Fantasie 19
Well-Known Member
Arthur Ransome...
laika
Well-Known Member
Kevin Costner...
Greenheart
Well-Known Member
D
Deleted member 36384
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My family has been involved in the sea: engineer, lighthouse keepers, fishermen/lifeboatmen, RN, RNR so I it was part and parcel of my early life and had some influence on the stuff I liked. My school was near the newly opened Strathclyde Country Park and a teacher set up a sailing club which I joined aged 12/13. From then on I was never off the water: sailing, windsurfing, waterskiing. The teacher had a GK29 and a few of us went cruising and racing with him over weekends. Later I did Competent Crew courses at Council run outdoor education centres, sailed with the OYC as it was called back on Taikoo. I became quiet well known on the dinghy racing circuit as I crewed on a GP14 for may years. This eventually led to me teaching dinghy sailing and evetualy as a 1st Mate on a sail training yacht. After that I worked for a sailing school and charter company skippering, teaching and delivering yachts.
The biggest influence though was the teacher at school and an outdoor education instructor who advised me to go to college and then go sailing as it gave one a way out. This was at 10pm as he was cleaning up after the Scottish Schools Sailing Championships. He sounded regretful. I did that and then through myself into sailing professionally. Eventually I got fed up, left chased the dollar in the oil industry, chartered once in a while, built a Wharram Cat, sold it as an unfinished project, chartered some more and finally bought the Rival 41C. My plans now - or dream - is to sail long distance again on the Rival.
The biggest influence though was the teacher at school and an outdoor education instructor who advised me to go to college and then go sailing as it gave one a way out. This was at 10pm as he was cleaning up after the Scottish Schools Sailing Championships. He sounded regretful. I did that and then through myself into sailing professionally. Eventually I got fed up, left chased the dollar in the oil industry, chartered once in a while, built a Wharram Cat, sold it as an unfinished project, chartered some more and finally bought the Rival 41C. My plans now - or dream - is to sail long distance again on the Rival.
Babylon
Well-Known Member
Nine years ago I wanted to get my then 14 year old godson out of his stuffy London family home and away from TV/computers/games. My then soon to be wife (now ex) was also conspiring to get me to sell my bike (a gold 1979 R100RS), and so I was keeping an open mind about other possibilities.
I remembered a day-trip in a girlfriend's dad's motorsailer out of Salcombe a few years previously, when we caught mackerel, and also had a dim distant memory of another outing in someone's ketch, when the skipper accidently gybed throwing his teenage daughter (a heavy-set girl) into my chest and smashing my sunglasses.
Knew bugger-all else about boats and sailing, but decided to sign up on a five day Comp Crew course for me and my godson.
It was the all-encompassing sense of mental and physical activity and spacial freedom allied to the navigation and boathandling skills of the Coastal Skipper students also on our course that first inspired me.
I've never been out of love with sailing since.
I remembered a day-trip in a girlfriend's dad's motorsailer out of Salcombe a few years previously, when we caught mackerel, and also had a dim distant memory of another outing in someone's ketch, when the skipper accidently gybed throwing his teenage daughter (a heavy-set girl) into my chest and smashing my sunglasses.
Knew bugger-all else about boats and sailing, but decided to sign up on a five day Comp Crew course for me and my godson.
It was the all-encompassing sense of mental and physical activity and spacial freedom allied to the navigation and boathandling skills of the Coastal Skipper students also on our course that first inspired me.
I've never been out of love with sailing since.
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interloper
Well-Known Member
Yeah, I also remember as a kid reading over and over again the National Geographic articles about Robin Lee Graham. Francis Chichester was another early influence.
Daydream believer
Well-Known Member
My mother bought me a model yacht when i was 5 that she could ill afford. My father was annoyed saying it was too expensive-- little did i realise how true that was-i was hooked & i played with it for years until my first dinghy , a Walker Super 12, when i was 11. I have to admit that sir Alec Rose, Francis Chichester,& the Hiscocks etc etc have a lot to answer for
It is amazing the influence these people had on others with stories of their exploits as we can see from this thread
I think that the available media at the time did not give us so many role models as it does today so the influence of the individual was greater. I certainly believe that whilst the achievements of these "explorers" is widely accepted their influence in inspiring others follow a dream is not fully appreciated. I expect that the great adventurers such as Drake,Livingstone etc must have really set the world alight in their time
It is amazing the influence these people had on others with stories of their exploits as we can see from this thread
I think that the available media at the time did not give us so many role models as it does today so the influence of the individual was greater. I certainly believe that whilst the achievements of these "explorers" is widely accepted their influence in inspiring others follow a dream is not fully appreciated. I expect that the great adventurers such as Drake,Livingstone etc must have really set the world alight in their time
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pagoda
Well-Known Member
My father was a decent rock climber, so I got into that for a while. We had family connections on Arran, so I acquired a clinker built pram dinghy about age 10, and rowed it all over the place. Latterly we had a dory for fishing. then a little motor cruiser. When I first met windsurfing in 1979 I was hooked right away. Painful learning curve mind you. About 10 years of that then a couple of dinghy sailing holidays in the Med. I still sail dinghies today, but we've had a yacht for 4 years as well. Years of windsurfing and having a healthy respect for whatever is happening to windward have been very helpful with sailing bigger craft.
All the men on my mother's side, back to the 1820's have made their living at sea, so it's in the blood I reckon
I think I feel most comfortable afloat, sailing, more in my right "place", than anywhere else.. (somewhat to swmbo's dismay
)
Graeme
All the men on my mother's side, back to the 1820's have made their living at sea, so it's in the blood I reckon
I think I feel most comfortable afloat, sailing, more in my right "place", than anywhere else.. (somewhat to swmbo's dismay
)Graeme
DickB
Well-Known Member
My father took us sailing when I was about 12 on Lake Windemere on a beautiful keelboat, and then when I was at school I jpionedthe sailing club and sailed a Coypu dinghy at Ham basin in the mid sixties. Totally sold!!! Been sailing of and on ever since.
Deckmonkey
New Member
A family friend decided that what I needed as an unruly troubled teen was an outlet, so he booked me onto a weekend dinghy course at his yacht club.
Loved it, and over the last 19 yrs in the army have dabbled, done the odd days as crew and over the past few years have progressed to day skipper, with my first skipper trip in a few weeks
Loved it, and over the last 19 yrs in the army have dabbled, done the odd days as crew and over the past few years have progressed to day skipper, with my first skipper trip in a few weeks
Sailfree
Well-Known Member
Started dreaming about it after reading Neville Shute "Trustee from a Toolroom". Then a 13yr old council estate kid living nr Elephant & Castle. Fun was sawing down telegraph poles and other general vandalism eg highjacking lifts by using the roof mounted control panel.
Fast foward 40yrs and started Dinghy Sailing having left behind the envioronment I was grew up in. Fast forward anther 10yrs and I bought a new 36' yacht. Not sure what could now inspire kids from my background as I am sure most are playing violent video games and suffering ADD needing constant noisy stimulation.
Fast foward 40yrs and started Dinghy Sailing having left behind the envioronment I was grew up in. Fast forward anther 10yrs and I bought a new 36' yacht. Not sure what could now inspire kids from my background as I am sure most are playing violent video games and suffering ADD needing constant noisy stimulation.
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