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Dont take things at face value
A tough looking biker was riding his Harley when he sees a girl about to
jump off a bridge so he stops.
“What are you doing?” he asks.
“I’m going to commit a suicide,” she says.
While he did not want to appear insensitive, he didn’t want to miss an
opportunity and asked “Well, before you jump, why don’t you give me a
kiss?”
So, she does.
After she’s finished, the biker says, “Wow! That was the best kiss I
have ever had. That’s a real talent you are wasting. You could be
famous. Why are you committing suicide?”
“My parents don’t like me dressing up like a girl……”
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Food for thought – acknowledgements Michael Storer
Eric Tabarly more than anyone is responsible for the professionalism and money that is involved in all those round the world yacht races you read about. He transformed it from the very basic levels in the early sixties when he started to be involved to what we see now.
He was also more than anyone responsible for increasing the size and power of boats that can be handled by one or two people – he virtually invented or facilitated every aspect of that side of the sport.
He is the guy who brought the money in – he developed the modern notion of water ballast in the late 1960s. He built the first really big multihull for single handed racing. Dinghy type rigs on yachts, deep bulb keels, light displacement, aluminium.
He has held more records than anyone. His boats were almost the most radical – with each evolution he was the one that everyone said had “gone too far and would find it impossible”.
He never did. Consummate seamanship – this guy was no cowboy.
He learned to sail on a wooden boat owned by his father – Pen Duick – all his boats were called that.
About a decade ago he bought back the original wooden Pen Duick with the aim of restoring it but it was in too poor condition. So he used the original boat as a plug to create a fibreglass hull (beautifully put together) and then fitted it out properly with wood. No dollars spared. But he didn’t want to uglify the beautiful lines of the boat by fitting lifelines – the wire fence around the outside.
Taberly also never wore a life jacket – he had his hands and his wits. Hundreds and thousands of sailing miles – millions – in often tricky difficult boats.
Then there was the sad story from the newspaper when he was lost overboard.
Wonder what he was thinking over the next few hours …
Some of his achievements :-
1964 Won OSTAR Race in Pen Duick II breaking Sir Francis Chichester’s record by 13 days, 9 hours completing the crossing in 27 days, 3 hours, received Legion d ’Honneur
1964-8 Built Pen Duick III and the large trimanan Pen Duick IV
1967 Won all the principal races of the Royal Ocean Racing Club in Class One, including first overall in Fastnet and line honors in the Sydney Hobart Race sailing Pen Duick III.
1969 Won TransPac with Pen Duick IV in 8 days 13 hrs, setting a new record.
1973 Whitbread Round the World Race, 2nd place.
1976 Won OSTAR Race in Pen Duick IV besting Alain Colas‘Club Metiterranne (a 236′ schooner) by seven hours
1984 Voted most popular sports figure in all of France
1985 Inducted to Single-Handed Sailors’ Hall of Fame
1994 Whitbread Round the World Race- 7th place
In this situation the typical action would have been to either 1/ With the rising wind everyone should have had their lifejackets on already. 2/ To put lifejackets on before moving onto the deck to make the sail change – maybe it takes about 15 to 20 seconds. Your Skill Can’t always Protect You One of the times the boat broke I didn’t have my lifejacket on. Every other time I have because of that experience. If the weather is really fine the wind not very strong the sun is out and the water is warm and I know the boat well then I might – just – decide to put my lifejacket in the cockpit within reach. The moment any of these factors change – I put it on. Types of PFD (Personal Flotation Device) Sailing Dinghy racing rules require that you wear a PFD2 (it doesn’t have the bulky neck) for most events though some require a PFD1. PFD2s are generally accepted by the general boating authorities too for small boats and windsurfers – but check. It is worth spending a little bit of money on a lifejacket that is flexible and light – is just makes it easy to wear. Cheap ones are awful. If you are using a trapeze (where the crew is suspended horizontally from a wire on the mast with their feet on the side of the boat) you need a slightly higher cut PFD that keeps the area of the trapeze hook clear for action. A big advantage of wearing a comfortable PFD is that on bigger racing boats or unfamiliar boats they can save you a lot of bruises. Two more notes. 2/ The most vulnerable people (kids or beginners or poor swimmers) are often the most reluctant to put on their lifejackets. As soon as I put MINE on there is no excuse left for them. |
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Wooden Dabbie care
I love a wooden dinghy and if I was still sailing Dabbies I probably would buy a good light wooden boat in preference to a glass one. Personally I don’t believe glass Dabbies are faster,despite what the results are showing. Wooden boats need attention and with a little work now and again I believe its a fallacy that Plywood = work.
