While you hold the helm most of the time, do you reverse roles with your significant other when it's time to dock the boat? Is the switch something you do regularly, or just in certain conditions? Could your SO dock if he/she had to? Were the new roles hard to learn, or was it easier than you suspected? Share your partner swapping stories here, then vote in this week's Quick Quiz at the bottom of the home page.
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Wife at the Helm
My wife and I share duties, she has the helm most of the time, including docking, and she is good at it. She has handled the helm in squalls in the Caribbean on boats up to 45 ft so I would trust her with docking. I have the responsibility for the sails, the anchor and the engine. Not a bad trade off. She reminds me periodically that I may be the "skipper" but she is the "owner". If need be we can trade roles fairly comfortably, as it should be, so if one of us is out of commission, the other can handle the boat.
My wife and I share duties, she has the helm most of the time, including docking, and she is good at it. She has handled the helm in squalls in the Caribbean on boats up to 45 ft so I would trust her with docking. I have the responsibility for the sails, the anchor and the engine. Not a bad trade off. She reminds me periodically that I may be the "skipper" but she is the "owner". If need be we can trade roles fairly comfortably, as it should be, so if one of us is out of commission, the other can handle the boat.
Final results
Final results for the Quick Quiz ending 7/10/00: Does your Signficant Other take the helm for docking? 36% Never 23% Often 23% Always 16% Seldom
Final results for the Quick Quiz ending 7/10/00: Does your Signficant Other take the helm for docking? 36% Never 23% Often 23% Always 16% Seldom
We are switching more often
We upgraded from a 16 foot daysailor almost 13 years ago to a 35 footer and initially my wife ran the jib sheets while I steered. It has taken a while, including books, magazine articles, talking with other women at rendezvous, lessons with women skippers, but my wife is slowly taking on more and more. It used to be that I'd get chastized if the boat leaned "too much" but now, give her the helm with another boat and she changes from a sweetheart to an agressive skipper - and the boat heels more than what she used to yell at me for. One of the things that she's wanted me to install is a clinometer and I think I will and use it to say that she's sailed at, say, 20 degrees so it should be okay for me! While not comfortable about it, she has taken the boat out of the slip and more frequently. We discuss everything before hand - the current, wind, steering, lines, power and shifting, etc. What's important is that sometimes (often) things go differently than planned and this should be discussed too, as much as is reasonably possible. In the past couple years she has even brought the boat into the dock a few times but this takes a lot of coaxing. The carrot here is that I jump off the boat and handle the dock lines. My wife has found that it's a lot easier to steer and have me do the main sheet and jib sheets than the other way around. We've raced in club races and done very well - with her steering. Once she yelled at me for taking the helm just before we crossed the finish line - sorry, we were fighting for inches!!! If I could roll back the clock I definitely would have let her keep the helm. I've learned that placing in the top three for the series is not that important. She never wanted to race but lately it's "If you can't find anyone for crew....", but then this can "cost" me.
We upgraded from a 16 foot daysailor almost 13 years ago to a 35 footer and initially my wife ran the jib sheets while I steered. It has taken a while, including books, magazine articles, talking with other women at rendezvous, lessons with women skippers, but my wife is slowly taking on more and more. It used to be that I'd get chastized if the boat leaned "too much" but now, give her the helm with another boat and she changes from a sweetheart to an agressive skipper - and the boat heels more than what she used to yell at me for. One of the things that she's wanted me to install is a clinometer and I think I will and use it to say that she's sailed at, say, 20 degrees so it should be okay for me! While not comfortable about it, she has taken the boat out of the slip and more frequently. We discuss everything before hand - the current, wind, steering, lines, power and shifting, etc. What's important is that sometimes (often) things go differently than planned and this should be discussed too, as much as is reasonably possible. In the past couple years she has even brought the boat into the dock a few times but this takes a lot of coaxing. The carrot here is that I jump off the boat and handle the dock lines. My wife has found that it's a lot easier to steer and have me do the main sheet and jib sheets than the other way around. We've raced in club races and done very well - with her steering. Once she yelled at me for taking the helm just before we crossed the finish line - sorry, we were fighting for inches!!! If I could roll back the clock I definitely would have let her keep the helm. I've learned that placing in the top three for the series is not that important. She never wanted to race but lately it's "If you can't find anyone for crew....", but then this can "cost" me.
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