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In a recent Sailing World issue, October 2012, there was a cover feature and article titled "The Eight Most enduring One Design Classes" Featured in that article were the Highlander, Optimist, Lightning, Sunfish, Snipe, Dragon, International 14 and 505, but curiously the article did not include the 55-year-old Flying Scot. I wanted to share here on FSSA.COM the letter I wrote to the editor about what I feel was an oversight. I am sure you will agree.
Dear Editor,
I always enjoy Sailing World magazine, the stories, the features, and even the ads. I was surprised...
Continue Reading...The day started out as another winter day in Rogersville, about 5 degrees colder than day 1 and a little more wind. But that did not stop the hearty Flying Scot sailors from trekking out for another day on the water. The winds settled a bit and we had about the same as day 1, 10-14 knots, perhaps a few times as much as 15. And by race 2 the big ball of fire in the sky appeared and warmed us all up tremendously. The race committee continued with the practice of flying the "round the ends rule" flag, so we had no general recalls. After 2 great races, we were back into shore by 1:...
Continue Reading...We weren’t sure if we were at the Midwinters or the Wife-Husband today at Lake Joe Wheeler in Rogersville, AL. But in fact it was the Wife-Husbands, hosted by the Privateer and Muscle Shoals fleets. Many couples went out wearing winter caps and everyone had several layers of clothing to be prepared for to low 50’s, the cloudy weather and the wind.
With shifty 10-14 knots winds, we finished all 3 scheduled races today, and despite the fact we were told that the water was much warmer than the air, none of us tested that and we...
Continue Reading...What Kind of Trophy?
A young sailor once asked me why we didn’t give monetary prizes instead of trophies, or “little tin cups” as he called them. I gave him the long version about how sailing is a Corinthian sport where sportsmanship and fair play are an integral part of the game and how exaggerating the value of the prize might challenge that philosophy. When the reward for winning is are large there is temptation to cut corners for some. Look at all the professional major sports and you can see proof of this all too frequently.
To me the value of a prize or trophy is the...
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