Two to Tango

I was born in 1955, and although I was a tad young to actually follow the first Observer Single-Handed Transatlantic Race, I grew up in the age of the pioneers of solo off shore sailing—Francis Chichester, Robin Knox-Johnson, Alec Rose, all Knighted for their singlehanded circumnavigations, Sir Robin notably being the first to do so nonstop.

As a kid devouring newspaper accounts of their adventures, I would forever find myself thinking, “What would I do in [fill in the blank] situation?” Since then I have come to believe this same thought process is, in fact, a critical part of learning good seamanship, or as I define it: the acquired skills and experiences one gathers that, as a body of information, one can then use to estimate and execute the actions needed to manage a boat in such a fashion as to keep the vessel, its equipment and people in good order—and so arrive at one’s destination, all in one piece

(As a