AHOY THERE

I am retiring as Chairman thisyear so I am allowed to lookback and reminisce.

When the DSA started in 2005Shirley and I never imagined thatwe could be where we are now.We have gone from a 20ft HurleyFelicity to having two modernyachts 33ft and 38ft in length.What a journey it has been.The DSA has grown into anorganisation with 280 disabledmembers, excluding the carehomes and rehabilitation centres,61 volunteers including 15 skippersand 46 crew.And the result, as was the purposefrom the start, hundreds ofdisabled people have been able to experience the magic of sailing in our beautiful locationwith its cliffs, bays and sandy beaches.None of this would have been possible were it not for the dedicated crew of volunteerswho I have had the privilege of working with to help raise funds and run the organisation.It is time for me to hand over the reins which will happen at the Annual General Meeting on11th May when a new Chair will be voted in.However, I won’t be giving up my involvement in the DSA and I hope I will be able to spenda lot more time myself out on the water.

ISSUE 22 WINTER 2019

Dave Musgrove

Above: New Freedom arriving in TorbayInset: Moonshine DSA yacht 2006

Picture credit: Alec Munro (see article Day Skipper)

This newsletter is produced on behalf of members and supporters of the Disabled Sailing Association, aregistered charity. No: 1113330. Please share with friends and encourage them to visitwww.disabledsailingassociation.org.uk. New members welcome. Donations always welcome!

Contents

Message from the Chairman Cover

Introduction to Sailing 3

Get Knotted 4

DSA Sea Shanty 5

El Mareo – Seekrank – Mal de Mer 6

Day Skipper Course 8

Volunteers Needed 9

Christmas Party 10

Important Diary Dates 11

A Special Thanks 11

Our Fleet 12

Introduction to Sailing - a new course

The DSA can now run a two-day Royal Yachting Association course for those starting outsailing. The course is aimed at complete beginners so no previous knowledge is

required. The course starts with a ‘tour’ of a yacht explaining what all the various parts andbits of equipment are for. The course includes;

● Rope work – making sense of all the bits of string● Rules of the road – which side of the road to drive on● Man overboard recovery – self explanatory● Clothing and equipment – waterproof gear, life jackets, safety line● Emergency equipment and precautions – everything from the radio to flares● Meteorology – why is it raining?● Helming under engine and sails – how to steer● Getting to know the sails – the names of sails and how they work

[Holders of the Start Yachting certificate can go on to complete the next level course,Competent Crew, in a reduced time.]Two of our Members signed up for the first set of dates on offer -Mike Lovell (left) and Phil Jenkins (right).Mike has been sailing with DSA for 3 years now, he says it keeps him active mentally and

physically.Phil, known as Viking Phil (for obvious reasons),has been with DSA for 2 years and he hassuccessfully completed the VHF radio course forpeople with reduced eye sightAfter going through all the necessarypreparations on board, they set off forDartmouth from Torquay harbour on Free Spiritwith Instructor Len and acting Skipper Amanda.This is their account:

‘As we left the bay we were greeted by a pod of dolphins off Berry Head, always a beautifulsight. The magnificent twelve miles of local coastline from Torquay streamed gently by inthe heat of high summer as we tacked ourway to Dartmouth. Coming in to port wedecided to moor up for the night on theTown Dock which, surprisingly on such abeautiful and busy day, had some spacefor a smaller boatHaving made Free Spirit secure we walkedover to Bayard’s Cove for a drink andRockfish fish and chips in the eveningsunshine. Then back to the boat to enjoythe wine Len had kindly brought, sitting ondeck with a backdrop of the twinklinglights of the estuary at night.

We received an unexpected visit from one of the crew of Farfalla, a substantially largervessel moored in the centre of the Dart, who asked to borrow our VHF to call the river taxi.Farfalla, (butterfly in Italian, a nod to her Italian background and Farr Yacht Design whowere the naval architects) is a 104ft superyacht owned by an English businessman. Shouldyou want to charter her, it’s €70,000 a week plus expenses.A very early start the following morning found us first in Alf Fresco’s having a cookedbreakfast and unlimited tea at 0700, and ready to leave, with take away coffees, on FreeSpirit at 0830.Another beautiful day. We started by practising some manoeuvres; stemming the tide,reversing on a transit, circling a buoy in reverse, and ferry gliding. Then we motored on upthe Dart, turned at Stoke Gabriel and motored back to Dittisham, where we practicedpicking up a mooring buoy. Then some hard work pumping up the tender and getting theoutboard on before the fun of pootling around the moored yachts at Dittisham in thetender in hot sunshine.Time to move on, and back out atsea. It was clear we were going tohave to motor home - not a breath ofwind, and an intense heat. Soincredibly hot that we hardly knewwhat to do with ourselves on theboat. Mike went to and fro filling ourmugs with water; we all lookedlongingly at the cold, cold sea, andslowly inched our way home under arelentless sun.Back in Torquay harbour, with theboat washed down, heads scrubbed,and everything tidied and left ready for the crew the next day, we left Free Spirit as twonewly certificated Start Yachting candidates.What were the highlights? Well, it was unanimous - a very strong vote for messing about onthe river in the tender, and Rockfish!

