Good Boatsmanship versus Sailsmanship

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Ships_Cat

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Frequently the topic comes up where some are proud to say that sailing into marinas or tacking up channels through other traffic displays or hones their sailing abilities and that sailing everywhere is what it is all about if one has a sailboat.

To me, true boat skills are actually boatsmanship of which actual sailing ability is but just a part of. Perhaps sailing into places when or where it would be safer or it would be more comfortable/less convenient for others if the engine was used, is actually a display of bad boatsmanship.

Any views?

John

<hr width=100% size=1>I am the cat but I am only 6.
 
I quite agree, any act which needlessly inconveniences others (excluding intollerant gits, who grumble about everything, of course), is poor form. Whether it be on the road, in the supermarket or on the water.

Anyone operating a sailing boat should be able to return it to their own, or any other, safe refuge under sail, but there are times to hone these skills and times to avoid.

Seamanship / boatmanship is more than just skill. Little things like making sure excess mooring warp is onboard and not on the pontoon are considered good seamanship. It doesn't tie the boat up any better, but it does reduce the risk of inconveniencing others, by removing a trip risk that would send them a**e over t*t off the pontoon.

"Boatmanship" is a discipline that encompasses every aspect of the manner in which we operate our craft and not just a display of consummate boat handling skills.



<hr width=100% size=1>Think I'll draw some little rabbits on my head, from a distance they might be mistaken for hairs.
 
Boatmanship is knowing how to handle a boat – any boat – sail, power, oared, even drifting – safely, efficiently and with minimum “fuss”, usually at close quarters, and taking proper account both of the handling characteristics of the boat in question and the forces of wind and tide acting upon it. It’s a skill that has fascinated me since I first learned to row a tiny dinghy at a very tender age. I love to see it and I love to practice it. As you suggest, it is a different skill in many ways from the skill of sailing a boat to best advantage. I learned that as a child when crewing in racing dinghies. Some of the most successful helmsmen were terrible boatmen.

As the erstwhile holder of a Salcombe Harbour Commercial Pleasureboatman’s Licence I used to get a huge kick from developing my boatmanship skills whilst driving power launches. More recently its fast RIBs and I still enjoy the continuous learning curve of handling our own boat under power.

A good example of boatmanship is the skill of using sails to aid steering and balance the windage characteristics of certain hulls when necessary to improve handling under power rather than for propulsion – giving rather the same effect of as a bow thruster. ;-)

If anyone here sails into marinas except out of dire necessity, they are braver than I am.


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Totally agree in close proximity with others as in marinas, especially if, like me you have a catamaran that handles like a Tesco shopping trolley with a wheel missing at anything under 5 knots! I do believe one should be able to handle the boat under sail alone however and many times I have sailed in and out of anchorages without inconveniencing others and find it sad that "marina" sailers often never hone those skills which could save their bacon if the old "iron spinnaker" fails. Take your point though entirely, but as good manners and courtious behaviour has depreciated extensively ashore, why should we expect it to be any better afloat?


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I watched a keel boat entering Port Louis harbour under spinnaker recently. The spinnaker was dropped, the genoa rolled, the boat jibed and sailed up to an inside finger post - within about 60/70 metres of the harbour entrance - just stopping on the pontoon. No fuss, the crew of 4 tied up and then dropped the mainsail.

It was a beautiful bit of sailing and at no time was anybody inconveienced nor did they ever look as if they were going to miss the pontoon.

John

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Interesting that all the posts so far are clearly from people who have honed their boat handling skills to perfection.

But where and how did they develop these awesome skills and knowledge?

Surely not by tacking up channels?

Must be in the genes I suppose!

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i agree.

One of the least-valued and hardly-taught skills is when to NOT go out, due to weather or lack of equipment .

Perhaps instructors could mock up the "lack of equipment" scenario? Yerknow, hide/remove lifejackets, fire extingishers, handheld compass and charts and see what the skipper does about it, hm?

With limited time, more charter etc and other factors i know a lot of people who feel pressured to go out regardless, specially those who don't live v near the boat and especially especially when friends have been invited along.

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Sorry, but I have not read that into any of the posts, with the exception, maybe, of Sybarite's guys, who clearly had exceptional skill.

I often practise sailing back up river to my own berth (not on to it), but not at 1600 hrs on a Sunday afternoon. Yes, do it, infact you must do it, but there is a time and place.

<hr width=100% size=1>Think I'll draw some little rabbits on my head, from a distance they might be mistaken for hairs.
 
By practicing in secluded bays where you are no problem to others thats where.....
Try it sometime perhaps. It will at least tell you how good you are at stopping.

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When I had to sail into St Mary's harbour at Scilly without an engine I took in a third reef and severely rolled the genoa. This gave me the potential of easily short tacking without having to winch in the genoa on each tack.

I would recommend it as a tactic when the circumstances demand it.

John

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Yes but the fine line between perfection and disaster is always there. Even if it can be done with confidence you can frighten the bejesus out of others doing it. Comes under the same heading as handbrake turns in a car. If you can do it when you need to it's a useful skill to have, but not in Sainsbury's car park!

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One of the hardest jobs for a skipper is to announce "we're staying put". I've driven 200M, on the strength of a good weekend forecast, with friends that have never been sailing before and are really excited about the prospect, and then got up Saturday morning to say sorry folks. Gets b****y expensive in wine as well when you're having to provide other means of entertainment!

<hr width=100% size=1>Think I'll draw some little rabbits on my head, from a distance they might be mistaken for hairs.
 
Exactly my point. If you need to do it you can. Sometimes it's necessary and you should be able to when required. The more difficult the boat is to handle, the more practice is called for to become proficient. In fact the skills required are the same as those required for MoB drill so important to learn for that alone if nothing else. But I don't believe in macho demonstrations f the sake of it when it's a bloody sight easier and safer to start the engine....

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A lesson never forgotten

My first experience of foreign going by sail. I was in my early teens and aboard the "Equinoxe" - an old barge of a big ketch owned by the Ocean Youth Club in its first incarnation, when it sailed "classics" like the yawl "Duet" and the beautiful old pilot cutter "Theodora" (now returned to her original lovely name of "Guiding Light")

We were entering Cherbourg at about 11 p.m. and the skipper could not find one of the necessary lights. There were lots more in view and many skippers would have gone in. Instead, however, because he could not be absolutely confident, he chose to sail up and down all night with a cargo (not a crew) of cold, tired and seasick kids in order to wait for first light to fix his position. The first thing we did when we all finally surfaced the following day was to put the dinghy over the side to clean up the puke from the topsides.

The pressure on that skipper to enter the port must have been tremendous.

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Very good point sir, and something that I'm afraid I have to admit to. Makes it very easy to change plans if you do meet an area of congestion doesn't it.

<hr width=100% size=1>Think I'll draw some little rabbits on my head, from a distance they might be mistaken for hairs.
 
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