| My boat is small, the sea is big... | | | | the boat is trying to tell you. Oftentimes it's not trying to |
| Some of the most accomplished voyagers from | | | | tell you anything in particular, but with a bit of practice |
| Joshua Slocum onwards have given interesting little | | | | and experience you will learn when your boat is happy |
| hints in their writings about some kind of help being | | | | and contented (it sings to you)... now you can truly drift |
| given to them from an outside agency in times of | | | | off into the "sleep of the just", the... just off watch! |
| need. Those that have done much single-handing will | | | | If the boat is unhappy it will have ways of letting you |
| know the strange thoughts and feelings that pop into | | | | know... it certainly won't be singing for a start. Don't for |
| their head at odd times when at sea. Oftentimes this | | | | one minute think this is only a good weather |
| occurs when waking up from the kind of cat nap that | | | | phenomenon. Even when the boat is running downwind |
| single handers know all too well... | | | | in huge seas, providing it is not overpressed in any |
| Most long-distance voyaging types will have their own | | | | way, it will be happy, its rhythm will be regular and it |
| stories to tell. Others will have stories to tell but will | | | | may well sing to you. |
| keep quiet about it for fear of appearing sheepish. The | | | | Two very brief stories about singing boats... I sailed on |
| open sea is a big, big place and whilst on night watch | | | | a 45' fast Italian made cruiser/racer... what a boat. It |
| with a clear sky and the boat bowling along nicely it's | | | | was a happy boat and it sang to me, very clearly. The |
| impossible NOT to ponder on our place in the bigger | | | | owner, a hard-nosed silicon valley computer person, |
| scheme of things. On nights like these things are clearly | | | | admitted (after I mentioned the lovely song his boat |
| put into perspective... we are tiny, the universe is big. | | | | had) that he too heard it regularly but felt too silly to |
| Any sense of self-importance will quickly be | | | | ever tell anyone about it. |
| re-evaluated when you have a sea to yourself, under | | | | Another example, Marina, a young Colombian jazz |
| a canopy of stars. | | | | musician, was employed on a cruise ship. She told us |
| It is not at all surprising that seamen as a breed are | | | | down in her cabin right in the bowels of the ship she |
| superstitious, and are more likely than most landlubbers | | | | could hear it singing, regularly. Not being a sailing type, |
| to start developing a sixth sense that may one day | | | | she was treading gently trying to find out from us if |
| save them from danger. | | | | we ever heard anything at sea.. or knew anyone that |
| So, how can we set about accelerating and | | | | did. She had brought the subject up with her direct |
| developing this talent to help us as we go voyaging? | | | | boss on the ship, and he had told her very firmly never |
| Take away the trappings of normal day-to-day life | | | | to bring the subject up with other crew or passengers |
| ashore, the silly gadgets, the relentless soap operas, | | | | in case it spooked them. She was absolutely |
| the news, the constant inane chatter "I said to him...she | | | | overjoyed when we explained we heard our little boat |
| said to me...and I said to her." Strip this all out of the | | | | singing to us regularly. |
| equation... it's easy enough to do at sea. Listen... | | | | A little bit of thought on this matter may bring one to |
| Once we remove all the excess "noise" in our lives, | | | | the conclusion that this phenomenon could be the root |
| what is truly real starts to reveal itself in subtle ways. | | | | of the seamans' superstitions about mermaids singing |
| The first thing you need to do is to learn to listen. | | | | and luring mariners to leap overboard. |
| When at sea on passage, even on a well crewed | | | | A Better Seaman... |
| boat, you will have ample opportunity for some | | | | Listening to your boat with your ears and all your |
| solitude... make good use of this time and listen. Start | | | | senses, is part of becoming at one with it. Try to make |
| by listening to the boat, not just with your ears up with | | | | your boat do something it doesn't want to and it will |
| all your senses. | | | | soon let you know. A bit of plain logical thought will |
| The ideal time to do this is when you've just come off | | | | bring many rational people to the idea that being at one |
| watch and you take to your bunk safe in the | | | | with your boat will certainly involve listening to it, |
| knowledge that someone else (that you trust) now | | | | becoming used to its motions, and noticing when |
| has responsibility for the ship. In that dozing off period | | | | something is "not right" before it causes a problem. |
| your mind and body will be at it's most receptive. Listen | | | | Rational materialistic people may well put the "singing" |
| to the sound of the water rushing past the hull, the | | | | down to the rhythm of the sea, the thrumming of the |
| thrum of the rigging, the rhythm of the sea. | | | | rigging, the whistle of the wind and other natural and |
| Many long-distance sailors will know what I am going | | | | rhythmic forces that combine to sound like singing or |
| to say next.... listen out for the boat singing to you. | | | | music to the receptive... |
| Boats are the nearest thing to a living being that have | | | | Whichever way you look at it, becoming at one with |
| ever been crafted by the hands of man. They are not | | | | your boat, is the first stage in being a good seaman |
| cars or gadgets... even two seemingly identical boats | | | | (and something you'll never "learn" on a course!). Once |
| off a production line will often display different handling | | | | your senses are sufficiently tuned to boat and sea, |
| characteristics and may well have completely different | | | | other phenomena may start revealing themselves in |
| "characters". | | | | the strangest and most subtle ways. How about |
| After a certain amount of time together your boat will | | | | "feeling" that a ship is around, even if over the horizon? |
| start revealing itself to you if you take the trouble to | | | | How about "knowing" the wind is going to dramatically |
| just listen. Most of the boats that I have got to know | | | | increase suddenly? How about being able to "smell |
| very well have a very distinctive and individual song. It | | | | out" your anchored boat when searching for it in the |
| is not loud, in fact it is very subtle. Quite often it's like | | | | dinghy during thick fog? |
| laying in your bed at night and hearing someone playing | | | | This introduction is already long enough, and there is |
| music in the next room... not loud enough to disturb you, | | | | much more that could be said. That may be the |
| but loud enough to register. | | | | subject of a further article. The main thing is to learn to |
| Obviously in motorboats there is the constant throb of | | | | tune your senses to your boat, by simply cutting out all |
| the engine that tends to overpower the other sounds, | | | | distractions, and listening to what it is telling you. A boat |
| but the brain is very good at filtering this out after a | | | | and its skipper in perfect tune together are a joy to |
| while (but often even a slight change in revs will have | | | | behold, strive for it. |
| most skippers very alert is indeed). | | | | Whilst in this article we refer to the boat as "it", this is |
| During that wonderful 5 to 20 minutes when you take | | | | not because we are unsympathetic...plenty of boats |
| to your bunk after having completed a satisfying | | | | are a "she", and some boats are a "him"...you just need |
| watch, listen carefully and feel with your senses what | | | | to know your boat. |