The News, Culture and Practice of Sailing woodenboats
in Australia, New Zealand & The South Pacific.
This week on the WWW
A values driven selection of this week’s stories from around the world and on the web.
'Slick' Survival Move Jesus May Have Tried
“Storm oil” could be deployed upwind in a container attached, for example, to a sea anchor, from which it slowly released its contents. Like nutmeg on butternut squash, storm oil was effective even when applied in tiny amounts.
More Wooden Shorts
Some of this week’s news and stories from around the wooden boat world.
More Wooden Shorts
A round up of the weeks news, regattas, strange fish, tall ships, events and more.
A Pastime For the Posh
These days I don’t sail often. I live in London. My career and my group of non-sailing friends take up most of my time. I often pine after cheap Scandi 30ft keel boats on Instagram and imagine a life up a Norwegian fjord, but then I have to rush off to a meeting and a pint of Guinness and my nautical notions fade.
Wooden Shorts
“Our reference to the “inaugural Trans-Tasman Yacht Race” was specifically meant to describe the CYCA’s inaugural running of this event and not to imply that it is the first Trans-Tasman race in history. At the CYCA, we truly value and honour the legacy of offshore sailing.”
You Are What You Eat
The soft rush of water past the planking by your head carries you swiftly away to never-never land. Stepping up on deck, hot mug in hand, you cast an eye over the weather horizon as the just-risen sun pierces bright beams through low clouds over grey-blue water. The morning watch is reluctant to leave the helm. She has entered a state of harmony with the rushing water, the sighing breeze, the easy motion, the expanding light. Passing her the hot mug you go below to pour yourself another from the old copper kettle.
Development Victoria Eviction!
Participation in the discussion was broad, ‘animated’, lively, inclusive and positive. For the first time since the DV eviction notification, members of the HF were able to actually discuss the challenge of eviction, the specific needs of each project as well as any shared concerns in relation to the eviction threat to include developing a coordinated HF response.
Matches and Dispatches
When Jim saw the article we published last week in SWS entitled “A Final Stitch Through the Nose” he wrote to us asking to remind the readers, that here in Melbourne we have a beautiful historic vessel that is ready and waiting, in survey, and most importantly very experienced in handling the most important and emotional moments of your family’s journey.
A Final Stitch Through the nose
The body needs to be properly prepared for burial at sea. It is appropriate for the body to be sewn into a shroud made of a very strong, biodegradable material that does not contain plastic fibres or has been chemically treated (e.g., Calico). The shroud should be adequately weighted (all plastics must be removed) to ensure rapid descent and permanent submersion of the body and include slits or openings to minimise flotation.
How to buy a boat from a musician
There are times when owners needs to sell a classic sailboat but the memories of the good times on the boat keep them for committing. David Crosby cherished Mayan, not just for the times he sailed her but also for the inspiration she brought to his song writing
Rowlocks still Orphaned, despite best efforts of ABC
The ABC picked up on our story from last week. The aforementioned rowlocks are still sitting beside my computer as I write. Surely there true custodians can be tracked down!
Tasmanian steamship MV Cartela partially sinks
"We're moving quickly to get her back into a situation where we can find out what, on this occasion, went wrong and then we'll continue to move forward with a plan that we have to restore it."
Time and Tide
It is dark, but the sky is clear enough to see the moon bearing true north. The navigator, crusty old salt, informs the skipper they will arrive at the Rip at the flood slack and they can sail straight in. No tide tables were on board. How did the navigator know?
How Far to the Mark?
The brain uses this positional disparity automatically in everyday life to gain a depth of perception. Measuring distance by the rule of thumb relies on leveraging the known dimensions of the outstretched arm and the distance between the eyes. Your arm is typically 10 times as long as the distance between your eyes.