11 BT Nov 2017 for archive

BOAT TRADER ADVERTORIAL
Three Sheets
to the Wind
If you were totally new to sailing, and you
were asked what a “sheet” was, you’d probably
guess that it was a sail. You might think that
was a reasonable guess, as a sheet is an area
of material as is a sail. You would be right – it
was a reasonable guess – but still wrong. It is
actually the rope that controls a a sail. It comes
from the old English word “sceatline”, meaning
sheet-line. Where “line” means a rope. Except
modern usage omits the “line” bit, confusingly
leaving us just with “sheet”.
So, the mainsheet, for example, is actually the
line / rope used to control the main sail (or, to
use the correct term a mainsail without a space
in-between the words).
By now, you will, I hope, have gathered that we
don’t normally call a rope a rope. It is a line or a
sheet.
“Three sheets to the wind” means, as many of
you know and indeed will have practiced, to be
drunk. Very drunk. The derivation of this is at
least fairly logical:-
If three sheets (aka ropes, aka lines) are loose
and blowing about in the wind then the sails will
flap and the boat will lurch about like a drunken
sailor.
Indeed, the logic continues. One sheet to
the wind is slightly drunk, two sheets is that
pleasant in-between state, and three sheets is
that very drunk state.
An example appears in the novel, The Fisher's
Daughter, by Catherine Ward, in 1824:
"Wolf replenished his glass at the request of Mr.
Blust, who, instead of being one sheet in the
wind, was likely to get to three before he took
his departure."
If all this talk of drink is making you feel groggy,
you might like to know that this is another
venerable nautical expression. ‘Grog’ is a
mixture of rum and water, named after a British
admiral who ordered the rum on board to be
diluted.
You must be
having a luff
Other words seem to have more than one
meaning, no matter how strange the word is.
Take luff as an example. It’s been in use in
sailing since about 1200 AD, so no wonder it has
several meanings.
It is the leading edge of a sail. Easily
remembered as luff has two f’s, so I always think
of front.
However, if you are luffing, you are steering
closer to the wind.
In racing, the term can even be used as meaning
to deliberately obstruct an opponent – to luff
them up.
Luff can also refer to the part of a ship's bow
where the sides begin to curve.
Shackled?
When sailing, you could be “In irons”. No, it does
not mean that you are handcuffed, imprisoned
or made to walk the plank. It simply means that
you are sailing more or less directly into the
wind, and the sails will not drive you forward.
Indeed, you could be stuck.
The origin of in irons is logical. The term dates
from when criminals aboard old sailing ships
were secured to the deck with leg-irons, unable
to move. It somehow, over time, got transferred
to the ship itself being unable to move.
It is also the title of a book by Michael Wayne
Santos, “Caught In Irons: North Atlantic
Fishermen in the Last Days of Sail”.
I would not want to claim that all boating
terminology is strange. An alternative phrase to
being in irons is to be in the no-go zone. That,
at least, is a completely sensible description, as
the writer knows to his cost.
Of course, if you are sailing close to but not in
irons, there are a great variety of expressions to
describe this, such as “sailing on a close reach”,
“beating”, “working on the wind”, “sailing by the
wind” and “sailing full and bye” to name just a
few.
I Haven’t Got a Clew
The meaning of clew is straightforward – it’s the
aft corner of a sail with a hole to attach ropes.
It’s origin, though, is not related to the sail. It is
related to the Old English cliewen "sphere, ball,
skein, ball of thread or yarn,". Yet again, sailing
seems to mix up words related to sails with
those related to the ropes that control them.
Vang or Gnav
I wouldn’t like to argue that all nautical
terminology is crazy. For example, the origin
and meaning of the odd looking words vang and
gnav is almost sensible.
The vang is a system of ropes and pulleys to
stop the boom from rising and to help keep the
mainsail in shape. It’s also known as the kicking
strap. Its located below the boom. The origin
is Dutch – from the word vangen, meaning to
catch.
The gnav is the same, except that it’s located
above the boom.
Conclusion?
If you are new to boating, there is no easy way –
you simply have to learn the terminology. Good
luck!
Martin Berman
Martin Berman is a Director of Go Earth
Ltd, holding a variety of boating and other
qualifications.
Go Earth services division help clients buy
boats more economically. The products
division bring innovative products to the
market that have a real value to boaters.
These include fire extinguishers that don’t
make a mess and automatic fenders that
deploy as you approach a marina without
the crew having to do anything.
This is one in a series of articles that
Martin is writing for Boat Trader.
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