Read Ebook: Yachting Vol. 1 by Brassey Thomas Brassey Earl Pritchett R T Robert Taylor Seth Smith C E Sullivan Edward Sir Watson G L George Lennox

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See that all your blocks are clear. A reef pendant getting drawn into the mainsheet block, or a bit of bunting or spunyarn into the block of the peak halliards, may easily cause an accident.

See that boathooks, oars, and crutches are all ready for use if required.

Never make fast your sheets in any way that can possibly jam, or that a single pull will not set free. The same is advisable with your halliards also.

Always see that your mainsheet is clear, and that it cannot get foul of anything in running out. The most favoured lady passenger should not be allowed to put her feet on it.

When you have passengers on board in dangerous, squally weather, try to get them to sit down in the bottom of the boat. It adds greatly to stability, besides getting them out of the way. But if there is much water in the boat already, they may require some persuasion.

Always carry an anchor or grapple and a line to attach to it, and see that both are ready for instant use if you are likely to want them. The anchor for a 25-ft. boat should weigh about 30 lbs. If it is heavier it will tax your wind severely to get it up quickly in deep water.

Always carry a knife. A sheath-knife is best: there is no difficulty about opening it when fingers are cold, and it will not shut on them when you are using it.

Always carry a pocket-compass in case of fog.

In what is called a temperate climate always carry oilskins and a sou'wester.

Always carry some spare rope, particularly odds and ends of small rope; you may always want it for something. Your spinnaker gear will probably do at a pinch to replace a broken halliard or sheet.

When you are exploring and have ladies on board, do not forget to take a landing-board.

Always carry some water and biscuits when you may be out many hours.

Always have the centreboard down in coming alongside a ship. The boat will answer her helm better and steer more accurately with the centreboard down, as the wind and sea cannot push her about on the surface.

If it is ever necessary to leave your boat untended, take great care that she can neither damage herself nor get adrift when the tide rises. Nothing will make you feel so intolerably foolish as to come back and find your boat damaged or gone, perhaps still in sight bobbing away without you. The writer was once left stranded on a small island in the Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand, owing to his man having considered a round stone a suitable object to make a boat fast to.

Keep out of the way of steamers and big ships when you can, even when by the rule of the road it is their business to keep out of yours. They will probably expect you to keep clear of them, and, when in narrow waters, are justified in doing so.

I have said a good deal in these pages of the dangers of boat-sailing. It has been necessary to insist upon them, because the price of safety in boat-sailing is eternal vigilance and a little knowledge. The careless man may drown himself any day, and there is no saying what mess the complete duffer may not get into. But given the habit of carefulness, which soon becomes instinctive and unconscious, together with a little experience, and a moderate amount of prudence as regards weather, and boat-sailing is certainly not a dangerous sport as sports go.

SMALL YACHT RACING ON THE SOLENT

As Lord's is to the cricketer, St. Andrews to the golfer, Newmarket to the lover of the Turf, so is the Solent to the yachtsman--the Solent in its largest sense, not the West Channel only, but the whole of the waters inside the Wight, bounded by fifty miles of shore line, and covering an area of over fifty square sea miles. The West Channel, twelve miles long, is nearly twenty-four square miles; the East Channel, eight miles long, is equal in area; and Southampton Water, six miles long, covers three square miles. Nearly all of it is navigable to yachts, the Brambles being the only midwater shoal which interferes with small vessels of moderate draught.

The water of the Solent is clear as crystal, the air healthy as Switzerland, the scenery nearly as beautiful; here are watering places with mirth and music; cities with docks and shipping; men of war and men of peace; clubs and hotels; piers, slips, jetties, and hards; building and repairing sheds; yacht designers and agents; skippers and 'hands'; sail, flag, and rope makers; yachts' ironmongers and purveyors, &c. &c. &c., which etceteras include several snug anchorages and small harbours for those who wish to escape from the general hubbub during the yachting and excursion season. And the whole of this within a two hours' journey of London!

Curiously enough, the advantages of the Solent for yachting have only been fully appreciated during the past few years. It is true that the Royal Yacht Squadron was started early in the century, and the Royal Southern and Royal Victoria Yacht Clubs early in the forties; but yachting on the Solent as we know it now was not dreamt of, and the Thames held for many years the leading position as the centre of this essentially English sport.

Many things have combined to drive yachts from the Thames. Manure, marmalade, cement, gas, and other manufactories now line its banks; the Barking outfall fouls its waters, and an enormous steamer and barge traffic obstructs them. No wonder the yachtsmen deserted the Thames. But this is not all; a new sport has been born--the racing of small yachts, for which the Thames is peculiarly unsuited. Steam yachting has caused this development of small yacht racing. Men who would otherwise have built or purchased large sailing yachts now prefer steam, and, although they may themselves race but little in any craft, their action has destroyed our fleet of large sailing yachts, and with it the market for outclassed racers of any considerable size. Moreover, the very perfection to which racing has been brought tells in the same direction, because few men can afford to build large racers year by year to replace those which are outclassed. Yacht clubs have increased both in numbers and wealth, and the executives find that racing brings grist to the mill and repays the cost and the trouble. This especially applies to small yacht races, the prizes for which are not a severe tax on a club's exchequer, and can therefore be given more frequently.