Leaving Dartmouth

Dittisham: pub, cafe, park and scenic walks

As soon as you step on a boat you are surrounded by bits of string. They come indifferent sizes and colours. As you get underway the crew energetically (we hope) start

pulling on lots of them and calling them by strange names. If you want to be a useful crewmember then being able to ‘know the ropes’ is an essential quality.You have to start somewhere; and the simplest knot, that is tied towards the end of a ropeis called a Stopper Knot. It is called a stopper knot because it stops the rope fromdisappearing across the deck, or worse, up the mast. It stops the rope by jamming it fromgoing through or round any number of different bits of equipment where there is arestriction.

Step OneStart with the long partof the rope going awayfrom you (the standingpart) and the end or tailbeside your hand. Youcan see the red whippingat the end of the ropewhich is there to stopthe rope fraying.

Step TwoTake the red endand pass it up andbehind thestanding part toform a loop.

Step ThreeTake the redend back overthe standingpart.

Step FourTake the red end and passit behind the loop you havemade and bring it towardsyou and up through theloop. Now you can see whythis is sometimes called aFigure of Eight knot.

Step FivePull the tail end while also holding the standing part so the knot isformed. Two extra points. Pull the rope hard. One of the commonestreasons why knots come undone is that the final part of pulling therope hard to secure the knot isn’t done properly. And second, notethe long tail after the knot. You need enough rope to make it easier toundo the knot and if the rope gets jammed, to pull the rope awayfrom the jam.

Get Knotted

Once you start to get the hang oftying knots you can get a bit carriedaway. The ‘Bible’ of tying knots is TheAshley Book of Knots which contains3,854 knots, hitches, beckets, slings,hooks, toggles bends and splicescomplete with illustrations. It evencontains the indispensable ‘cat-o’-nine-tails. You may not want to gothat far as you can get by with aboutthree at a pinch, six to becomfortable.

Above: typical scene onDSA Competent Crewcourse.Right: Skipper’s‘Dittybag’ for rope work.

With apologies to traditional Shanty singers

DSA Sea ShantyAnd when our trip is over, hard up the tiller goesAnd straight way into Torquay with a big jib on her noseAnd when we reach the pierhead, all the girls will loudly sayHere comes our jolly DSA crew that have been so long awayAnd it was

Chorus:Haul, boys haul. Haul, boys haulHeave away the winches, lads, and let´s get up the MOBWhen the winds a´ blowin´, the ship´s a gently rollin´My Freedom, my Freedom, won´t you be true to meMy Freedom, my Freedom, won´t you be true to me

