Did you ever notice how people just love to see others mess up? If you doubt me, just check it out the next time you are anchored in a crowded area, or where there are lots of moorings. Groups of boaters will get out their deck chairs, grab a cold glass of rum, and settle in to watch others arrive.
As each one uses his or her own way to anchor or moor, the critic will sit back and explain to those within earshot just how he would do it better.
I have to tell you, when I first started sailing I went well out of my way so no one could see just how little I really knew.
When I bought my first boat I used to sneak out of the harbor mid day, mid week, when no one was around, and go out to where the oil tankers tie up. We had these 50 foot buoys that the oil tankers would tie to. I would practice time and time again pulling along side, or backing up to one, or just maneuvering around them. There was no one to laugh at me but the sea lions, and I swear there were times when they did!
I was fortunate. I was single at the time. Most who go into sailing late are married, and so, they must have an audience while they learn. This takes real intestinal fortitude. Every time you make a mistake, it will be pointed out to you. Not just when it happens, but for years afterwards.
A lot of credit belongs to the man who is actually out there, whose face is covered in sweat, who strives valiantly and comes up short again and again. He who can keep great enthusiasm and who spends himself trying to learn his passion, only he knows the feeling of achievement. At the worst, if he fails, at least he does so while trying. He will never be one of those timid souls who will never know victory, nor defeat.
If you want to get the real spice of life, you need to get out there and get your feet wet. You need to look whatever it is you fear right in the eye and in doing so, you will find that fear is soon gone. After all, a life lived in fear is really only half a life.
Ralph Waldo Emerson said it the best. “Always do what you are afraid to do.”
I know when I first started to sail, I had some real fears. One of the strongest memories I have from when I started sailing was the first day I went out in a sailboat. When the wind hit the sails I grabbed the big ‘ol brass goodie behind me (that’d be the winch) and held on for dear life. I was sure we were about to flip over.
If I tried to list all the fears I had back then, it would fill a book. So I know what new sailors, or sailors who are about to tackle something new, feel. Remember, a smooth sea never made a skillful sailor!
You need to get out and face what it is you fear, and after a while you will find that the biggest thrill you have is when you first realize that what used to scare you is now what you will look forward to.
As we conquer our fears, one by one, we not only liberate ourselves, but we pass on that liberation to others who sail with us.
No one in their right mind wants to put themselves in harm’s way, but that said, sitting in a calm harbor is not what makes boating fun. That’s not what boats were designed to do. They were designed to get out there and get us from point “A” to point “B” in relative safety and comfort. But we want a little adventure with that comfort and safety.
Think about it. What is it you are wanting when you first pull a boat out of the harbor? Calm seas? No wind? Probably not. You are probably hoping to get some wind, so you can test yourself and your boat.
No, not a hurricane, not even a full gale, but wouldn’t a little “small craft warning” brighten up your day just a little? Wouldn’t it make you feel better than flat seas and light winds?
Yeah, go ahead and tell the others on the boat calm seas are what sailors want, but you know in your heart where the real adventure is, and adventure, after all, is why we went to sea in the first place.
Okay, I see a few folks looking askance at this page. “What do you mean? I didn’t get into boating for adventure. I started sailing for.. er, ah… well….”
Come on. Admit it. The scenes that get your blood pumping are square riggers being pushed before a gale, or a racing sled doing 35 knots. Yes, it’s still okay to enjoy a calm anchorage at the end of day, but we need some adventure getting there to enjoy it the most.
Challenges are what make your life more interesting, and overcoming them is what makes your life mean something. So be careful what you wish for.
Okay, now let’s go out and have an adventure or two!
Bob, how’s Judy and Woody doing? Sent from Phuket Thailand where you visited many years ago
Hi Bob, I keep thinking some day you might drop in to Roatan Island Honduras. Not in a sail boat either. There are a few S/V here but it’s a navigational hazard with the reef that surrounds the 30 mile Long Island. And few if any charts or hazard markers.