According to Capt. Moreland, seamanship involves two fundamental strategies: 1) reducing and eliminating variables whenever possible; and 2) paying attention to details. Variables can be reduced or eliminated through training. A well trained crew is capable of handling the complexities of a sailing ship far better than an untrained crew. Knowing the names of each line, the sails and all parts of the ship is essential so that when an order is given the crew knows how to respond. Training also makes it possible to respond to the unexpected when it does occur.
We've had a number of training drills for sail handling and safety. Starting with simply learning how to handle lines safely without injuring our fingers, then moving on to which lines do what on the ship, we have plenty to learn. There are four head sails (triangular in shape) each with four lines (halyard, downhaul, port and starboard sheets); five square sails on the foremast and five more on the mainmast, some with as many as 10 or 12 lines per sail; the spanker sail on the mizzen mast with another dozen lines. And that's not all...there's more sails that haven't even been bent on yet. I'm glad we've been doing a lot of drills because I'm beginning to understand what each of the lines does and when to ease or haul on a particular line. A couple of weeks ago I was totally bewildered; now I can see that there is hope for me to put all the pieces together in my mind.
Today we had yet more sail training drills. First we spent some time reviewing the parts of the sails and the lines on both square and triangular sails. We had to tell not only the name of each line, but also what it does and when to use it. Then we went up on deck, in the pouring rain, to set all the headsails (except the flying jib, which is not yet rigged) and the upper and lower topsails on the foremast. Once we had the sails set, we braced the yards to port tack, then to starboard tack, and back to the square position. And when we got all finished, we had dozens of lines to coil and hang because you can never leave a line lying on the deck of a sailing vessel. Not only does it not look tidy, it could be downright dangerous.
There are plenty of dangers inherent in sailing; we don't need to create any unnecessarily, so everything is always safely stowed when not in use. We've had lots of safety drills and will continue to have more as we sail. Just this week we were all given specific assignments for certain emergencies that might occur including man overboard, fire, a call for all hands, and abandon ship. It's very important that in any of these circumstances we all know where to go and what to do. Of course, we hope never to have to use this training, however, waiting until the emergency occurs is too late for training. And, as the Captain told us, there are no bad drills; if something does not go as expected in a drill, it's an opportunity to fix a problem, to learn what to do or make some improvement in the procedure.
So we continue to learn and have drills to reduce the variables. And we always pay attention to details. Variables and details can make the difference in having a safe and enjoyable voyage.
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