But thats my personal view.Some tips for the wooden boat sailors
Seal the Timberwork
Don’t leave the timber raw – coat it preferably with epoxy – an excellent moisture barrier. Not coating the interior of the boat prevents you from doing an effective job of mopping out the interior – the raw wood will absorb any water that goes in the tank and then you can’t get rid of it through either a bunghole or by mopping out. So you end up with lots of water vapour in the hull when it gets warm again.
Rot: the Ultimate Solution
The only thing that prevents rot is preventing one (or both) of moisture or air.
Epoxy is one way of doing both. So many boats built in the last 25 years using epoxy that are in excellent condition compared to others boats of similar age which were only sealed with varnish or everdure over the same time frame. In the end the epoxy is worth the expense.
It is easy to apply while building the boat.
However with a boat that is already finished it is sometimes not worth it in terms of LABOUR – ie you cannot do a good enough job once the decks are on and there is often heaps of paint to be removed.
The relevant question to ask someone who is about to undertake this process is … “How much do you love the boat”
The Value of Ventilation
Inspection ports at opposite ends of the tanks left open when the boat is not in use – of course with the boat under cover to stop rain going in
If not in use and if you dont have a garage – store the boat upside down on the trailer or some bricks to keep it off the ground with all the inspection ports off. A tarp over the top, but clear of the ground so air can blow under. If the boat is too big to turn over or has ballast that makes it difficult then build a wooden structure over the deck to hold the tarp off so air can circulate up the sides and along the length of the boat. If the boat has a drain hole the plug should be removed and the boat propped up so any water WILL drain. Check that the hole isn’t blocked from time to time.
That’s very best way to long term store a boat if you don’t can’t swing it up under a carport or put it in a shed..
You look after the boat,and it will not let you down.
Owen
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A Quick Quizz
How do you know you’re staying in a Brakpan Motel?
When you call the front desk and say, I gotta leak in my sink, and the clerk replies: ‘Go ahead’.
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Did …you hear that they have raised the minimum drinking age in Brakpan to 32 ?
they want to keep alcohol out of the high schools.
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Two reasons why it’s so hard to solve a Brakpan murder:
1. The DNA is all the same
2. There are no dental records
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Who invented the toothbrush?
A Brakpanner (If it had been invented by anyone else, it would have been called a teethbrush)
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A new Brakpan law was just recently passed…
When a couple gets divorced, they are STILL cousins.
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Did you hear that the Brakpan Mayor’s mansion burned down?
‘Ja, almost took out the whole trailer park. The library was a total loss too. Both books went poof . . . Up in flames and the Mayor hadn’t
even finished coloring one of them!’
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What do you call a woman wearing a white tracksuit in Brakpan on a Saturday afternoon?
The bride …..
