Bravo team is getting the best of luck with the weather on Thursdays this year! We took advantage of the beautiful sunny day and got out on the water as soon as possible to go sailing. First we made sure to review some important knots, the yard bend, which we use to tie the halyards to the yards, and the cleat hitch. Then we headed down to dock to prepare the vessel!
It was fun to get a chance to stop rowing and learn about how the sails work on Townshend. We did one gybe and one tack, which gave us good practice at sail handling and dipping the yards from one side of the mast to the other. At one point we crossed paths with the other longboat, Bear, which was out sailing with a group from Newport Academy. It is always a treat to have the two historic longboats out at the same time! We enjoyed sailing out towards Admiralty Inlet, getting a chance to see more open water and traffic in the shipping lanes.
The team is getting more and more comfortable with each other and with boat handling skills. We continue to rotate positions, so everyone learns all the different crew roles. Next week is Thanksgiving and we’ll take a break from class until December. We hope to get out and do more science sampling and sailing then!