[Public-list] Sail vs motor

David Fisher liquid_addiction at hotmail.com
Mon Sep 19 03:41:51 PDT 2005


Two cents on the discourse:

Sailing to the harbour, dock, mooring, anchor, etc is a wonderful thing to 
be able to do.   Sailing, we'll all hate to admit to those not in the know, 
is not rocket science, however the ability to sail well is one which can 
only be obtained through extensive and diligent practice.  Sailing when 
sailing is possible, rather than relying on the motor, is a swift way to 
build one's proficiency as a sailor.  Perhaps most importantly, it teaches 
the importance of maintaining broad safety margins.  The confidence and 
enjoyment gained from working with the boat in this way is difficult to 
equal.

However, contemporary seamanship skills should include an understanding of 
the value of auxiliary power.  It is not a new argument that modern boating 
facilities (marinas, fueling docks, modern bar crossings) are not designed 
with the required tolerances for sail only, but valid it remains.  Even when 
sailing and handing into a marina berth is possible and safe, it is likely 
that to do so will put others on the water out of joint.  True, sail has 
right of way, but sailing should not be about getting in other people's way. 
  In a climate where there is an assumption of a certain amount of 
manouverability on the water, it can be selfish,and certainly naive, to 
expect others always to work around you.

The phenomenon of sailors being traditionalists is, interestingly, a fairly 
new occurrence.  Look at any period in the history of sail and try to find a 
time where sailors weren't striving for the next technological breakthrough. 
  Gaff over square, cotton duck canvas, hemp, braided steel, carvel, 
sextant, watch.  They're all old and a part of the traditionalist movement, 
but once represented the cutting edge.  Auxiliary power in boats reduces 
greatly the limitations on sailing.  Whether it's an inboard, outboard, even 
a sculling oar, it's a piece of equipment that should not be ommitted from a 
sailing boat.

David
Kalitsah 440
Sydney.

Incidentally, in the case of the Alberg, she is a boat designed from the 
outside in.  An inboard does the job, and the boat still looks so sweet you 
could kiss it.  Put an outboard on the back, and her lines are disturbed.  
Take a boat designed the other way around, where a 30 footer is drawn around 
six berths and two heads.  An outboard on the back of a Catalina or Hunter 
might just improve the look.

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