Hopefully Brakpanners dont know where I live ♥
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Be properly dressed for your Sport
Over the next few paragraphs we cover what to wear for different types of sailing. I also cover the assumptions of sailing in different climates and on different budgets. This ranges from “I want the best possible options” to “I am trying out sailing for the first time and I only want the bare essentials”. Obviously personal choice comes into it and we all have our own favourites for different reasons. I hope, however, that it will give you a flavour for what is out there and what your options are. Dinghy Sailing In many ways dinghy sailing is one of the hardest topics to cover. It is very much a sport for all seasons and in the UK at least, we sail for twelve months of the year in temperatures ranging from freezing to 30°C. The water temperature can also make a big difference and can vary from 2 to 3 degrees in a cold inland lake or gravel pit to 20 degrees in the summer. On top of that there is a huge variation in boats from the traditional to the latest sports boat with twin wires and asymmetric rigs; single hander Lasers, to Tornado Catamarans capable of 25 knots. So let’s begin with keeping afloat. If you are a member of a sailing club and racing, whether you like the idea or not, you are almost certainly going to have wear a buoyancy aid. However good a swimmer you are, you never know when you might get a bump on the head from the boom and at best be stunned and at worst unconscious, so it makes sense. My first buoyancy aid was about three inches thick and made of kapok covered by a heavy duty PVC shell. It had lacing eyes so it could be tightened up. It was bulky, stiff as a board, impossible to do up properly and when you fell in the water it went straight over your head making it impossible to see or swim and you just had to hope there was someone around to fish you out. It certainly didn’t encourage you to wear it. Today buoyancy aids and life jackets are covered by European CE standards and the standard that is recommended for dinghy sailing is the 50 Newton standard. It assumes you can already swim, (check details) They have to have specified What to wear/Dinghy Sailing 6 S E C T I O Namounts of buoyancy, fit well, be tough and most definitely stay on when you fall in. There may be many regulations for which we curse the EEC however, this should not be one of them. Most dinghy sailors want as much freedom of movement and as little bulk as possible. There are two main buoyancy types used for dinghy sailing. A conventional zipped vest and a pull-over–the-head type. The zipped vest is easier to put on but is slightly longer than the pull-over, which seems to be the most popular amongst the racing fraternity. It fits snugly above where a trapeze hook would go. Freedom of movement is improved by using as many pieces of closed cell foam as possible so that it bends around the contours of the body. This is usually the way you can tell the cheaper vests from the more expensive. The cheap ones will have one or two pieces of 25mm foam that have to bend to fit the body. The better ones will have strategic panels designed to give as much freedom of movement as possible. As I have already mentioned, dinghy sailing is a pretty broad subject and it is difficult to know where to begin so it may be worth looking at examples. I believe I fall into the Club Racer category. I sail a National 12 at Notts County Sailing Club, a reasonable sized inland open water. I sail as often as I can between 1st March and 1st January so encounter all seasons. I will do a few open meetings and if possible a championship week but most of my sailing takes place inland. I believe I am fairly typical of thousands of club sailors. We all want to be warm, dry and comfortable in a variety of conditions. I began my sailing life on the River Trent, which was centrally heated by the outflow of about four power stations up stream. In summer the water was literally tepid and in winter just cool and I rarely bothered with a wetsuit or drysuit. Who said Global warming is a new phenomenon? Today I am sailing on a gravel pit where wetsuits or drysuits are mandatory from mid-October onwards. Not that you need to be told to wear one. On New Year’s Day I encountered ice flows on the water that made a terrifying noise when you sailed through them. Many people tend to forget that you are far more likely to die of hypothermia than you are to drown. What to wear/Dinghy Sailing 6 S E C T I O N I usually manage to test the drysuit once or twice a year!When it is really cold I prefer a drysuit. The idea that I can walk out up to my waist in water when launching or avoid the cold chill when hitting the water on an involuntary capsize is appealing. Drysuits are available in front and back zip versions. I prefer the back zip because it means less bulk across the middle, it is lighter and easier to move around in. The main argument against them is that help is sometimes needed to do the zip right up but to me it’s a small price to pay. Doing the last centimetre up on either a front or back zip is essential. Because the zip is so stiff it is easy to leave just a tiny bit open. I remember early one March testing a drysuit in an open-air swimming pool. The water was 5°C and all I was wearing underneath was my work shirt and trousers. Everything was fine until I fully immersed the zip and an icy cold trickle