Is Knox Johnson a Luddite- Discuss

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davehu

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I love that report in the News section, As usaul RKJ hits the nail on the head. Hope he makes it all the way round, If he completes it and writes a book it will be worth more that all the winners stories and great publicity for SAGA.
 
Absolutely agree with him! have said similar things on these forums myself, but folks are just so brainwashed into thinking that they must have all these toys!

For me, sailing is about me, the boat and the elements, it has bog all to do with freakin electrickery! except for my very nice and useful Lowrance 3500C of course! /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

But to be honest, when that goes the way of all technology (the dustbin) it wont be replaced.
 
Don't think he's a Luddite - after all, he says how nice it is to have constant position from GPS rather than a dodgy twice-a-day position from a sextant - but I do think he's right to question whether or not he's better off with all the kit that he's carrying, which appears to be constantly reporting faults, and occupying time that would otherwise be devoted to sailing the boat. It's also telling that he reckons he couldn't get the boat sailing herself in the same way as Suhaili, if his autopilot gives up.

A bit different from his musings in "A World of my Own", such as the desirability of eating meals out of the saucepan to save on washing up. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I've had the great honour to meet him on a couple of occasions, and you won't find a nicer bloke anywhere.
 
Don't have to son, got a windvane! /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
I thought it was a fantastic report and a real insight into hows
its going for him - better than a video tape.

I think he has raised a really relevant issue and given that it comes from such a superb seaman it is well worth thinking about.

My own yachting is completely tame (thats how I like it) and
sometimes I feel guilty not having a VHf or a GPS but I think
you should be able to get around the coast with dead reckoning and common sense and without electricity (altho
I hope to get a car battery on board for a log and lights).

But I probabley couldn't "drive" a modern yacht with an auto pilot, GPS, chart plotter etc etc. When I had to reef last I looked up in the log book what the wind strength was on the
Beaufoort scale.

Perhaps Robin Knox Johnson is finding he is relying
more on his seamanship and less on his technology and
that the technology is redundant and over-valued.

I hope hes right as my mobile phone does my head in and i don't have much hope i would ever be able enter way points into a laptop -

Have been persuaded by other syndicate members to get the outboard but would be happy to row or scull - its that bad.
 
I think your right, he's not a luddite, if he was he'd not have entered this race, or he'd be doing it on Suhali.

Agreed he is a gentleman and his book 'A world of my own' made me feel very humble.

To my mind he is the greatest seaman of the 20th Century, nothing so far this century has impressed me half as much as his acheivement.
 
Ideas on what constitutes a necessity and what's a toy seem to depend on what was around when people first started sailing.
Today a chartplotter may seem a must-have whereas 50 years ago no doubt depth sounders were dismissed as gadgets. I'd happily sail without the first but feel very uncomfortable without the latter.
 
You may have a point there? I just feel that there is far too much credence / emphasis /reliance on techno toys.

I think we all know that they are not yet manufactured to be 100% reliable, and never will be. Why? because the manufacturers of these toys want to keep making a profit, by selling gullible sailing folk more and more of them. The other way they catch folks is to say that last years model is not now the one to have, you now need / must have this one, Bollocks!

Sailing is just about the boat, the wind, the sea, and your own limitations, you don't need any of this electronic garbage to sail a boat from A to B and back again.

I think it would do a lot of folk some good if they got themselves back to basics a bit, heaven forebid, but they just might learn a thing or two.
 
Also interesting to note that an 'all ships' has gone out because Tony Bullimore hasn't phoned home. Wouldn't have happened in Chichester's day. All this gadgetry seems to mean a lack of self-reliance. The day I have to take a computer on board I'll stop at home. Handheld GPS is nice, so's electric light, anymore is excessive, especially for coastal sailing etc.
 
Not too difficult to plan a passage on the assumption that the boats batteries all decide to die/hit by lightning/elctrical fire.

I wonder if RKJ is actually a bit annoyed with himself for not mounting a windvane on Saga?
 
Why is it so important what other people are using?

Why do you feel superior to those who enjoy having more options?

Personally I think it is great you have chosen to sail with nothing but a plotter which is really old stuff anyhow, I hear they are auctioning some of the pre WWII plotters at Southerby's.

I don't sail to escape some imaginary modern evil, I sail for fun and am also happy to sit below in the warmth of a modern heater watching a DVD or two.

Do you think 50 years ago professional seamen would have turned down modern gadgets, oh gosh no, we sail as we want to live in the past. Dear of dear.
 
Nothing wrong with being an idle luddite like what I am.
If its available and working use it,but expect it to fail and have a plan B,if plan B fails and is powered by anything other than muscle and brain have a plan C.
If plan C fails you're deep in the soft and smelly.
But you've done your best!
 
I think RKJ enjoys all these whizzy gadgets, but knows he can live wothout them, just like me.
I revel in my gadget hutch in fron tof the wheel, but when they go pop, which they have, I have backups for the depth, a piece of wool in the shrouds for the wind, and a floating paper to time on dropping in the water at the front, and timing to the rear.
I will learn the sextant I have. I will learn the sextant I have. I will learn the sextant I have.
I keep paper charts and a manual log, and I roundly curse in affectionate terms when my electronic ballast goes TU on me.
Not luddite, oh no Sir, just pretending!
 
To use your technical term, bollux. There is no windvane that would keep one of the modern boats in a straight line long enough and competitively enough to make it worthwhile.

Personally, I rather like FullCircle's explanation.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Handheld GPS is nice, so's electric light, anymore is excessive, especially for coastal sailing etc.

[/ QUOTE ]

Interesting truth there, that whilst many may choose and enjoy the traditional self reliance of a sharp pencil and some paper charts, most of us would regard them as dangerously irresponsible if they didn't also carry a hand-held GPS and good batteries, even if they didn't call on them, ever.

I remember reading in the YM years ago about a couple who blundered about the NW Coast of France in fog with a sharp pencil getting help from Fisherman and Coast stations; and then had the nerve to write an article about it, seemingly oblivious to the time effort and money expended on them, all of which was completely unnecessary.
 
[ QUOTE ]
To use your technical term, bollux. There is no windvane that would keep one of the modern boats in a straight line long enough and competitively enough to make it worthwhile.

[/ QUOTE ]

The only one that is talking bollocks is you me 'ansome, my windvane keeps on working day in and day out, and works on ALL points of sail and does it bloody well. The particular one I have has been fitted to most types of boat, modern or otherwise.

Should you wish to check it out, just Google www.sea-feather.com
Then come back and pontificate, funny though aint it, that the one bit of kit that all the participants of the "Jester Challenge" had on board was a windvane self steering system, not one one electronic auto pilot to be seen. If you do go and look at it, don't come back here spouting off that it's a load of crap, not without you have been and tried it.

Charlie.
 
My boat, too, has a windvane, a Monitor as it happens and I don't deny that they'll keep to true course on traditonal boats such as Jester challenge type boats but not a non-souped up racer such as the one RKJ is driving.

Now I've taken my boat across the N Sea and the Atlantic with it and they won't keep a true course with a big quartering sea, you yaw all over the place and need to put out a small drogue or something similar to keep it from broaching on occasion. Don't take my word for it ask others who who'd used them seriously.

And if they were that good don't you think that all of the single handers would be using them?

Now tell me I'm talking crap /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]

And if they were that good don't you think that all of the single handers would be using them?



[/ QUOTE ]

Don't they? /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
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