Going about - what commands?

If in a narrow channel or amongst a lot of traffic my sequence is normally "Sh*t" to indicate the helm's hard over, then "Sorreee..." as the request to ease the now backed fore-sail, followed by a polite request from the crew to luff up a bit as he/she isn't "Arnold bloody Schwarzenegger, you know", the tacking process being completed with a slightly sarcastic sounding "Thank You" from the winch hand, at roughly the same time as a "B*gger" is heard from the helmsman, which is the alternative way to indicate the helm's hard over.
 
SWMBO: I think it's time we tacked.
Me: Not yet we'll never lay it from here.
SWMBO: It's getting a bit shallow.
Me: Don't worry the bottom's flat for miles here.
SWMBO: No I'm going you ready?
Me: No. Hang on.
(Drops traveller down to centreline and locks in place. Sets lazy sheet on new winch, takes up slack, takes old genoa sheet off cleat and top turn off winch.)
Me: Ready!
SWMBO: Hang on I want to get past that lobster pot.
Me: Still ready!
SWMBO: Just a bit further.
Me: Still ready!
SWMBO: Right I'm going!
(Puts tiller down with and stands well back to avoid my flailing elbows.)
 
Either Ready about followed by lee oh, or if the pedantic crewman is aboard, Ready about, helm's a lee, lee oh.

Gybing has had a different sequence.

Female crew, (who was helming at the time): "Ready to gybe?"

Me: "OK, I'll get the main in", starts winching in main,

FC: "Oh ****" (boat gybes violently and puts new lee rail under water).

Me: (gently, when we've sorted ourselves out), " I er think I might be er better prepared if you shouted gybe oh, rather than oh ****".

FC: "OH. did I say...oooh, yes I did", (looks guilty).
 
Robwhelton said:
Am I the only one who finds the whole "lee ho!" business a bit pretentious?
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There is a need for two distinct instructions and "ready about" is fine, but "Lee ho" is always a bit cringe inducing for me, but t'was what the gif was taught so that's what we use.

Is there a less naff alternative? That's still concise and accurate like "ready about" is?
 
xxyyzz said:
There is a need for two distinct instructions and "ready about" is fine, but "Lee ho" is always a bit cringe inducing for me, but t'was what the gif was taught so that's what we use.

Is there a less naff alternative? That's still concise and accurate like "ready about" is?
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A single "tacking" generally works for me, but if I have any doubts about whether the crew are in position I'll precede it with "ready to tack?"

With my old dinghy crew we had tacking down to such a fine art that we rarely needed to exchange a word. We would both know when the manoeuvre was needed and what to do, so could simply carry on talking about whatever we happened to be talking about. SWMBO hasn't quite got to this stage yet, alas.
 
xxyyzz said:
There is a need for two distinct instructions and "ready about" is fine, but "Lee ho" is always a bit cringe inducing for me, but t'was what the gif was taught so that's what we use.

Is there a less naff alternative? That's still concise and accurate like "ready about" is?
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Yes, 'Lee ho' is naff, almost as much as 'helm's a-lee'.

On our boat no action is required by the crew so I often just say something like 'I'm tacking now'. I also sail a Drascombe with disabled people who know nothing about sailing. The orders go something like this after the first tack where I explain what's going on - 'I'm going to tack now.... hold on to the green until I say... let go the green now.. pull in on the red'.

I suggest the following that should be intelligible to most - 'Ready to go about (warning) ... Tacking now (helm goes over) ... let go and haul (release weather sheet, haul in lee sheet)'
 
snowleopard said:
Yes, 'Lee ho' is naff, almost as much as 'helm's a-lee'.

On our boat no action is required by the crew so I often just say something like 'I'm tacking now'. I also sail a Drascombe with disabled people who know nothing about sailing. The orders go something like this after the first tack where I explain what's going on - 'I'm going to tack now.... hold on to the green until I say... let go the green now.. pull in on the red'.

I suggest the following that should be intelligible to most - 'Ready to go about (warning) ... Tacking now (helm goes over) ... let go and haul (release weather sheet, haul in lee sheet)'
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Lots of extra syllables for the same info.

Lee Ho is a silly phrase but it is short, clear and distinctive.
Dinghy sailing we sometimes use 'Go!' instead.
Or when I want to do a particularly quick roll tack I say 'to me' meaning the crew starts the tack by moving to the old weather side.

When it's really windy, we sometimes use 'ready about' as a warning, then 'uncleat' - prepare to tack but hold on, so I know I can tack quickly on a wave with 'go'.

It also helps to give a longer range warning of tacking, so the crew is not distracted sorting out sheets or whatever.
 
I thought it was lee-ho (as opposed to lee-oh). I thought it was short for "haul in the leeward sheets".

Helm-a-lee tells the crew that "things" are imminent.
 
"Are those seagulls swimming or walking?"
"Walking, Skipper"
"Ready about! ..."