ran down my back. When I got out I checked the zip and whilst it looked closed it was not locked home. I was also quite shocked just how cold it was even with a drysuit on. Only my hands were exposed and in just a few minutes the heat literally drained away. Of course I wouldn’t go sailing in just a thin cotton shirt but it acted as a reminder of the devasting effects of hypothermia. Under my drysuit I wear a thermal one-piece suit, although a two-piece system is just as good. As discussed earlier in the layering section, this is essential for wicking moisture away from the body. A drysuit is literally sealed at every opening and risk of condensation could not be greater. Over the one-piece base layer I will wear a fleece salopette and top, depending on the temperature. I have yet to feel cold sailing in this combination. Some people will prefer to wear wetsuits. These are available in a variety of weights and styles. Just as with all marine clothing there have been huge advances in design and material technology. Look for suits using different thicknesses of neoprene in different areas depending whether it is warmth or flexibility that is the main criteria. There are copper linings, titanium finishes, some of which are a bit gimmicky but do have some benefit. Also look for blind stitching that is waterproof and flat seaming that will not press against the body. There are also non-slip materials and reinforcing for seats and knees. What to wear/Dinghy Sailing 6 S E C T I O NThe big difference between a wetsuit and drysuit is that with a drysuit the warmth and protection comes by staying totally dry whether in the water or out. A wetsuit works on the principal that even though wet, body heat will not escape through neoprene. Any water in the suit will warm up. Overall a wetsuit on its own may be lighter and more flexible if you don’t mind the initial cold feeling when falling in. It will also need some protection on top to prevent damage and snagging. A poll of some of our top sailors seemed to suggest that the faster boats such as Tornados, 49ers, etc prefer wetsuits. Sailors on more traditional boats such as 470’s and Fireballs etc prefer drysuits. A lot will also depend on the water temperature. In the summer and early autumn, if there is little chance of capsizing I will wear the first two layers in conjunction with my two-piece waterproof dinghy system. This consists of a lightweight chest high trouser and top. It is waterproof, breathable and very flexible. Being at the drier end of the boat I will often just wear the trousers. In warm but windy conditions I have a summer weight wetsuit. It is available in long and short versions and I find the long more versatile. On my feet I wear the neoprene boots with lightweight thermal socks. The boots provide second -to-none grip and are very comfortable and warm. I have recently gone up a size. I found whilst testing various types of socks that, what was making my feet cold was the fact that they were too tight and constricting blood flow. The larger size also enables me to wear them over drysuit boots. I wear head a fleece hat or balaclava which makes a huge difference as it doesn’t absorb any water and can keep you warm when wet. What to wear/Dinghy Sailing 6 S E C T I O N Latex seals on neck wrist and feat together with a fully waterproof zip mean you could go swimming in your best suit and stay dryBase Layer It doesn’t get much more energetic than dinghy sailing in a fresh breeze and, as mentioned in the section on breathable fabrics, in a hour of moderate exercise our bodies give off half a litre of moisture vapour. This is the body’s natural cooling system and the moisture needs to go somewhere to avoid you getting damp from the inside rather than from outside in. In a two hour race our clothing system has a lot to cope with. The options are a crew or zip neck top and leggings or, particularly effect for underneath drysuits, is a thermal one piece. They are made in a thermal stretch fabric woven in a two yarn “bi-polar” system to enhance moisture vapour management. You’ll find the fabric moves moisture away from the skin and traps air in the weave to keep you warm. It is also very quick drying. As wetsuits are not breathable a normal base layer will not help. However a Rash Vest can make the wetsuit more comfortable. It is tight fitting and quick drying. Mid Layer Again this will come down to whether you are wearing a wetsuit or not. If the answer is no then you are relying on the mid layer as the insulating layer. It is of course dependant on the temperature and the best options are the toast top and pant which is a micro fleece and gives good warmth without bulk and is excellent for wearing under a drysuit. Warmer still is the i4 fleece range. This could be a top or jacket and the salopette and doubles up on the warmer round your middle. What to wear/Dinghy Sailing 6 S E C T I O NWaterproof layer We again come back to the question of selecting a wetsuit, drysuit or traditional waterproof layer. I outlined most of these options earlier in this section. Much will depend on the wind strength and the time of the year. For me one of the most versatile options is the dinghy system waterproof top and chest high trousers. Gill pioneered this development in 1988. Up until then the one-piece suit was the order of the day. It was however inflexible. It was either all on or all off. I remember noticing how some people when they got