Owners were not slow to avail themselves of the sport offered, which on trial proved to possess many advantages over large yacht racing.

In small craft an owner is more his own master, and frequently steers and sails his own boat. Corinthian hands can form all or a large portion of the crew; ladies can take an active part; the sport is less costly and better fun than with large craft; there are more races; fouls and accidents are less dangerous; and people can get home to dinner.

In short, the advantages are so numerous and real that one marvels at any men preferring to act as passengers on board their own yachts in the more ancient sport. Even this adjective belongs really to the boats, as prehistoric men no doubt owned and raced canoes for ages prior to the existence of larger vessels. But we as moderns are concerned with the nineteenth century, during which sailing boats have certainly raced frequently on the Solent. The square stem and stern boat used by the Itchen ferrymen for fishing in Southampton Water and the E. and W. channels is still a favourite type, and during the seventies became almost a class for small yacht racing, inside lead ballast, moulded, being first introduced, then lead keels, until in 1878 heavy lead keels, with fore and aft overhang, became the fashion with racing owners, and the Solent 'Length Classes' were introduced to the yachting world; 21 feet, 25 feet, and 30 feet L.W.L. being the top limits of each class.

A scale of time allowance for length was made by the Y.R.A., and the boats developed into great 'brutes' which were efficient sail-carriers if nothing else, the final outcome being over 70 square feet of canvas to each foot of L.W.L., whereas a modern rater in the small classes is driven almost as effectively with 20 square feet per foot of similar hull length.

There being no limit to sail in the length classes, it was not a difficult matter to outbuild the crack boat of the year every winter. Each succeeding boat had longer overhang, greater beam, draught, and displacement than her predecessor, and consequently won, being a larger boat and carrying more sail. The table of Solent racers prior to 1886, appended to this chapter, gives some details of interest.

A few races were given every year for what was termed the 27-ft. class , also for Itchen punts and for fishermen's boats; and, early in the eighties, races under various conditions were provided for small yachts by the Royal Southampton and Royal Portsmouth Corinthian Yacht Clubs, under the energetic direction of their respective Honorary Secretaries, Mr. Wolff and the late Mr. McCheane. These clubs may fairly claim to have started that small yacht racing on the Solent which now employs so many hands in building boats in the winter and sailing them in the summer, and affords so many people a healthy pastime for their leisure hours. The rest of the Solent clubs were not long in following suit, first one then another giving races for small yachts, until in 1891 'The Squadron' so far forgot the distich:

Returning to the clubs, the table at the end of the chapter gives some prominent facts at a glance, so it will not be necessary to repeat them.

An aspirant to fame in any of the small classes should belong to the Royal Southampton Yacht Club. It has plenty of members, of vitality, and 'go.' Its house is good and comfortable, with a fair cuisine and attendance, and its position is excellent for the racing sailor-man. The fees are not heavy, and the sport is good.

The beginner will do well to make the acquaintance of the leading members of the committee, for their sound advice and local knowledge may be of service to him; but he may be cautioned not to disturb them after the racing with written memoranda about rounding buoys; the soul of man is not to be worried by such frivolities when absorbed in the worship of crab, tap, or Nap in the cosy cabin of the Committee-boat--and this applies with more or less force to all sailing committees and club secretaries. Some shrug the shoulder and vent an expletive, the more pious sigh deeply and glance to the zenith, while many impose a heavy fine on that enemy of peace and quiet who dares to protest against a breach of the regulations. An exception, however, is said to prove a rule; and the committee of the Castle Yacht Club administers the law with strictness, and perhaps severity. If this policy were general, many of the difficulties connected with yacht racing would disappear, as a large percentage is due to irregularities which sailing committees might easily correct, instead of scanning them with a blind eye at the telescope end. Real sportsmen like rules to be strictly observed and administered, and the discipline enforced at the Calshot racing has, if possible, increased the popularity of the club which was started in 1887 by some eccentric enthusiasts who considered that small yacht racing required further encouragement. At that date the idea was not so preposterous as it now appears; but whether this and other clubs assisted materially in the production of modern racing, or were themselves the products, is a problem for the Macaulay of sport to solve in the dim future, when he writes on the pursuit of pleasure in the nineteenth century.

The adoption of the present Y.R.A. rating rule in the winter of 1886 practically killed the 'Length' classes; for, although the Solent clubs continued to support them for another year, no more 'lengthers' were built, and, the existing boats gradually dropping out, the racing with 'footers' collapsed.

