[Public-List] "The Perfect Storm"

[Zachary Smith]

Post-mortem analyses saves lives. Neither Gord nor anyone else is
criticizing or judging.

Zach

On Thu, Jun 7, 2018 at 11:54 AM, George Dinwiddie via Public-List <
public-list at lists.alberg30.org> wrote:

> Gord,
>
> I don't second-guess what someone else did in extreme conditions. I try
> not to second-guess the bad decisions that I've made in a storm, though I
> do try to understand the circumstances that lead to the decision I made.
> Sometimes little things tip a decision that later turns out to be foolish,
> but had things played out differently those little things might have been
> the difference between one good outcome and another slightly less good
> outcome.
>
> When a friend came home without his boat, having scuttled it when he was
> rescued to prevent it from becoming a hazard to navigation, I listened to
> his story and thought of a few things he "could have done." Except he
> couldn't. He did the best he could given the knowledge he had and the
> situation he was in. On another day, he might have been able to do things
> differently, but for whatever reason, on that day he couldn't. I've written
> about this topic in different circumstances. (
> http://blog.gdinwiddie.com/2007/03/03/bearing-in-mind-that-
> there-are-many-factors-of-which-i-am-unaware/)
>
> It's also easy to be an arm-chair captain. This friend is a much more
> experienced and competent sailor than I am. He was in the situation and I
> wasn't.
>
>  - George
>
> On 6/7/18 12:50 PM, Gordon Laco via Public-List wrote:
>
>> Hello Gang…
>>
>> I’m home from the office and re-watching ‘The Perfect Storm’ while
>> having lunch… two things about that film that bugged me when I first
>> saw it are still bugging me.
>>
>> 1. The Flemish Cap.
>>
>> A huge plot line in the movie, and according to the book (which I’ve
>> read) in the real story, is the issue of being so far from
>> Gloucester, out on the Flemish Cap… and the loss of their ice making
>> machine meaning they had to try to rush back before they lost their
>> bumper haul of fish.  Then when they know the storm is coming… their
>> distance out is depicted as an issue of great peril.
>>
>> Well, I have to wonder why they never seem to have even considered
>> putting in to St John’s Newfoundland.  They’d have been there in a
>> day or so at 10 knots… it’s actually on the way home for them,
>> particularly because they were already on their way back when the
>> issues developed.  They would have found more services there than at
>> home in Gloucester… and wouldn’t have had to face the storm at all.
>> Why didn’t they go there?  They could have, easily.
>>
>> 2. The Yacht Story.
>>
>> The yacht disaster component of this film, and the book as well, is
>> dramatically misrepresented.  The owner/skipper wasn’t a fool, as
>> shown and written… the problem was the two inexperienced crew members
>> he had aboard who panicked and sent an unauthorized mayday call to
>> the USCG.  And because the USCG was called out, and forced the
>> abandonment of the fully seaworthy yacht, the men from the helicopter
>> died after it fell into the sea after running out of fuel.  Brave
>> men, but basically murdered by the circumstance created by the
>> needless mayday that they were responding to.   The yacht was later
>> recovered in fine condition.  The owner was furious with the USCG for
>> forcing him to abandon it, thereby exposing the rescuers, himself and
>> his crew to needless peril.  He’s written his own book, and has a
>> website on the story.
>>
>> Anyone else had these thoughts?
>>
>> Gordon Laco
>> www.gordonlaco.com
>> #426 Surprise
>>
>
> --
>  ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>   When I remember bygone days                         George Dinwiddie
>   I think how evening follows morn;            gdinwiddie at alberg30.org
>   So many I loved were not yet dead,           http://www.Alberg30.org
>   So many I love were not yet born.                          also see:
>                'The Middle' by Ogden Nash     http://idiacomputing.com
>  ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>
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