Is there such a thing....?

[Jammer]

Is there such a thing as a sailor who is not also a writer and philosopher?

Inquiring minds would like to know.

[Jim Cate]

Well, there are some folks here on CF who claim to be sailors and are very bad writers... does that count?

Jim

[gamayun]

Some might say it's easy to over exaggerate a reach when making a point....

[Pelagic]

Originally Posted by gamayun

Some might say it's easy to over exaggerate a reach when making a point....

Ah....But a Sailboat's grasp must be beyond it's Reach, or what's an engine for?[emoji6]
(With apologies to Robert Browning)

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Jammer

Is there such a thing as a sailor who is not also a writer and philosopher?

Yes, a sailor that's a racer is usually less philosophical and doesn't waste much time with writing etc.

He's too busy trying to figure out if over sheeting or under sheeting caused him to lose a race by 30 seconds

Or was it that he pick the wrong side of the starting line.

Or should he have cranked in more prebend.

Or was there not enough mast rake for the upwind leg.

Or did he get to close to that high rise condo and lose wind when the lead boat did not

Maybe he waited too long to tack on that strong header

Maybe is was that old slipping spinlock on the spinnaker halyard that did it

Or was the traveler down too far or in too close on the spinnaker run

Maybe the one year old mainsail is starting to wear which caused him not to be able to point with the leader

Or did he choose the wrong batten set for the conditions

And so on ...........

[grantmc]

Originally Posted by Jammer

Is there such a thing as a sailor who is not also a writer and philosopher?
Inquiring minds would like to know.

That’s such a wonderful question. Certainly something I’ve pondered many times. More often someone does a voyage that to them is special and that somehow seems to make the sailor special too. Well of course you need to share that, bathe in the warn rays of special.
And since time immemorial sailors have kept logs, and often written voyage accounts, furnished details to map and pilot makers/writers. And who’s interested in reading ’at 1300 we changed course by 20 degrees’. It has to be interesting. The reader needs to exist within the book, be fearful of the South Sea Cannibals, feel the wind and the heat. Wonder what adventure will be found at the next port.
I guess you’d also have to include and ‘be a reader’, because for some I think it’s the serious quantity of reading that many sailors achieve that brings out the writer and philosopher. On a trip we can sometimes read more challenging books than we might otherwise pick due to having read everything else in the ship‘s library. Even doing book swaps at marinas sometimes results in reading books you’d not ordinarily choose.
But your questions dear Jammer, I’m sure, would make a great thesis topic. Perhaps you could even publish.

[fatherchronica]

As to yacht racing writers, I have not raced in about forty years, as, like my friendly slow pitch softball team turned out, even Wet Wednesdays sometimes bring out the jerk in folks I liked ashore. I am a cruiser, and started reading sailing books about 55 years ago. The only signed books I have are by Ted Turner, Gary Jobson, and Bernard Moitessier. Although to be honest Moitessier only really raced against himself. My wife just reminded me she had Lin Pardey sign a book a few years ago. So my entry is bigly off point, but I spent so much time writing it I will post anyway.

[sailorboy1]

Originally Posted by Jammer

Is there such a thing as a sailor who is not also a writer and philosopher?

Inquiring minds would like to know.

Yes there is, they are called heavy drinkers.

Wait that is going to be the same thing then.

[Kerry1]

Originally Posted by Jammer

Is there such a thing as a sailor who is not also a writer and philosopher?

As far as I know, Sailors are human before being sailors. All humans have a philosophy of life, a world view through which reality is interpreted and by which and in reference to- every decision of our lives is made- even the decision to ask your question. It is either that which we have consciously thought about, researched and made an effort to find good reason for what we believe- or we simply inmbibe subconsciously the spirit of the age, the enculturation of ideas commonly shared amongst the "tribe" with which we identify. Most likely a mixture of both, we fall somewhere in that spectrum of extremes. Even those who disparage philosophy are nevertheless subject to one of their own concoction, of some description or other.

We are all philosophers practising that which we are espoused to, both wittingly and unwittingly, but no, not all are writers.

[buzzstar]

Yes....

[gamayun]

Originally Posted by buzzstar

Yes....

And brevity is the soul of wit; right, Buzzstar?

[buzzstar]

Originally Posted by gamayun

And brevity is the soul of wit; right, Buzzstar?

No...

[Perna]

Originally Posted by buzzstar

No...

Gotta luv this site,

[shadow]

spend a bit more time here, you'll meet tons of that exact combo.. cheers!!

[thinwater]

Racer.

Actually, that was a cheap (fun) shot. I have raced... but I outgrew that phase.

In fact life always requires introspection.

And for fun, read "The Importance of Living." Any library should have it.