The year 1887 was a turning point in small yacht racing on the Solent, as elsewhere.

There was much diversity of opinion as to the suitability of the new rule for small yachts. Mr. Clayton declared in January that 2-1/2-raters would soon be 29 or 30 feet long. Mr. Dixon Kemp, on the other hand, so late as 1881, when the sixth edition of his book was published, gave 'the lengths of water-line ... possible in the classes ... as follows':--

This forecast erred in the three smallest classes, where prophetic utterances, if only for six months, are extremely hazardous. The fact gives additional piquancy to small yacht racing.

The Solent clubs most interested in this racing began the year 1887 with a conference on January 28 at Southampton, and another on February 2 at Portsmouth, when it was finally agreed to recommend:--

In both classes an overhang limit of 1 foot and a mainsail limit of 55 per cent. of the total sail-area.

SPECIAL RACING, 1887

Two new boats were built for class , Miss Cox's 'Madcap' and Colonel Bucknill's 'Thalassa' . They were well matched, the rig being the same, viz. sloop with a small topsail of about 80 square feet. They were capital 'day boats,' with roomy wells, and fairly good performers in a sea-way. At first 'Madcap' proved the faster, but towards the end of the season 'Thalassa' won most prizes, and captured the class medal of the R.S.Y.C.

Mr. Campbell's 'Merrythought' was the only new boat in class , but she failed to beat 'Tootsie' , which belonged to Mr. Payne, and was altered to fit the class. On the whole, the racing in the new classes was somewhat disappointing, owing to the small number of competitors and of races. See the following table, which also includes the races for the 'Solent Classes' in 1888 and 1892, and shows the great development of the sport during the past five years.

The actual races only are recorded, as clubs deserve but little credit for offering prizes hedged in by such conditions that owners will not compete for them.

CLASS RACING, 1888.

Early in 1888, delegates from several of the Solent clubs met at the house of the Royal Southampton, to settle the difficult question of the classes of small racing yachts to be encouraged on the Solent, it having become clear that racing under a rating of length alone was played out.

The Y.R.A. recommended that 10-, 5-, and 2-1/2-rating, by the new formula L. x S.A. ? 6,000, should be encouraged as the small classes, but the Scotch and Irish clubs favoured 6- and 3-raters as better suiting their 3-tonners, which had been produced under the 1730 rule, and were about 6-rating. After a lively correspondence in the 'Field,' in which the Editor steered a middle course between the Southern buoys and the Northern shallows, the conference at Southampton decided to adopt the classes recommended by the Y.R.A., and there has been no cause to regret this decision.

The 10 class racing this year mainly consisted of a duel between Mr. Clarke's new 10, the 'Dis,' and Mr. Arabin's 6-1/2-rater, the 'Lollypop,' built for cruising, but a very fast and capable boat .

The lengthers 'Verena' and 'Frolic,' each about 7-rating, tried their luck on a few occasions, but they were soon proved to be outclassed under the rating rule. 'Little Nell,' 'Raven,' 'Ina,' and 'Jenny Wren' also competed. 'Dis' finished the season with the excellent figure of merit 52.2, and 'Lollypop' with 34.6. This figure of merit is found by the formula proposed by Colonel F. J. Smith, R.E., in 1890, viz.:

where M is the figure of merit N is the number of starts P is the number of first prizes,

all referring to class races only. Colonel Smith subsequently elaborated the formula by allowing points for sails over, and for second prizes when three boats started; but it is practically impossible to get such records with accuracy, and the resulting order of merit is the same whichever figure of merit be adopted. Hence it is best to employ the simplest formula in which first prizes alone count, as in the one just given, which will be adopted in these pages.

Further details of the 10-rater racing will be found in a tabulated form on p. 488 of 'Land and Water,' Oct. 20, 1888.

Mr. L. M. Ames attempted to start the 5-rating class by building 'Fair Geraldine' , but the class received but little encouragement from the clubs this year, and there were very few purely class races. The 'Flutterby,' 4-rater, designed by her owner, Mr. Fred. Hughes, Mr. Farmer's 'Chittywee,' and Mr. Newton-Robinson's 'Rose' were the only competitors available.

Mr. Waller's 'Lady Nan,' Mr. Manning's 'Ada,' and the late Mr. Sidney Watson's 'Chipmunk' were the new boats in this class, the first named being a great success at a moderate cost, the usual oak timbers, bent ash frames, and pine planking being used in her construction. Her lines are given in Mr. Dixon Kemp's 'Yacht Architecture,' second edition. 'Madcap,' her chief opponent, had been slightly lengthened during the winter, and a counter added; thus improved, she was able to turn the tables on 'Thalassa' .

The feature this year was the birth of the heavy lead fin-keel. Mr. Payne tried it in 'Lady Nan,' and Captain Hughes had a similar keel placed on 'Fairy,' thereby improving both her speed and power.

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