On a more RYA note: "Ready About" is also a request to the crew to double-check that the course change is not going to cause a close-quarters situation with another vessel.

It's also a useful warning to the cook.
 
Why is Lee-Ho (or Oh) pretentious? It's slightly old-fashioned I'll give you, but so's saying bow instead of front and stern instead of back.

There's an advantage in using a universal language - when other people crew on our boat they all know what Ready about - Lee Ho means...
 
They are all terms used as shorthand for perfectly simple procedures which have been retained from times past as some kind of "special" language that only the cognoscenti know. Those who have been indoctrinated into "the way". Visiting passengers without any sailing knowledge are ostracised by not having the knowledge.
Like flag etiquette the language of sailing is past it's prime and becoming a point of ridicule.
Plain English commands are sorely needed.

Port and starboard, bow and stern, sheets, are all terms, easily understood by anyone, that avoid simple misunderstandings.

As has been shown in this thread, descriptive calls for action which don't rely on archaic terminology are becoming (thankfully) more acceptable.

It seems from the responses that even those who use the old terms don't know either exactly what they are, or to what they refer, (lee oh/lee ho) so perhaps they have no place on a boat.
 
Well I can't think of any other words in the English to use without writing a short description. It's no more pretentious than talking about oversteer in a car or stopping down if you're a photographer. Just a quick way of describing what's happening in an otherwise unique situation - as you put it, short hand for perfectly simple procedures. Still need that shorthand though.

The bad bit is if what's going on isn't clearly explained . Things like coloured rope for halyards, sheets, guys, etc are brilliant but you can't teach someone to pull on the red rope to tension the foot of the mainsail.

Anyway the nice thing about have a special language for the Cognoscenti is that, once they've learnt it, the tyro feels they're now one of the Cognoscenti.
 
I'm a bit horrified that some feel that using the correct terms in sailing is pretentious. Talk about dumbing down. Why don't we say left and right? Or front and back (or even sharp end, blunt end). What do you call a halyard? The rope to pull the main up? Heaven help you if you use words like hoist, or reef. Do you call a tiller a steering stick? Do you wish that a tiller didn't work back to front?

FFS. I have nothing against people using simple terms than anyone can understand. But to say that the correct terminology is old fashioned and ridiculous is inverse snobbery at it's worst.

I understand people can be totally anal about what terms you use on boats, but to disregard it all is ignorance.

And to be honest, I'm quite proud that I can say two or three sentences in detailed sailing talk and a complete landlubber won't understand a word I've said. It means I don't feel bad about not having learnt a foreign language.
 
Five succinct sounds:

Helm: "Ready about?"
Crew: "Ready!"
Helm: "Helm-a-lee"
Helm: "Lee-ho"

With an experienced crew, you could drop the "Helm a-lee" bit, which reduces it to four succinct sounds.

After a while, you could then reduce it to "Ready?" and tack when you can see the crew in position and obviously ready.

How plain is that?
 
Woodlouse said:
I'm a bit horrified that some feel that using the correct terms in sailing is pretentious. Talk about dumbing down. Why don't we say left and right? Or front and back (or even sharp end, blunt end). What do you call a halyard? The rope to pull the main up? Heaven help you if you use words like hoist, or reef. Do you call a tiller a steering stick? Do you wish that a tiller didn't work back to front?
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Some things are perfectly sensible. Port and starboard, for example, are independent of the way someone is facing. Some are OK but not strictly necessary - "Ted, can you go up to the front and be ready with a fender" seems just as good to me as "Ted, can you go forrard (or to the bow) and be ready with a fender". And some terms are, to me, just irritatingly pretentious. Veering some scope instead of letting out some chain, for example, or snottledog instead of bung.

And while we're on the subject, where did ferry-glide come from? Twenty years ago nobody used the term: now every other article in every sailing magazine wears it proudly on its sleeve.
 
Precisely. Names for the various lines, use of Port and Starboard all define what could be confused.
Helm: "Ready about?"
Crew: "Ready!"
Helm: "Helm-a-lee"
Helm: "Lee-ho"
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...merely confuse unless you have been shown and taught each stage of the procedure and learned the phrase attached to it.

Whatever works is good. If you want to re-live Hornblower, fine, it's your boat.
But for me a simple and easily understood command will work for experienced and novice crew alike.
 
Lakesailor said:
Whatever works is good. If you want to re-live Hornblower, fine, it's your boat.
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DON'T relive Hornblower!

First flotilla holiday (I'd sailed dinghies but never a yacht before) with the girl who was to become SWMBO and all was going well until I remembered a Hornblower phrase where he growled at the helmsman "Steer Small Blast you". I thought this sounded suitably nautical so tried it out.

I bet Hornblower's helm didn't burst into tears saying, "I don't know what you mean, you steer the damn thing" and dramatically exit below.

Matters weren't improved when I had to confess I didn't know what it meant either.
 
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