What Is The Big Deal About Single Handling?

[Saleen411]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

OK, I'll have a go at it, Saleen,

You are a pilot... I bet that you normally fly with a co-pilot, and that you value his presence every time you need to go to the head, stretch out a charley-horse, grab a snack, or attend to any chore that takes you away from your seat in the cockpit. CAn you fly the plane alone? Of course you can. Can most competent sailors sail the boat alone? For a while, and u nder decent conditions, of course they can. But extending that thought to extended cruising, dealing with heavy conditions, doing the many chores on board where a second set of hands are useful, maintaining adequate watchkeeping... all of those things are a hell of a lot more difficult solo. And that's why folks often mention the fact that they will be single handing in their posts. It's not bragging, it is letting respondents know the situation, for an answer appropriate to a solo sailor is often different from that for a crewed vessel.

Now, as to why one would choose to sail alone, that's a different question. The fact that you prefer company is fine, but has little bearing on other's choices, and certainly does not mean that that choice is somehow wrong in an absolute sense. I can't speak for others but here are some of the reasons I chose to race single-handed many years ago: it was a challenge to my seamanship, it forced me to learn new skills, I liked the other skippers in the fleet better than those in the crewed racing arena, and I didn't have the issues of attracting and maintaining a competent crew for a busy off-shoreracing schedule. I competed in four full years of OYRA racing out of San Francisco, learned a hell of a lot, enjoyed the competition and the camaraderie after the races and had no regrets about it. OH... I was also racing with a crew in the Bay all the while, and doing local cruising with my lady friend. I dunno if she was "smoking hot" by your definition, but she has been my cruising mate for nearly thirty y ears now, and I reckon that's a pretty good credential.


So, perhaps you didn't mean to be insulting, but your dismissal of single handing as something trivial that you "just don't get" is a bit demeaning to those folks who do get it and enjoy the practice.

Cheers,

Jim (ex single-hander)

Thanks for the reasoned response Jim. My apologies to all for the inappropriate tone.

[four winds]

Many with more experience have spoken and I share the opinions of most.

One point to consider about how often single handing is mentioned. ....When asking advice about boats or especially boat handling issues while sailing or docking; it's good context to mention only one crew is available to carry out the suggestions offered.

[svmariane]

Originally Posted by Saleen411

So again...why all the bravado about single handling? Not to be insulting...but I REALLY don't get this.

.........Top Ten Reasons to Sail Single Hand:........

10. You get all the credit when things go right...

9. (and accept all the blame if things go wrong.}

8. Can have a girl in every port without any argument from a partner.

7. You can clear port whenever you like - or need to.

6. The music in the CD player is always what you want.

5. No need to share the buttered popcorn.

4. The chart dividers are always right where you left them.

3. You can argue out loud without being interrupted.

2. Each case of beer lasts twice as long.


And the Number One reason to Single Hand:









1. No witnesses.

[Saleen411]

Originally Posted by svmariane

.........Top Ten Reasons to Sail Single Hand:........

10. You get all the credit when things go right...

9. (and accept all the blame if things go wrong.}

8. Can have a girl in every port without any argument from a partner.

7. You can clear port whenever you like - or need to.

6. The music in the CD player is always what you want.

5. No need to share the buttered popcorn.

4. The chart dividers are always right where you left them.

3. You can argue out loud without being interrupted.

2. Each case of beer lasts twice as long.


And the Number One reason to Single Hand:









1. No witnesses.

Funny.....

[Steadman Uhlich]

Hello.

Since the OP (Saleen) is a pilot, perhaps he will understand the appeal of "single handing" if he considers this:

1. Some pilots fly aircraft as the only pilot aboard.

2. Some pilots can only fly the aircraft if they have others to help them fly the aircraft, as they are part of a crew.

Which are you?

Are you proud that you can fly solo?

Perhaps you are one (solo) at some times and the other (part of a crew) at other times.

Perhaps it matters what size vessel (aircraft) you have at that time.

It might be more fun to pilot a small plane solo, rather than be the pilot (and part of a large crew with a copilot) of a larger plane. Is it? Does the smaller plane and going solo give the pilot more freedom to choose where to go, when to go, how fast to go, etc?

Perhaps it matters if you have passengers (which means you are probably not single handing a boat, but might be doing so with a small private aircraft).

Why does a pilot enjoy flying an aircraft solo?

Why is a pilot proud of being able to "solo" a plane?

Does it show some level of skill (even if one has only taken a few hours of instruction) and self confidence to be able to "solo" an aircraft?

Is it a challenge to solo a plane a long distance, nonstop?

In other words, some parallels exist between pilots and sailors. Not all, but some.

Hope that helps!

[laika]

As Edward Abbey once said, it's not a choice but a necessity. Sharing the experience is wonderful and I always welcome friends, family and sound spirits, but a pre-requisite it is not.

[Saleen411]

Originally Posted by Steady Hand

Hello.

Since the OP (Saleen) is a pilot, perhaps he will understand the appeal of "single handing" if he considers this:

1. Some pilots fly aircraft as the only pilot aboard.

2. Some pilots can only fly the aircraft if they have others to help them fly the aircraft, as they are part of a crew.

Which are you?

Are you proud that you can fly solo?

Perhaps you are one (solo) at some times and the other (part of a crew) at other times.

