Shouting is a sign of incompetence

I recall the skipper of one of the army's yachts back in the 80's (he reckoned the squaddies all called him the galloping major; we knew they all referred to him as private parts). He was such a shouter that you could almost hear the boat approaching before it appeared over the horizon. Glad I never sailed with him.

The best and most successful skippers I raced with were always calm and in control. One time we had some chap on board for a race as mainsail trimmer. When the spinnaker went up with a massive twist in it, as I struggled on the foredeck to sort it out he started yelling until he was blue in the face. Unbeknown to me, the boat had been used for a demonstration sail during the week and the kite had not been properly packed afterwards. When I returned to the cockpit (feeling suitably irked), the skipper said very quietly to shouty boy "I don't think we'll be needing you next week".
 
Extract from foreward by Giles Chichester to The Lonely Sea and the Sky


"I learned a valuable lesson from my father very early in the
voyage. A fitting for the roller reefing gear on the main boom
broke during the first night at sea. I was suffering from
seasickness, no doubt made worse by all the partying I had left
behind in Newport, and generally feeling like death and unable
to do anything. Or so I thought. When this irascible shout
came down for me to get up on deck and give him a hand,
instead of lying below feeling sorry for myself, I stirred my
stumps and got up. I had discovered that an emergency could
overcome the awful lassitude and nausea of seasickness. Once
you get going it speeds up the recovery."


I wonder if Francis Chichester was incompetent?
 
Last edited:
jimi said:
Extract from foreward by Giles Chichester to The Lonely Sea and the Sky


"I learned a valuable lesson from my father very early in the
voyage. A fitting for the roller reefing gear on the main boom
broke during the first night at sea. I was suffering from
seasickness, no doubt made worse by all the partying I had left
behind in Newport, and generally feeling like death and unable
to do anything. Or so I thought. When this irascible shout
came down for me to get up on deck and give him a hand,
instead of lying below feeling sorry for myself, I stirred my
stumps and got up. I had discovered that an emergency could
overcome the awful lassitude and nausea of seasickness. Once
you get going it speeds up the recovery."


I wonder if Francis Chichester was incompetent?
Click to expand...
Nothing wrong with a shout to call people, or get their attention. It's the people who just shout continuously throughout any job that is going on regardless of whether it's going right or wrong. I don't think anyone would disagree that it's wrong to shout to be heard.
 
I don't shout at my crew, I just speak to them extremely loud./SIZE] and if they don't hear me the punishment that follows is to dangle them upside down by the ankles from the mast before walking the plank and then submerged underneath the boat.

Does anyone want to come crewing with me?
 
Nothing wrong with a shout to call people, or get their attention. It's the people who just shout continuously throughout any job that is going on regardless of whether it's going right or wrong. I don't think anyone would disagree that it's wrong to shout to be heard.

Indeed - I think this post nailed it very succinctly.

bitbaltic said:
Nothing wrong with shouting to people.

Complete cockup if you're shouting at them, though.

Only applies within the confines of your own boat.
Click to expand...
 
Frogmogman said:
Nothing wrong with a shout to call people, or get their attention. It's the people who just shout continuously throughout any job that is going on regardless of whether it's going right or wrong. I don't think anyone would disagree that it's wrong to shout to be heard.

Indeed - I think this post nailed it very succinctly.
Click to expand...

So basically you are saying that the premise in the OP is incorrect and Shouting is NOT a sign of incompetence? However the TYPE of shouting may indicate incompetence?

If you read some of the sanctimonious posts earlier, you'd get the impression the only potentially competent sailors must belong to the Trappist order of monks!
 
jimi said:
So basically you are saying that the premise in the OP is incorrect and Shouting is NOT a sign of incompetence? However the TYPE of shouting may indicate incompetence?

If you read some of the sanctimonious posts earlier, you'd get the impression the only potentially competent sailors must belong to the Trappist order of monks!
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure the meaning of the post I quoted was that it is OK to shout to make yourself heard. As per Bibaltic's statement

Shouting to = ok
shouting at = not ok.

In any case, I think it's more a question of good leadership than competence per se.
 
There is obviously a clear difference in shouting to be heard either because someone is far away or because it is noisy and shouting because you are losing your temper with someone.

When a boat gets to a certain size you need some sort of comms system.

On the ship I'm on at the moment we use walkie talkies to communicate with a "talk back" PA system as a back up when manoeuvring. However the bridge is still 50m wide so we still need to shout sometimes :D

I think shouting to emphasise the fact you are pissed off with someone, but that applies more in the commercial world, as getting pissed of with your wife, mate etc should be avoided.
 
Last edited:
A lot has to do with pitch of voice
My mother, like me , had one of those shrill grating pitches that carried far & wide. My son has such a deep voice that he has to shout to make his voice heard over a breeze or over a group talking
I have been accused of shouting when in fact I was not. i have had to say that if I had shouted they would soon know the difference

I normally tell a crew right from the start that If I shout they should accept that I am shouting TO them not AT them. I always ask them to acknowledge if I call an instruction. I hate it when crew often reply but are looking away. I have one crew in particular who does this & i cannot even read his lips
I always say that even if they shout back "b...ks" I at least know they have heard. Otherwise I have to repeat the instruction a little louder which leads to the claim of shouting
I once took a non sailor on a trip to Ostend. He got a little concerned when it got to F7 & then getting ready to approach the port we did an accidental gybe & some ropes got tangled. He later said that he learned an important tip. He said that when things went wrong I actually LOWERED my voice & quickly explained what was happening. He said it really reassured him that I was in control.
I had not noticed it- but now I do try to follow that when things go wrong - which, let's face it, often do
 
Shouting should be taught at school. Everyone can communicate the length of a football pitch,it's a shame it gets confused with anger etc. due to lack of practice. Don't sail with people who are too prim and prissy to bellow at full power- they are a liability!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top