Sailing is in my deep in my family history. From my parents sailing their whole life on the Minneapolis lakes to taking me out on the boat for the first time almost twenty years ago. My parents passed down the love of sailing to me, and as Pinker would say that all behavioral traits are partially heritable. I behave just as my parents do on the boat because that is all I know.
The part I love about it is it activates all my five senses immediately. I hear the sound of the sail as I look up to it and the blue sky. I touch the tiller, the main sheet and the backstays when I am skipping and I struggle to slide the sideboards up and down when I am not skipping. I feel the wind and its power to guide the C-Scow across Lake Calhoun. I also feel completely at peace with myself and the people I am with. I smell the sent of a polluted lake and I usually enjoy the taste of a cold Summit when I am on the boat.
Sailing is all about physics. The sail has a side force from the velocity of the wind. It is similar to an airplane wing on its side. The keel or centerboard catches the momentum to keep the boat from moving forward. That is like the wing underneath the boat. The main sheet controls the tightness of the sail.
When I was reading the first chapter of Pandora’s Hope I kept asking myself, “what would I be doing if I didn’t believe in reality?” I sail like there was no tomorrow. Everyone in the class seems to believe in reality because we are all in school committed to learning about this topic. So what would everyone be doing if they didn’t believe in reality?
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You say that "Sailing is all about physics" and proceed to describe the various reasons why - however before that argument, you detail not the scientific aspects of sailing, but the aesthetic qualities of sailing. There is a historical quality to it in that your parents passed down the appreciation of the activity to you.
ReplyDeleteYou mention feeling the wind, smelling the lake, and enjoying the taste of beer while on the boat - all aesthetic qualities of the activity you love. So while I'm not trying to argue with you or anything close to that - it was just interesting that you say "Sailing is all about physics" while it seemed that Sailing was all about aesthetics in the paragraph before.
I liked the post. :)