Re: most dangerous situation


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Posted by Ed Kiser on October 02, 2009 at 19:01:08 user Kisered.

In Reply to: Re: most dangerous situation posted by Pam Adams on October 02, 2009 at 04:34:18:

You speak of night sailing - what about sailing in a dense fog?

From SD CH32:
----------------------
They drifted slowly on in the white fog. Away to the south
somewhere by Rio they heard a steamer hooting steadily. Then
the hooting stopped.

"Tied up or anchored," said Nancy. "They won't run the
steamers while it's as thick as this. Hullo, what's that chap?"

There was the noise of a motor boat coming nearer very fast.

"I wish we had a foghorn."

But before anybody could even think of shouting, the noise
roared past them in the fog and then grew fainter and fainter as
the motor boat rushed up the lake.

"That's the way," said Nancy bitterly. "In a hurry to get home.
Idiots. They never think of anybody but themselves."
-------------------------------
A powerboat going fast could have done severe damage to the AMAZON and its occupants. Whoever that was, they were navigating blind in that fog. The bowerboat pilot may have been navigating by the use of a simple compass, ignoring the possibility of other boats still on the lake. Nancy's compass enabled the AMAZON to continue its navigation in spite of the fog, but not at a reckless rate of speed.

It is not that our friends in SWALLOW were doing something wrong, as the fog caught them after they were well away from shore, but they were in a dangerous situation, considering the idiots in that powerboat ignoring the possibility of hitting another boat. At least, when they herd that powerboat, the crew of the AMAZON did feel the need for a FOGHORN, which the steamer had been using.

They were just lucky, that time. But one cannot count of luck to cover for our mistakes all the time.

This reminds me of a bit of sage philosophy offered by CF in SD CH8:
----------------
"Anyhow," said Captain Flint, "you didn't lose a man, and
you salved nearly all your cargo, and you raised your ship and
are bringing her into port under sail. Things might have been
a lot worse. Don't you worry about it overmuch. When a thing's
done, it's done, and if it's not done right, do it differently next
time. Worrying never made a sailor."

"It isn't worrying," said John. "It's just that I hate myself for
being such a duffer."

"Um," said Captain Flint, "I wouldn't mind betting you've
been just as much of a duffer lots of times before when nothing's
happened. We're all duffers sometimes, but it's only now and
then we get found out."
--------------------

We have all been there...

Ed Kiser, Kentucky





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