Here we present a selection of articles from 100-year-old issues of *YACHT*. In issue 38/1926, YACHT editor Peter Haentjens – who had published the guide *Yacht Sailing: On the Practice of Sailing* just three years earlier – described typical activities on board.
A series of well-chosen photographs is intended to remind us, in the midst of day trips, cruising trips or regattas, of all manner of practical issues which every sailor must address – not only when the boat is in or out of service, but also during the height of sailing activity.
It is rare for a yacht to get through the summer without being thoroughly inspected underwater at least once or twice. Light centreboard boats can be carried out of the water and onto dry land by a few strong people without any special equipment, and placed on blocks or trestles that are not too low. For larger dinghies, one uses a few sturdy wooden rollers, which are placed alternately under the keel as the boat is hauled ashore, so that the boat always rests on at least one roller. Whilst hauling the boat ashore, it is held in such a way that the bottom planks or gunwales do not strike the rollers, so as to avoid plank breakages or damage to the hull caused by cracks or sharp indentations. The practice of ‘keel hauling’ – which is often very popular and involves heeling the yacht by means of a halyard attached as high up the mast as possible, to the extent that the keel may come out of the water – is not recommended, as this not only places unnatural and excessive strain on the rigging and the boat’s structure, but also means that the intended overhaul of the underwater hull cannot be carried out properly. In particular, any necessary sealing of seams, sanding, filling and painting of the underwater sections cannot be carried out properly. This work, which must be carried out before embarking on a sea voyage or before and during regattas, is best carried out on the slipway.
A keel yacht that has been correctly placed on a slipway and hoisted up onto it is supported on one side by two adjustable struts. Support on both sides is not necessary, as thorough lashing to the struts prevents the yacht from tipping over or slipping. The rear strut is set at a steeper angle than the front one to match the shape of the boat; the hull is carefully protected by a large, soft fender. The lashing must not be tightened until, following the first slow hoisting from the slipway, the yacht no longer has any buoyancy but is standing firmly on the slipway planks in its natural position with the keel. Until this point, the lashings on the struts should only be tightened enough to prevent the yacht from tipping over. Whether it is necessary to brace the overhangs after hauling depends on their length and the strength of the longitudinal framing. If the yacht is not supported at the bow and stern, stepping onto these parts of the boat must be avoided where possible. Once on the slipway, the hull can now be thoroughly cleaned with a broom, a mop and plenty of water; this is followed by a detailed inspection, which, depending on the findings, may result in the planks being repaired or caulked, sanded down, and given one or more coats of hull paint.
If the slipway is very flat or uneven, and there is no slipway winch, the yacht must be returned to the water by pushing the trolley in. Once the carriage has been set in motion by a vigorous ‘Zu-gleich!’, this movement must be maintained by pushing it forward in a rhythmic manner, whilst a proper sailor will likely sing out a melodious ‘Schuub över lang!’.
Work on the rigging can be carried out without a boatswain’s chair, provided there is a sturdy ladder at the end of the jetty; not everyone is keen on using a boatswain’s chair in the upper sections of a pole mast. The man standing on the ladder has spliced a new halyard, the rope of which has been lowered by the person standing on deck using the boat hook. With the appropriate equipment, the jetty ladder can also be used for hoisting and lowering masts.
The best way to strip the deck is to use a scraper sharpened to a very fine edge to remove the previous year’s varnish. One must not always pull the scraper across the planks in the same direction and with full force, as this would cause irreparable damage to the wood; rather, one must follow the grain of the wood with a delicate touch. The sharper the scraper or scraping blade, the easier the work; however, particular care is required near the cleats or other fittings. After scraping, the surface is smoothed with the scraper or a shard of glass, followed by sanding with fine-grit sandpaper, light oiling, and finally the application of the varnish as thinly as possible, a process which must be repeated two or three times.
The outboard paint is only applied after the hull has first been stripped, filled and sanded. Touch-ups to the paintwork during the sailing season often involve the stern of a large cruiser, whose high railing with wide scuppers suggests that it is primarily used for sea voyages. With its sturdy, prominently projecting rubbing strake, the yacht is moored to the posts of a sailors’ club, alongside several other cruisers of almost the same size. The dinghy is moored in front of the bow, with its bow secured to the jib boom and its stern to the water stanchion.
It is rare for a sail to be used to the very end without ever having suffered a tear, until one day, old and rotten, it falls apart at the seams or the luffs. When hoisting a sail, it can happen that it catches on something and tears; when reefing, the sheet ring or a batten may pierce the canvas; or a collision or some other accident may tear the canvas that has hitherto been so carefully looked after. Although one must always expect sail damage and repairs, the necessary mending kit is found on board no more than ten per cent of our entire yacht fleet, consisting of several sturdy sail needles with a sailing glove and sail twine for heavy canvas, as well as lighter needles with twisted thread or cotton for lighter canvas. A little tallow for greasing the needles, as well as some scraps of sailcloth for any necessary reinforcing, must also be included. The needles are stored in a waterproof tin to prevent them from rusting whilst stored below deck for long periods. The tear must be sewn in such a way that the edges do not form a bulge, which would create an area of excessive tension and creases in the sail. The edges of the tear should lie side by side and must not be sewn too close together, otherwise they may tear open again soon afterwards and cause even more damage. Mending a sail requires skill and, in the case of larger tears, a great deal of patience.
A tidy boat, with its sails neatly stowed under the cover and already protected from damage by a few fenders, shows exactly how the day’s sailing should be brought to a proper close. The deck has already been washed, and the boat’s owner is finishing off by cleaning the hull – a task that most sailors consider unnecessary, as the water takes care of this automatically whilst the yacht is moored.
Our final observation takes us to the time when the buoys are taken in or put out of service. On the sturdy edge of the jetty lies the heavy buoy gear for a number of larger yachts, some of which have temporarily moored at the head of the jetty. The buoy blocks are made of concrete in a standardised size; attached to their rings are, in some cases, heavy chains and, in others, wire ropes, with the chain being the preferred option over the wire rope. Due to its greater weight and resistance, the chain, when of sufficient length, ensures a more stable mooring for the vessel than the lighter wire end, which generates far less resistance and, moreover, is much more prone to corrosion. The buoy chains or wire moorings are supported by soft cork buoys, to the upper wire eyes of which the buoy ropes are attached; these are secured on deck. The workboat is already ready to lower one buoy stone after another into the positions assigned to them by a precise buoy plan. To this end, a strong end of rope is threaded through the ring of the buoy stone; one end of this rope is secured in the workboat, whilst the other, after the stone has been lowered, is secured beneath the stern of the boat in a slip. The buoy chain or mooring line is coiled neatly on the floor of the boat, whilst the buoy is towed alongside the boat. Once in position, the buoy is slowly lowered to the seabed and the loose end of the rope is then hauled back on board through the ring.