Perhaps it matters what size vessel (aircraft) you have at that time.

It might be more fun to pilot a small plane solo, rather than be the pilot (and part of a large crew with a copilot) of a larger plane. Is it? Does the smaller plane and going solo give the pilot more freedom to choose where to go, when to go, how fast to go, etc?

Perhaps it matters if you have passengers (which means you are probably not single handing a boat, but might be doing so with a small private aircraft).

Why does a pilot enjoy flying an aircraft solo?

Why is a pilot proud of being able to "solo" a plane?

Does it show some level of skill (even if one has only taken a few hours of instruction) and self confidence to be able to "solo" an aircraft?

Is it a challenge to solo a plane a long distance, nonstop?

In other words, some parallels exist between pilots and sailors. Not all, but some.

Hope that helps!

There are some...no doubt. Solo flights don't usually last weeks, months or years and aren't usually a topic of conversation.

Somebody MAY mention...."I took a single engine whatever across the Atlantic last week by myself"

Nobody makes a proclamation that they are a "solo pilot"...unless it's some student that just did so.

[rbyham]

I like company as well as an opportunity to intro others to sailing. However there are days when both the silence and the freedom of sailing alone are very enjoyable. For me the freedom of staying out long as I want going where I want is much preferred to being in a situation where the desires and expectations of others must be factored in.

[Schrewsburyduo]

It's a right of passage not unlike the first solo flight for a pilot. You might never have to do it but the crew of any sailboat should ideally know how to single hand in case a crew gets incapacitated.


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[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by Saleen411

My apologies to all for the inappropriate tone.

Accepted. Thanks.

[daletournier]

I just had 8 wonderful weeks with two different crew changing half way , it was awesome, totally enjoyed the company. And once they left I really enjoyed sailing alone again, connecting with silence and not needing too be responsible for anyone else. There can be a magic in the solitude and a true freedom just you and your boat.

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[FamilyVan]

I'm in the middle of what for me is a tough cruise. We had several days of not fun weather. Air temperatures of maximum 10 degrees Celsius, relatively big seas, say 2-3 metre freshwater.

My wife (a flight attendant) got violently seasick, I have a small boat. 3 days ago, she was too seasick to stay below. The solution was, she stayed in the cockpit with my mom in her 60s. But somebody needed to stay below with the baby. I stayed below with the baby and navigated with my AIS and GPS, operated the autopilot from down below, and got my mom to come down below while I trimmed sail and she puked her guts out in my frying pan.

She was sick as hell, she was shivering badly and puked within 40 seconds of coming below. I would rush out, trim, then send her back out.

Gale force winds and the captain couldn't be on deck with up to 35 knot winds and a (happy) 11 month old baby on board.

I was pretty happy I could singlehand my boat this week.

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[Lepke]

There is no big deal, just information. It tells an experienced mariner much more about the posting than a lot of other words. We sail alone for a number of personal reasons, so that tells a little more about the poster, too. Much of that has already been covered.
Enjoy the "smokin' hot" company while it lasts, because it doesn't last forever. You should print out and save your comments and look at them 40 years from now.
Lepke

[FamilyVan]

And then, when I finally found a suitable place to put in, the advertised depth wasnthe actual depth and I put her into a foot of mud. I then had to replace my belt, impeller, add oil, coolant and go fora swim to get the weeds off my skeg.

Then I climbed out and gave the baby dinner because mom and gramma were spent from puking for 3 days.

Sent from my SGH-I547C using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[TacomaSailor]

I single hand a great deal for a variety of reasons. Just to put it in perspective - in the last 20-years about 75% of my 20,000 nm sailing has been all by myself as in SINGLE HANDING.

Initially I single handed very reluctantly and with great trepidation. I did not do it because I wanted to. I had a very practical reason:

I owned a consulting business that allowed me to work very hard for long periods of time and make a great deal of money. Then,having made the money I needed and because I was a sailor at heart and not really a working person or "consultant", I would go sailing for weeks at a time. My wife and all my friends had "normal" 9-to-5 jobs and they could not sail in the middle of the week as I did and I did not want to come back to my home port for a "weekend sail" - I would stay gone for long periods.

So - my introduction was because I didn't know anyone who could sail on my schedule.

After a couple years of this "forced" single handing I discovered I really enjoyed being by myself. I learned a few things about myself. Actually, they were things I already knew but hadn't previously understood how they relate to sailing:

- I am very self centered
- I am selfish and want to do things on my schedule and the way I wish
- I don't want to take the time to explain stuff to people
- I am a very good sailor and really enjoy the technical challenge of managing a high powered 40' boat
- I am able to make friends anywhere I go and it is much easier to fall-in with a new group of friends when I am not dragging along any social baggage (wife or friends)
- It is much easier to keep the boat neat and tidy when it is just me
- I can lay in bed and read all night long without my wife complaining

Single handing is mostly about being comfortable with yourself and the desire to have things exactly the way you want without offending anyone.

I have been a hard core long distance street and mountain bike rider for over 40-years. I almost never ride with groups, or even anyone else for exactly the same reason I sail by myself.

- I want to set my own pace
- I want to go where ever I feel like
- I want to stop or go whenever I feel like
- I don't want to have to explain to anyone why I am doing what I am doing

SELFISH and SELF CENTERED!