John's sailing

Years ago I learnt dinghy sailing up to RYA level 2, and have now taken it up again.

I originally learnt on Wayfarers (which are just how I expected small boats to be) and Toppers (which are so small I wasn't entirely sure that they were actually boats; I could (just) lift one with one hand!) on a 5-day beginners' course at Ferry Meadows, Peterborough.

Here are some Toppers... not the most dignified way to moor something, but at least they can't capsize when they're on their sides! I found these rather cramped.

This is the rest of the class, rigging a Wayfarer.

This is the view from a Wayfarer under way: (the ``distant shore'' is part of Cambridgeshire, not somewhere more exotic -- sorry!)

This is me at the helm of a Wayfarer. I've found that I can handle one reasonably comfortably by myself... the thing that worries me is all that rope to get tangled in in case of capsize, and since I'm fairly strong, I could probably handle one comfortable with a direct pull on the mainsheet instead of a triple leverage through tackle, and that way have a lot less of the stuff to get in the way.

I also sailed at Siblyback Reservoir in Cornwall, which is much prettier, high on the moors! I didn't have any unused film in my camera, otherwise I would have taken quite a few shots... perhaps next time I'm on holiday in the West Country, I'll go there again... Unfortunately they only had small boats such as Toppers, no nice comfortable dry Wayfarers.

More recently, I've joined the UL Staff Sailing Club.

John C. G. Sturdy

Last modified: Sun Jun 15 22:51:17 IST 2008