Sail Trim Forum

Don Guillette

Don Guillette

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May 17, 2004
2,099
Other Catalina 30 Tucson, AZ
Today I received a phone call from a FL sailor. Normally, it's about a sail trim question but this called surprised me. He wanted to thank me for the sail trim forum and all the great info he gotten from it over the past 2 years. He said there's no other place like it on the web for correct and concise sail trim info. I appreciated the comments but told him it's not me. The forum would not exist were it not for sailboatowners.com, but the company could not do it on their own -- you guys, who are the contributors, make it what it is. Contributors, just to mention a few, like jackdaw, Joe from San Diego, Scott T, Stu J and many others frequent contributors make the forum what it is. The FL sailors was actually talking to you guys but didn't know it.
 
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shemandr

shemandr

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Jan 1, 2006
7,069
Slickcraft 26 Sailfish
Nevertheless, if someone wants to sing your praises, don't interupt.
 
Brian D

Brian D

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Feb 17, 2006
5,274
Lancer 27PS MCB Camp Pendleton KF6BL
Better to toot that horn else someone will use it as a spittoon. Good for you Don, I even sing your praises. Your book is on my boat while I am out and about on the water.
 
Don Guillette

Don Guillette

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May 17, 2004
2,099
Other Catalina 30 Tucson, AZ
Jackdaw: The sailor is a young couple from Punta Gorda. FL who about a year ago moved up from a smaller Hunter to a larger one and they were having problems with the size adjustment. When I mentioned your name to him he added that many times the basic 3 or 4 sentence answers many of us give (like me) are a bit too basic and simple. I remember when I was trying to figure out sail trim and talking to my dock neighbors they tended to leave stuff out and it was confusing to me. He told me your explanation take him to the next level. They're not so scientific that the average sailor would have trouble understanding what you're describing. It was a nice compliment he paid you.
 
Jackdaw

Jackdaw

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Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
Don Guillette said:
Jackdaw: The sailor is a young couple from Punta Gorda. FL who about a year ago moved up from a smaller Hunter to a larger one and they were having problems with the size adjustment. When I mentioned your name to him he added that many times the basic 3 or 4 sentence answers many of us give (like me) are a bit too basic and simple. I remember when I was trying to figure out sail trim and talking to my dock neighbors they tended to leave stuff out and it was confusing to me. He told me your explanation take him to the next level. They're not so scientific that the average sailor would have trouble understanding what you're describing. It was a nice compliment he paid you.
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That's nice, thank for passing that on.

A long time ago I learned a lesson. In the tech field we often have meetings where some people think their job is to be the smartest person in the room. That's wrong. If you want to impart real understanding, you have to understand what level the other person is at, and package what you want to deliver to them in a manner that they will understand. That's one of the fun things here at SBO, we have sailors all up and down the spectrum, and crafting responses that will resonate with people that I have never met is a fun challenge. Its gratifying to hear that it sometime works!
 
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rgranger

rgranger

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Jan 19, 2010
12,369
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
Jackdaw said:
That's nice, thank for passing that on.

A long time ago I learned a lesson. In the tech field we often have meetings where some people think their job is to be the smartest person in the room. That's wrong. If you want to impart real understanding, you have to understand what level the other person is at, and package what you want to deliver to them in a manner that they will understand. That's one of the fun things here at SBO, we have sailors all up and down the spectrum, and crafting responses that will resonate with people that I have never met is a fun challenge. Its gratifying to hear that it sometime works!
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To paraphrase sir Albert Einstein .... ' ...if you can't explain it to a 6-year old, then you don't really understand what you are talking about".

:)

I love that one.
 
Ron20324

Ron20324

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Jan 22, 2008
8,050
Beneteau 323 Annapolis MD
rgranger said:
To paraphrase sir Albert Einstein .... ' ...if you can't explain it to a 6-year old, then you don't really understand what you are talking about". I love that one.
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I believe it was the movie "Get Shorty" where John Travolta always says, "Talk to me like I'm a six year-old".
 
wsmac

wsmac

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Feb 16, 2017
134
Hunter 28.5 Humboldt
Well that's a fine 'how do ya do?'... I never knew about this SailTrim forum!!!
So now I can put away my shears and quite snipping away at my sails and read some real information on sail trimming!
They were getting pretty short anyways... so it's better I take a break... ;)
.
I've been reading this book lately and it's helping me out a lot!
I was reading a much more thorough and voluminous manual before... but it's retired until I finish this book.
It's nice to have an alternative that I can look through on this website... THANKS! :D
illustrated sail and rig.JPG
 
Stu Jackson

Stu Jackson

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Feb 26, 2004
22,770
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
Jackdaw said:
If you want to impart real understanding, you have to understand what level the other person is at, and package what you want to deliver to them in a manner that they will understand.
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Very well put. In my "engineering life" I would promote "translating engineering into English." Analogies and examples would often help. I, too, like Don, read all those fancy sail trim books until my eyes glazed over and also until I read HIS book. It's by far the best investment anyone could make who owns a sailboat.
 
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