hot, slipped the one piece suit off the shoulders and tied it round the middle, which was most unsatisfactory. I also noticed that others would wear a pair of overweight chest high trousers from their offshore collection. There had to be a better way, it had to be light and easy to move around in, no more expensive than a good one-piece suit and flexible so you could wear either half on its own. The answer was to produce a pair of chest high trousers, without a fly front in the same fabric we used for making one piece suits. The top half was a simple over the head smock with adjustable soft PU cuffs and neck seal. It had taped seams so was full waterproof. It was an instant success. Some people would just buy the top to put on over a wetsuit, particularly if theirs was a sleeveless one, whilst others would just buy the trousers for warm days but most had the complete system. What to wear/Dinghy Sailing 6 S E C T I O N 1 Soft PU seals are both comfortable and watertight 2 Zipped pockets can be accessed even with buoyancy aid on 3 Neoprene hem prevents top riding up as well as giving a good seal 1 2 3 Gill Dinghy system top changed the thinking behind dinghy ClothingWhat to wear/Dinghy Sailing 6 S E C T I O N Pro-Choice Hugh Styles Hugh Styles and Adam May campaign a Tornado, the fastest of the Olympic Classes. They were fourth at Sydney and are currently ranked number 3 in the world. Hugh Styles kit bag contains: Warm conditions Cold Base Layer Rash vest or cool top Thermal top x 2 Wetsuit/Drysuit Speed skins or Gill Breathable Gill wetsuit Drysuit or long arm wetsuit Waterproof Layer Spray top Spray top or Dry top (white in Athens!) Footwear Gill Aquatechs Gill Neoprene Boots Gloves Championship gloves Championship Head gear Sailing cap Base layer cap How important is the actual weight of the gear? Lightweight is preferable, easier to move around in. For certain conditions we aim to make up the weight of the clothes to the 9 kg overall clothing limit by adding weight to the harnesses or wear heavier tops for more leverage. What is your favourite bit of kit? The Speed Skins and the breathable drysuit.Dinghy Product Selector Base Layer Mid layer Waterproof Footwear Accessories Crew Neck i4 smock Breathable Drysuit A Competition Boot Deckhand A,J Zip neck i4 Salopette Regular Drysuit A Neoprene Boot Regatta Glove A Leggings Toasty Top Dinghy System A Aquatech shoes Championship GloveA One Piece Toasty Pants Dry smock A 3 Season Glove A Spray smock W Trapeze Harness Wetsuit W,F Buoyancy Aid A denotes all seasons W denotes warm conditions F denotes Female specific sizes available J denotes Junior sizes available For further information on your Dinghy Product selection contact a Gill Technical Clothing Specialist on 01159 460844 Or e-mail TCS@gilluk.com Or visit www.gillmarine.com
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Starboard !!!!!!!!
I dont care who you are, or how big you are, I have the right of way,click here Starboard !
Owen
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Some more Humour
I was in the restaurant yesterday when I suddenly realized I desperately
needed to pass gas. The music was really, really loud, so I timed my
gas with the beat of the music.
After a couple of songs, I started to feel better. I finished my coffee,
and noticed that everybody was staring at me….
Then I suddenly remembered that I was listening to my iPod.
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A couple of hunters are out in the woods when one of them falls to the ground. He doesn’t seem to be breathing, his eyes are rolled back in his head. The other guy whips out his cell phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps to the operator: “My friend is dead! What can I do?”
The operator, in a calm soothing voice says: “Just take it easy. I can help. First, let’s make sure he’s dead.” There is a silence, then a shot is heard.
The guy’s voice comes back on the line. He says: “OK, now what?“
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I want to die peacefully in my sleep, like my grandfather… Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car.
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Gordon died. So Susan went to the local paper to put a notice in the obituaries.
The gentleman at the counter, after offering his condolences, asked Susan what she would like to say about Gordon.
Susan replied, “You just put, ‘Gordon died.’”
The gentleman, somewhat perplexed, said, “That’s it? Just ‘Gordon died?’
Surely, there must be something more you’d like to say about Gordon. If it’s money you’re concerned about, the first five words are free. We really should say something more.”
So Susan pondered for a few minutes and finally said, “O.K., then. You put ‘Gordon died. Boat for sale.’”
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Click here for a Toon pirate
Why boardsailing doesnt appeal to me Booardsailing
Chinese water skiing Waterskiing
Save the whale greenpeace
Having a bad day Bad Boat day Or click here Bad Boat Day another click here Bad Boat day
Enjoy
Owen
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Some Jokes
The Pope visits Washington and President Bush takes him for a ride down the Potomac on the presidential yacht. They’re enjoying themselves when a gust of wind blows the Pope’s hat (zucchetto) off and out onto the water. The Secret Service begins to launch a boat but Bush waves them off saying, “Wait. I’ll take care of this.”
