightly less strong than forecast.')" - The Proving Ground by G. Bruce Knecht Survival gear "The old aviation truism comes to mind: Survival gear is what you wear. Gear in the cabin is camping gear." - Kent, Sailing Anarchy forum On crew numbers and watches "Three, I think, is the ideal number for a very small yacht. With only two the watches are usually four hours on and four hours off but with three they can be two on and four off, or three on and six off, which makes life so much more pleasant and easier." - Atlantic Adventurers by Humphrey Barton Management in heavy weather "When wind and sea become too strong for a small ship, there are two alternative actions that she can take. She must stop or she must run." - Once is enough by Miles Smeeton Stopping the boat "With a normal rig such as a sloop or a cutter it [heaving to] is a very simple matter. A headsail is hauled across to windward, that is over to the opposite side to the mainsail, and it has the effect of stopping the boat nearly dead as it couteracts the drive of the mainsail. The result is that the boat lies almost stationary and at an angle of about 50 degrees to the wind and sea. That is a safe position and, as the boat requires no attention, the crew can go below out of the wind and driving spray and have a meal and a good sleep. The boat will look after herself quite happily until the wind reaches such a strength that she becomes over-canvassed. It will then be necessary to reduce sail either by reefing those which are set or changing them for smaller ones. In very severe gales it may be necessary to strip the boat of all sail. When this is done she will probably lie broadside on to the wind and sea. In this positio she will be safe only up to a certain point and this depends on the size of the vessel and the height of sea.... My 25-ft sloop Vertue XXXV was safe broadside on in seas up to about twenty-five feet high. When it is considered no longer safe to lie broadside on to wind and sea it becomes necessary to lie to a sea-anchor by the bow, or to trail several ropes over the stern (with or without such things as buckets and fenders tied on to the end of them). Or one can lie by the stern to a sea anchor. Exactly what to do in such circumstances depends on the size and type of boat and the conditions." - Atlantic Adventurers by Humphrey Barton Running a clipper "My Grandad was the master of a few of the Guano Trade Clippers during the first part of the 20thC, and, unless the ship was loaded to sinking, they never went dead downwind, unless the conditions were huge and the waves were right, because being on any kind of a reach 'brought the wind forward', and all the sails were drawing, bigtime. Well, at least certain combinations of sail, depending on the conditions and the particular boat. Going dead downwind if I remember right was only done in big wind in certain seastates, pretty much with only the forward sails set, depending on the individual clipper. They really steered with the sails. He used to tell me about leaving a couple of the really high sails set so there would be some power while the ship was in a deep trough. The Southern Ocean. So cool." - Paul Scott, in a post on boatdesign.net web forum Zavlačno sidro vs. bježanje "Novi regatni brodovi od tebe traže da ostaješ na kormilu i aktivno upravljaš brodom. Znači voziš, izogibaš se valovima te uvjek postavljaš brod u pravilan položaj. Svi znate da može lomeči val preokrenuti brod ako te uhvati u bok, ali testiranjima su ustanovili, da val , koji je visok 30% dužine broda več može preokrenut brod, a val visine 60% dužine broda sigurno če okrenut brod. (10m brod, 3m val ga može okrenut a 6m val če ga sigurno okrenut ako se ti sruši u bok). Ako ti aktivno kontroliraš brod, onda to nečeš dopustiti. Ako ti stviš neka sidra ili se postaviš u zaustavnu poziciju, onda si pasivan, pa samo čekaš da sve prođe - ako prođe, što je uvjek lutrija." - Kristian Hajnšek, u postu na nautica-portal.com web forumu IMOCA Open60 rig "Oko stayeva: kako koja. Foncia ima 3 fiksna s 3 floka od kojih je MichDesj največeg u južnom oceanu mjenjajo za nekakav reacher. Ni jedan nije potpuno topmast. Ecover ima isto 3 od kojih je jedan topmast koji se može skinuti (na jarbolu je fiksiran lockom). Osim opisanih Imoce imaju još dva ili više asimetričnih spinakera i to je to. Neki prednja jedra i spuštaju (kao što sam rekao na Ecover, unutrašnji mali flok je kod nekih isto na spuštanje). Ali očito je vrednije imati mogučnost brzog prilagađanja uvjetima od malog dobitka na aerodinamici. Na Class40 se staysail na primer stavlja na unutrašnji stay koji je iz dyneeme s "compostie shackles) i diže i spušta, Genova ostaje zrolana na forestayu, code0 se zrolan diže na baštun i vrh jarbola." - Andraž Mihelin, post na nautica-portal Best boats "The best boats are either small enough to carry home, or big enough to live on." - Phillip C. Bolger (1927-2009) |