Are you not chilled out?

[Guest]

Are people using the solent becoming less chilled-out than they should be? The other day I was in the Hamble river on one of the visitors pontoons. Witnessed a motor-floater up in his attic (I think they call it a fly-bridge or something) yelling at a dinghy that had tacked in front of him. It really would not have been a problem for him to throttle back and he also should have seen that the dinghy would have to tack. Today, in the Medina, I took advantage of the high tide to go to Newport. I was sailing on a dead run and encountered a yacht motoring towards me. They would not keep clear despite there being oodles of water each side. The woman at the helm came so close it was very wierd. She gesticulated. I mentioned I was sailing. Now I just think that it is a shame that people are starting to lose any idea of common courtesy. Why is this? Modern life? More boaters? Perhaps I am imagining it. Heigh Ho.

 

[Guest]

No your not imagining it..

No your not imagining it. But it's not just boaters. This is the way society is going.

Its very interesting that you should mention this as we have not long got back from sailing to Lymington and back for the weekend with friends - and this topic came up at the meal table.

In my opinion (wait for it) this whole problem can be laid at the door of Maragaret Thatcher. When she uttered the words "there is no such thing as society only people" she started of a sequence of events that have been the societal equivalent of a biological attack - insidiously spreading among us - making people completely oblivious to the pain, annoyance, embarrasment etc that they cause. Over the years this has become worse and worse. It manifests itself from young people yelling obsenities in public at the tops of their voices regardless of the age/sex of anyone who might hear to the (presumably older) person you mention on the boat who is clearly only thinking of themselves. It is apparent in hundreds of ways.


We need to fight this problem wherever we find it by reasoned complaint. Society does exist and we need to get along together smoothly rather than continually "bashing into one another". (Images of graceful yachts versus modern yachts beating to windward come to mind - just to lighten it up with a nod to Twister Ken).

Phew - I feel better for that.

Geoff W

 

[Guest]

These cases in this forum are difficult. We get a story from one party who is no doubt absolutely genuine. But all know that if one asked the other parties involved their account would be different. So it becomes very unwise to comment on what has been written.
On a quite separate aspect, Deckmaster believes that cases such as these are often caused by total ignorance. For instance he/she was tacking up a waterway (well marked by buoys) in a sloop of about 30ft. Up behind comes a sailing yacht with sails down and motoring. Deckmaster assumes they know all about yachts tacking and as he and his crew approach the port side of the fairway he points gently to starboard to indicate that he will tack on to port. Amazingly the motoring vessel goes in the direction he/she is pointing!
All was well and there were no hard feelings - maybe a sheepish wave.

 

[halcyon]

Re: No your not imagining it..

Is it not also the case that authority worry about perceived problems, not actual ones.
Take all the postings on SOLAS, and passage plans, who many accidents have occurred from mis planning, than from not complying with collision regs, as this thread. But we worry about passage plans and radar reflectors.
Looking though a old (this years) copy of PBO it had an article on chartering, the lead photo was a stern shot of a modern 40ish footer, three men in cockpit, one with baby, 10 degree heel. Fine until you look at the scoop stern, sitting there with there feet in the water are two children around 7/9 years old and a woman, no life jackets, no harness, nothing. It would only take a motor boat to cut accross the yachts bow and there are three people in the water.
The article ignores safety, so why should we be supprised when the public ignore safety as well.


Brian