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The America's Cup was, and remains, a big deal in the waters off my little state. Newport, Rhode Island, is often referred to as the "Sailing Capital of the World." Newporters take their sailing pretty seriously.
My office mate is a Newporter and a sailor, I wrote about a trip with him here. He's giving this Old AF Sarge a real education in the civilian side of things nautical. (When I mentioned in this post about sailing aboard "a gaff-rigged schooner," I didn't really know what that meant. Now I do!)
Those sailboats in the opening photo are J-Class yachts -
A J-Class yacht is a single-masted racing sailboat built to the specifications of Nathanael Herreshoff's* Universal Rule. The J-Class are considered the peak racers of the era when the Universal Rule determined eligibility in the America's Cup. (Source)Currently there are six of those magnificent boats in the area. I got to see them sailing down the Bay on Tuesday, in the mist.
You can see a good shot of the J-Class in the opening photo of this article. A lot of good photos really.
From where I work we could see these boats in the mist, and these are huge sailboats, six of them in fairly confined waters. In the mist, it was like looking back in time.
I love living in Little Rhody...
* The Herreshoffs are an old family in Bristol. I drive by the Yacht Museum, where Nathanael Herreshoff's shop used to be, every day.
Boat....
ReplyDeleteThat is one reason that I want to retire to Florida, Alabama or Mississippi.....
I hear ya!
DeleteThe jazzed-up super fast Cat's they race today are fun to watch, but I prefer those old traditional boats, it was a different kind of racing with more strategy.
ReplyDeleteI too love the older class sailing yachts, elegance and beauty still reigned and it wasn't all high tech.
DeleteBut those Cats do fly over the water don't they?
I have always thought it odd that we of the Navy are still called sailors, even though I know next to nothing about sailing.
ReplyDeleteTradition.
DeleteSomething my own service isn't that good at. IMHO.
I think that's because your service is quite the young buck compared to the others, and they don't hold onto anything long enough to make it a tradition! ;)
DeleteTuna, shack.
DeleteYes, indeed.
Wish they still used these type boats for the America's Cup. 12 Meter boats and the America's Cup Class would also do. Don't care much for the "speed boats" they're using now. Takes all the 'sailing' out of the race, IMHO>
ReplyDeleteI'm with you there SoCal.
DeleteExcellent use of surplus funds by those who have the surplus funds.
ReplyDeleteYup. If I had the money...
DeleteSomething special happens at the interface between atmosphere, hydrosphere, and man.
ReplyDeleteEver since the first Polynesian made his girlfriend stand up on the log...
Indeed it does, and that latter bit, you know that's how it had to have started.
DeleteUsed to see them off ol chi town, and Detroit back in my youth. Now I only get to see the one on table rock lake that for the tourists. But, it looks like fun.
ReplyDeleteI've been out on sailboats a couple of times. You hear the wind in the rigging and the hiss of water against the hull. If you hear flapping sails, something's wrong!
DeleteGreat experience. It is fun.
The sailboat has much more romanticism to it than a motor boat. If I'm not working the actual sailing of the vessel, I much prefer sailing. If I'm driving? Give me a throttle.
ReplyDeleteI agree, but I would like to learn how to sail. It just seems kinda cool.
DeleteI suppose it was, although my NROTC sailing instruction was pretty basic. I did get to solo though, and didn't crash on landing back at the dock.
DeleteAh, but did you get wet?
DeleteOnly from the sea spray!
DeleteAnd that's a win!
DeleteYou know what they call boats, don't you? A hole in the water that you pour money into!
ReplyDeleteThey say that the two happiest days in a boat owners life are the day he gets the boat and the day he sells the boat.
DeleteBoats do require a certain amount of coddling. Which gets expensive. The guy I share an office with owns a sailboat, he loves it, he's out on the water as often as possible, he even races.
When the boat is NOT in the water, it costs him money. Oh yeah, when it's in the water it costs him money too, have to pay for a mooring.
Winter prep, summer prep, it can be time consuming and expensive. Would he give it up? I think you'd have to kill him first. He loves his boat.
Then there are the legal liabilities of operating a water vessel; you don't even need to own it, just be the operator. I learned about those liabilities while in the Coast Guard Auxiliary. I will happily ride in someone else's boat, but have no desire to own or rent one.
ReplyDeletePaul L. Quandt
Well there are always rules, aren't there?
DeleteI try not to let that bother me. Much.