El Mareo – Seekrank – Mal de Mer

Yes, it doesn’t matter where you comefrom, we all get seasick. And the only way

to avoid it is to sit under a tree. The confusionin your brain between the messages beingreceived from your eyes and the balancesensors in your ears is what causes theproblem. The reason why this conflictinginformation triggers sickness as opposed tosome other reaction is still not understood.However, there is no confusion about theresult, you feel very, very unwell. Some people feel illwithout vomiting but most just want to heave. One ofthe ‘cures’ is to go down below, quickly lie down orprop yourself securely in a corner, and close your eyes.And yet this is the last thing you feel like doing oncemal de mer starts. More on remedies in a minute.On a longer trip most people adjust to the motion ofthe sea, providing it is not too rough, within aboutthree days. The lost appetite returns with a vengeanceand as a skipper you may have to lock the treats awayas otherwise they will all be consumed in a day.There are lots of different medications you can take before you go sailing that can bepurchased over the counter. If you are going on a longer trip there is one that needs aprescription if you buy it in the UK which is a patch you place behind your ear and this lastsfor three days. They all have side effects and these effects vary in significance according toyour own health and other tablets you may be taking. It is a matter of trial and error. Onepopular seasickness tablet makes me vomit almost straight away.But most DSA ‘voyages’ last from about 1000 to 1600 and are close to shore so do you needto think about seakrank? Well, yes, if the sea state is anything other than flat (which doeshappen a lot in the summer months). You can become seasick within a short space of timeon a bumpy day.There are lots of things you can do to help yourself. Avoid alcohol, coffee, high sugardrinks, alcohol and fatty foods before setting off, even the night before. And you can alsotake action early on if you start to feel a bit unwell.The first, is to be relaxed and not tense, admittedly difficult if it is your first time on a boat.There is a lot going on which you don’t understand and it might be a lot noisier and busierthan you expected having watched commercials of sailing in the Mediterranean sun.Speaking of sun, the next important issue is to keep warm and dry that includes not justyour body but your head, feet and hands. And if very sunny, sunscreen and a hat plussunglasses are essential kit.If you start to feel cold, if you don’t want to move, if you start yawning a lot (and not justbecause the Skipper is being boring) then you are on the way. Time to take action. Don’t

Ferries crossing Cook Strait New Zealand

leave it hoping you will feel better soon,you won’t. Try and be more involved inwhat is going on and definitely lift yourhead and focus on the horizon. Thehorizon stays steady and this helps calmdown the inner ear. Don’t beembarrassed to say you are not feelingwell. Steering while standing up andlooking ahead can help a lot.The dreaded visit to the heads.Going down below to use the loo canmake you feel very unwell very quicklyand so crew put off the visit until theirbodies say go, or else. This is not a goodplan. On a cold day you may have layersof clothes to take off and this is awkwardwhen the boat is pitching about so thisincreases the time below. Then you gointo a closed space where the eye andear start competing to tell you whichway is up. So, the plan is to think ahead.Get ready to remove what you need tobefore going down below. Take off theouter layers if the boat is steady and you are not likely to fall sideways. Don’t mess about,just move quickly, and when in the heads it helps to close your eyes. Same when comingout. Get back into the cockpit and in the fresh air asap. Don’t stand below chatting. Ifsomeone is standing on the companionway steps blocking your path tell them to move,politely.And if all this fails and you really want to be sick the temptation is to suddenly move to thelowest side of the boat and lean out – a great way to go swimming. Tell another crewmember what you are about to do and they will hold on to your harness and your lifelinewill be clipped on, if it is not already attached.The remedy of going down below may seem the worst of all options, but it is not. Once youare propped up, or lying down with your eyes closed you are safe and warm; and are likelyto go to sleep. Yes, really; and quite quickly. If you are worried about being sick down belowthere is always the bucket.Do I need tablets? On a bumpy day and/or you have not been sailing for while then myadvice, which is only advice, is to try a low dose of one of the seasickness tablets. Healthand safety warning, if you are taking any medication check with the Pharmacist as they mayinterfere with commonly used medicines, such as Warfarin. Some tablets have a strongside effect, (Avomine is an example); they make you drowsy, so drowsy that you mightspend a beautiful sailing day fast asleep down below. It can help to take a tablet the nightbefore. I break up a tablet into quarters and only take each quarter as required dependingon the sea state, time of year, how much sailing I have done. One thing is certain, seasickness will spoil your fun. Howard Cheadle

Helm and be involved. Look at the horizon

I signed up for the RYA day skippercourse through the DSA; what a

fantastic opportunity. Over sevendays, four nights, countless miles anda few pub stops, I have passed thepractical and without any assistance!We visited Salcombe, Dartmouth andexplored the River Dart not forgettingBrixham for fuel. What a beautiful timeof year to sail from sun sets and autumncolours to morning fog and force 6/7seas, I have experienced and learned somuch also making good friendships withSteve, Sophia and Len. I’m now moreconfident and comfortable sailing thanever before, putting theory intopractice. The course is very hands onwith boat handling also some tides andchart work thrown in, my favourite part.

RYA Day Skipper Course

Alec Munro

What new experiences did I gain? It must be working up the blow for the first time workingwith the fenders, lines and lassoing not forgetting the force 6/7 conditions, absolutely epicwaves, for me of biblical proportions compared to previous sailing and actually comfortableand very safe which has definitely made me a better sailor. I have so much to tell, I’m sureyou’ll hear all about my stories and experiences when you sail with me and how I’vebonded with the new FREEDOM already.One tip, when tacking FREEDOM don’t be shy it’s all or nothing on the helm.What’s next for me? RYA Coastal Skipper, before then gaining more knowledge and keepingmy skipper experience up.FREEDOM defiantly living up to the name and giving me freedom.I would like to thank Len Skinner for his time as our day skipper instructor. I absolutelyrespect Len for creating some fantastic memories in challenging conditions, thank you.

