Idiot or Novice?

I remember my first sail. Ooh, how that changed my life from a landlubber to a sea going maniac.
I grew up in the middle of South Africa. No water mass big enough to go sailing on. My contact with water sports was paddling with my canoe on the almost non existing river in the Olifants Valley or over a long weekends going water skiing with friends.

Living in a small town everybody knows everybody and I knew of an old Sonnet Dinghy standing in someones backyard rotting away. So I had it looking like new again with a nice thick glossy layer of epoxy. Now, I didn't know a thing about sailing, less about rigging a dinghy. I got my hands on a sailing book from the library. I think the book was older than me. Read every little thing in there, from righting your dinghy to sail adjustment. Weird thing I could not figure out was why they were talking about apparent wind. According to the book you need to have the sail set this way for this angle to the wind, etc.

So I set of for the a piece of water large enough for the "Art of Sailing". Rigged my dinghy and was launching it just as the wind started to pickup. In the dinghy and off I went. Sail adjustment was easy, but awfully wrong. In the book they just told you what apparent wind was and that you should sail to the angle of the wind.

So clever me was watching the wind sock at the clubhouse for direction, sailing and adjusting my sails to True Wind. Idiot!! Needles to say the dinghy didn't perform like the previous owner described it: It shoots off like a Rocket.

I enjoyed myself so much that I transformed into a sailor for life. Next chance I got I went to the city to buy myself the Complete Sailing Manual, I needed to know more about my new obsession. When I learned that you should sail on apparent wind, I shot off like a rocket.

Idiot? I believe novice.

P.S. Not me in the picture

Where are all the Sailors?

Sitting in my car looking at the ocean, I wonder where all the sailors are......

Today is one of those perfect days, we get so few of them these days. Either the wind is howling or its raining in mid summer. You could not ask for a better day for sailing, flat seas with a nice steady breeze . . . perfect.

Yet, where are all the sailors???

The yacht club is only 2km away and not a single piece of cloth is to be seen on the water. For some reason yachties think that sailing is reserved for Wednesday night regattas and weekends. Now dinghy and Hobie sailors take every opportunity they get to be out on the water, why is this? Maybe because you only need two sailors? Maybe because less prep is involved? Maybe because they have youth on their side? OR maybe they don't need to have high power jobs and big overdrafts to finance their passion like the yacht owners do.

Yet, where are all the sailors??

People need to work during the week to earn money for new rigging, blocks and mooring costs. I get it, but if I look at the members at the club, mostly they are elderly folk now on retirement, surely they can use the perfect day in the week for sailing? Or do they need crew? Or maybe they are not up to the challenge anymore?

Yet, where are all the sailors?

Here lies the CATCH 22 of Sailing:

Buy the big yacht with all the trimmings, but need the big power job with the long hours to pay the bank = No Sailing

Retire Early after your successful career and buy the yacht of your dreams, but need crew to help sail the yacht, who is still at work = Again No Sailing

Are we all doomed to stay dinghy sailors forever?