More Why We Do.......

A little more from Captain Prosser- here on Sea Sense, something that cannot be learned in a classroom or a simulator.

But sea sense does not consist only of this ability to cope with special problems of relative velocity. It is concerned with a constant pro-occupation, waking or sleeping, with the weather and its effects, both now and in the foreseeable future on the safety and movement of a ship. It is concerned with an ability to sense the stresses to which a ship is being subjected by rough seas and to take steps to relieve them before they become critical. It is concerned with a realization of the seas’ overwhelming power when in any angry mood, the size and power of modern ships not withstanding, and with the ability to react to a crisis not with terror which is the natural human reaction, but with coldness and judgment. It is concerned with thinking ahead and acting prudently, making things fast so that they are not only safe now but will remain safe in a few hours time: when it is dark, the tide has turned and the wind increased. Sea sense means to think as the sea thinks, to feel as the sea feels, this sensibility comes most positively through the prideful mastery of sail training.