Arthur Ransome Society (was Sailing Pirogue)
5/8/01 10:18:52 AM,bolger@yahoogroups.comwrote:
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Should there be any readers on this list who are not acquainted with Ransome's books and with TARS, I invite you to go to this
website:
http://www.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/tarsus/tarsus.htm
You'll find a lot of information that may be of interest to you; moreover, I invite you to come out and join us for our adventures. We
have a lot of exploration to do on the Sea of Ransome.
Cordially yours,
Jim
James D. Satterfield Canton is about 40 mi/64 km
258 Ridge Pine Drive north of Atlanta, Georgia USA
Canton GA 30114 USA 34.208778N, -084.505859W
(770) 479-4784
Top Bar Hive Beekeeping:http://www.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/main.htm
Mother Crochets:http://www.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/mom/crochet.htm
Old Jim's Fowl Page:http://www.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/fowl/fowl.htm
TARSUS:http://www.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/tarsus/tarsus.htm
848th AC&W Sqdn, Det 45:http://www.po8.com/det45
_>________________________________________________________________________
>(snip)
>Message: 18
> Date: Tue, 08 May 2001 13:55:42 -0000
> From:pongo19050@...
>Subject: Re: Sailing Pirogue
>As for a pirogue or canoe's sailing ability, they are more tender(snip)
>than other boats - like the prams suggested. But, with an
>appropriately sized sail and the proper helm balance it's pretty hard
>to get in serious trouble in moderate conditions. Besides, capsizing
>in warm water can be a good thing - as in Arthur Ransome's
>advice "Better drowned than duffers. If not duffers won't drown."
>John McPhee has written a wonderful essay "Swimming with Canoes"
>where he relates a story of lessons learned in calm water and put to
>use in rougher conditions, albeit not in a sailing context. I think
>that it's probably good for children and other beginners to learn to
>sail in a narrow little boat because it's fun and, if they do go
>over,it will be a learning experience. They will certainly get more
>use out of a cartopped little boat than they would out of a "safer"
>but trailered design.
>Our litigious society seems too concerned with avoiding all potentialWonderful discourse, Andy!
>dangers these days. Sailing is not a completely safe activity. If
>you do something stupid, you could easily die. Advocating a certain
>type of boat as safe for a novice seems to me to be a bad thing.
>Better to recommend a fun little boat, tell the novice that sailing
>has inherent risks and set him or her free in warm water in a pfd to
>learn.
>
>I'm suprised (but relieved) that they haven't removed Mr. Ransome's
>books from the shelves, as he advocates kids sailing in such
>inherently dangerous small craft. Especially that Swallow with its
>considerable ballast and lack of flotation. If he were writing
>children's books today, the lawyers would have vetted his books down
>to nothing to avoid liability. Today, the lawyers would have the
>father e-mail back to his children "Better not to go sailing at all
>than to be exposed to even the slightest risk. Play vidoe games."
>
>Okay, I'm getting down off the soapbox now.
>
>Regards
>
>Andy Farquhar
Should there be any readers on this list who are not acquainted with Ransome's books and with TARS, I invite you to go to this
website:
http://www.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/tarsus/tarsus.htm
You'll find a lot of information that may be of interest to you; moreover, I invite you to come out and join us for our adventures. We
have a lot of exploration to do on the Sea of Ransome.
Cordially yours,
Jim
James D. Satterfield Canton is about 40 mi/64 km
258 Ridge Pine Drive north of Atlanta, Georgia USA
Canton GA 30114 USA 34.208778N, -084.505859W
(770) 479-4784
Top Bar Hive Beekeeping:http://www.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/main.htm
Mother Crochets:http://www.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/mom/crochet.htm
Old Jim's Fowl Page:http://www.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/fowl/fowl.htm
TARSUS:http://www.gsu.edu/~biojdsx/tarsus/tarsus.htm
848th AC&W Sqdn, Det 45:http://www.po8.com/det45