Bush steps off the yacht onto the surface of the water, walks out a ways and picks up the hat. Back on board, he hands the hat to the Pope amid stunned silence.
The next morning the Washington Post carries the story complete with photos under the heading: “BUSH CAN’T SWIM”.
A dumb blonde was really tired of being made fun of, so she decided to have her hair she would look like a brunette. When she had brown hair, she decided to take a drive in the country.
After she had been driving for a while, she saw a farmer and a flock of sheep and thought, “Oh! Those sheep are so adorable!”
She got out and walked over to the farmer and said, “If I can guess how many sheep you have, can I take one home?”
The farmer, being a bit of a gambler himself, said she could have a try.
The blonde looked at the flock and guessed, “157.”
The farmer was amazed – she was right! So the blonde, (who looked like a brunette), picked one out and got back into her car. Before she left, farmer walked up to her and said.
“If I can guess the real color of your hair, can I have my dog back?”
A very attractive lady goes up to a bar in a quiet rural pub. She gestures alluringly to the bartender who comes over immediately. When he arrives, she seductively signals that he should bring his face closer to hers. When he does, she begins to gently caress his full beard.
“Are you the manager?” she asks, softly stroking his face with both hands. “Actually, no,” the man replies.
“Can you get him for me? I need to speak to him,” she says, running her hands beyond his beard and into his hair.
“Can’t,” breathes the bartender. “He’s not here. Is there anything I can do?”
“Yes, there is. I need you to give him a message,” she continues, running her forefinger across the bartender’s lips and slyly popping a couple of her fingers into his mouth and allowing him to suck them gently.
“What should I tell him?” the bartender manages to say.
“Tell him,” she whispers, “there is no toilet paper, hand soap, or paper towels in the ladies room.”
A guy calls a company and orders their 5-day, 5kg weight loss program.
The next day, there’s a knock on the door and there stands before him a voluptuous, athletic, 19 year old babe dressed in nothing but a pair of Nike running shoes and a sign around her neck..
She introduces herself as a representative of the weight loss company. The sign reads, “If you can catch me, you can have me.”
Without a second thought, he takes off after her. A few miles later puffing and puffing, he finally gives up. The same girl shows up for the next four days and the same thing happens. On the fifth day, he weighs himself and is delighted to find he has lost 5kg as promised.
He calls the company and orders their 5-day/10kg program. The next day there’s a knock at the door and there stands the most stunning, beautiful, sexy woman he has ever seen in his life. She is wearing nothing but Reebok running shoes and a sign around her neck that reads, “If you catch me you can have me”.
Well, he’s out the door after her like a shot. This girl is in excellent shape and he does his best, but no such luck. So for the next four days, the same routine happens with him gradually getting in better and better shape.
Much to his delight on the fifth day when he weighs himself, he discovers that he has lost another 10kg as promised. He decides to go for broke and calls the company to order the 7-day/25kg program.
“Are you sure?” asks the representative on the phone. “This is our most rigorous program.” “Absolutely,” he replies, “I haven’t felt this good in years.”
The next day there’s a knock at the door; and when he opens it he finds a huge muscular guy standing there wearing nothing but pink running shoes and a sign around his neck that reads, “If I catch you, you are mine.”
He lost 33 kilos that week.
Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson were going camping. They pitched their tent under the stars and went to sleep. Sometime in the middle of the night Holmes woke Watson up and said: “Watson, look up at the stars, and tell me what you see.”
Watson replied: “I see millions and millions of stars.”
Holmes said: “and what do you deduce from that?”
Watson replied: “Well, if there are millions of stars, and if even a few of those have planets, it’s quite likely there are some planets like earth out there. And if there are a few planets like earth out there, there might also be life.”
And Holmes said: “Watson, you idiot, it means that somebody stole our tent.”
A man, shocked by how his buddy is dressed, asks him, “How long have you been wearing that bra?” The friend replies, “Ever since my wife found it in the glove compartment.”
Enjoy these,some are oldies I know
Owen
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The Ten Commandments of Boat Speed
From the October, 1997 issue of Sailing World, here is an excellent article that is mostly applicable to our boats.