(If you are interested the DSA runs a range of RYA approved courses for Members)

Volunteers Needed

The DSA runs on volunteers, some ofwhom give so many hours a week,ashore or afloat, as to be theequivalent of a full-time job. Theirpay, is the thanks they receive from allthe disabled people who experiencethe magic of sailing, many for the firsttime. Once afloat and sailing acrossthe Bay some of our ‘passengers’ arefree from the many limitations theycontend with on shore. However, theword ‘passenger’ is wrong as everyoneis encouraged to be active, not thatthey need much encouragement.Volunteers are needed throughoutthe year to help raise funds and to enable many of the activities listed in the Diary to takeplace. So please, don’t be shy; any offers of help whether to be on a stand for a couple ofhours, or to take responsibility for organising one of the special events set out in the diary,please come forward. Just email, phone, text or write to the office. Having volunteeredmyself to help on the shore-side activities I can assure you that not only will it be fun, youare likely to benefit in other ways. You will meet other like-minded volunteers from whichfriendships may grow.And in my case, I have imprinted in my memory, a young lad, about thirteen years old Iwould guess, hovering at the edge of the stand at Paignton Harbour festival. Myassumption he was looking for leaflets or freebies could not have been further from thetruth. I asked him if I could help and he told me he was his father’s carer. His dad sufferedfrom a disabling and degenerative disease. He thought his Dad would love to go out on thewater as a break and could we help. Makes you both humble and grateful.

We sold the gentleman with his dog a Sea Anchor. He, andhis dog, are sailing round Britain in a small open boat toraise money and awareness of the homeless.

Christmas Festivities

Important Diary Dates

Feb 22 Skippers, Mates and Crew social evening. RTYC. Book by 31 JanMay 11 Annual General Meeting Preston Conservative ClubMay 17 Police and Community Choir £5 a ticket in aid of DSA need helpers.May 25 Dartmouth Band Stand Barry Cooper in aid of DSAMay 25 Newton Abbot Boat Jumble - need helpers and items for saleJune 10/16 Carers Sailing Events - need Skippers, Mates, CrewJune 15 Eddystone Charity Pursuit Race - need organiser, individual sponsorship essentialJuly 7 Lions on the Downs - need helpersJuly 27 Paignton Harbour Festival - need helpers to erect stand and sell goodsAug 14/15 Plymouth Firework Festival - need organiser

Please note: many of the events are entirely dependent on individuals coming forward totake responsibility for organising and running the event. If you are prepared to run anevent, or simply to help, such as erect a stand or spend a couple of hours at the standplease let us know. We are reliant on volunteers to run the DSA.

Yet anothersuccessful ChristmasParty held as last yearin one of the eventrooms at the RivieraInternational Centre.The catering wasexcellent and a goodtime was had by all.

You had to be quickto avoid the RaffleTicket seller. I haveyet to find anyonewho managed toescape!

A Special Thanks

Ian Howes, husband of Rosie our previous editor, gives talks to Probus Clubs and donatesthe fee to DSA. Recently he spoke to the Yealm Yacht Club who passed round a hat andraised £70 for DSA. Ian has raised £1,430 for the DSA to date. We thought his hard workand generosity merited a special thank you.

Our Fleet

Contact Details

DSA have two modern yachts in our fleet. Wehave taken delivery of a brand new Oceanis38.1 (right) made by Beneteau and adaptedby us to enable wheelchair users to enjoysailing. Our other yacht is a Hanse 345purchased in April 2015. Both yachts are fullyequipped to the latest safety standards andare subject to continuous maintenance. Theyare berthed in Torquay Harbour. The Skippersand crew all meet Royal Yachting Associationrequirements.

If you have any articles, photographs, events that you would like included in the SpringEdition of Ahoy, please email to howard@cpdevon.com.All other inquiries please to :

Chairman: Dave Musgrove 01803.408886 davidmusgrove@blueyonder.co.ukOffice Address: Morden House, Warren Road, Torquay TQ2 5TU

Website: www.disabledsailingassociation.org.uk