No. 1 Most boats perform best upwind with a nearly neutral weather helm. At times, the boat will develop weather helm, especially when in point mode but an excessive tug on the tiller indicates that the boat is badly out of balance. The quick fixes: sail the boat flatter, raise the centerboard, decrease mast rake or flatten the mainsail.
No. 2 In most conditions, trim the mainsheet so that the top batten is parallel to the boom, rather than pointing inboard or outboard. To judge this, cover the last 10 inches of the upper batten with black tape. Then sight up the leech from under the boom, trim to the right spot and mark the mainsheet.
That said, there are times you can break this rule. When trying to accelerate, develop power in light-to-medium winds or when greatly overpowered in a breeze, the upper batten can be angled outboard 10 to 20 degrees.
Conversely, when trying to point high in moderate air, it’s OK to slightly overtrim the main so that the batten hooks to windward in relation to the boom.
No. 3 Figure out what is maximum mast bend, and then strive to attain it in most conditions. Maximum bend is the point at which overbend wrinkles (speed wrinkles, inversion wrinkles, etc.) develop in the lower quarter to lower third of the mainsail. Depending on the boat, you can bend the mast with mainsheet tension, vang tension, rig tension, mast blocks, spreader angle or a combination of all of the above.
No. 4 Every boat has its optimal rig tension. Find out what it is and maintain it. Most boats sail best with the rig just tight enough so that the leeward shroud starts to go slack when its blowing 10 to 12 knots.
If the rig is too loose, the Jib entry will become quite full. The result is poor pointing ability. Too tight a rig, on the other hand, is sometimes indicated by overbend/inversion wrinkles in the entry of the jib – a small-scale version of what happens to a mainsail with maximum mast bend. In addition, if the rig is too tight, the entry of the jib will be quite flat and the telltales will break on both sides of the jib at nearly the same time. In short, the jib becomes hard to steer to.
No. 5 Sail the boat on its lines. Usually, a boat will not perform when its bow or stern is buried in the water. Besides the obvious drag this can affect the balance of the boat and the tug on the tiller (i.e. bow down creates weather helm). Instead position the crew weight so the transom is just kissing the water. The result is a smooth, undisturbed wake. Watch where the top sailors sit and copy them.
No. 6 Trim your jib so that, if there were a batten m the middle of the leech, it would be parallel with the centerline of the boat. Put a piece of dark tape on this real or imaginary batten. Only in rare exceptions does a jib ever get trimmed off this position. One time would be for acceleration – ease the sheet so the middle leech stripe is angled 10 degrees outboard from centerline. This trim is for ‘first gear’ and should match to the mainsheet ease when the main’s top batten is also angled outboard for acceleration.
No. 7 Set your jib leads so your luff breaks evenly from top to bottom. When the boat is overpowered, move the lead aft until the top breaks just ahead of the lower and middle telltales.
No. 8 Set your jib and main luff tension so that there are always some slight horizontal wrinkles along the luff. In very light winds, completely relax the luff tension so there are slight wrinkles all the way from head to tack. Tighten it gradually as the wind builds, so that in heavy air slight wrinkles appear only in the lower few feet or both sails.
If the luff tension is too soft, these wrinkles will be too big. But they’ll never be as long or pronounced as the inversion wrinkles from excessive mast bend or too tight a forestay. Those wrinkles angle from luff to clew. The wrinkles controlled by luff tension are much smaller and he perpendicular to the luff.
No. 9 Every boat has a sweet spot – a precise steering angle for optimum performance upwind. Every boat also has a groove, which is the range off acceptable steering angles. It’s up to the skipper to learn both. The lower end of this range is for acceleration. At this angle, both jib telltales should be streaming straight aft. The luff of the jib should rarely break, but the leeward telltales should never stall.
The center of the groove is the sweet spots where the boat should be sailed 75 percent of the time. Here you should steer so the weather telltale is slightly stalled. The other end of the groove is the pinching mode, which is used in breezy conditions, especially in flat water. This side of the groove is usually higher than simply letting the weather telltale lift. On most boats you can actually steer so the front of the Jib breaks as much as a foot back from the headstay for short periods.
No. 10 When in doubt, copy the fast guys.
Acknowledgements :
Greg Fisher
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