Happy Birthday to the Old Salt Blog & Thank You for Not Talking Like A Pirate

Posted on by September 19, 2013

meMDlyQI would like to thank all the readers and supporters of the Old Salt Blog. Today is the fifth anniversary of the very first post, five years ago. So happy birthday to us all. Since September 19th, 2008, the blog has been visited by 968,229 unique visitors, who have viewed 1,640,344 blog pages. Not too shabby for a personal blog. Thanks to everyone for stopping by. Please have a  slice of virtual birthday cake.

This is also happens to be, regrettably,  International Talk Like A Pirate Day, in which many pay homage to the Disney view of piracy, while ignoring both current events and history.   Not coincidentally, five years ago today, our very first blog post was “Thank You for Not Talking Like A Pirate,”  which we are reposting below:

Thank You for Not Talking Like A Pirate

If by good fortune you missed the “International Talk Like a Pirate Day”, just as well. If you managed to pass the day without a single “Aargh” or “Shiver Me Timbers” congratulations.

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Nautical Blog Hop & a Week of Windjammers: Day Two – Is History Just a Sea Story?

Posted on by September 18, 2013
Ship British Isles

Ship British Isles

What is history? What is fiction?  These seem to be straightforward questions. The conventional answer would be that history is what happened and fiction are the stories that we make up.  In writing my recent novel I was faced with these questions and have come away with only more questions.  My novel, Hell Around the Horn, is based on an actual voyage of the British windjammer, British Isles, from Cardiff, Wales to Pisaqua, Chile in the the terrible Cape Horn winter of 1905. Unlike most windjammer voyages of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the 1905 voyage of the British Isles was very well documented.  And that is where the troubles start.

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Weigh Anchor Nautical Blog Hop, Day 1: Windjammers – Not Dead, Not Even Past

Posted on by September 17, 2013
Windjammer British Isles, inspiration for the Lady Rebecca

Windjammer British Isles, inspiration for the Lady Rebecca

My novel Hell around the Horn is set on a British windjammer on a voyage around Cape Horn in the particularly brutal winter of 1905.  I wanted to write the novel, in part, because the windjammers have been largely forgotten in these days when any vessel that sets square sails is too often simply called a “pirate ship.”  The windjammers were perhaps the greatest sailing vessels ever to cross the oceans. These ships and those who sailed them, deserve better.

William Faulkner once wrote, “the past isn’t dead it isn’t even past.”   The same can be said of windjammers. While too often forgotten, they are not yet dead, and they certainly are not past.

But what was a “windjammer?”

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Costa Concordia – Ship Rolled Upright in Most Challenging Phase of Salvage

Posted on by September 17, 2013

This was the most perilous phase of the salvage of the wrecked cruise ship, Costa Concordia.  The parbuckle rolling of the ship upright was where everything could go wrong.  The biggest concern was that the stress would break the already damaged ship apart. Nevertheless, despite going somewhat slower than originally planned, the operation was a success.  The ship is upright again.  It will take several months before the ship is ready to be towed away to the scrap yard.  Below, a time-lapse video of the salvage, the 19 hour process reduced to about a minute.

Costa Concordia salvage operation Time lapse footage

Weigh Anchor Nautical Blog Hop & A Week of Windjammers

Posted on by September 16, 2013

From2013-Nautical-Blog-Hopsmall Tuesday, September 17 through Saturday, September 21st, we will participating in “Weigh Anchor,” a nautical blog hop organized by the wonderful Helen Hollick.  She has brought together twenty three writers of nautical fiction and non-fiction to post about their work and other interesting topics with nautical themes.  If you were unaware that there were  23 authors writing about ships and the sea, here is a great opportunity to meet them.

As my novel “Hell Around the Horn” is set on a windjammer, one of the last mighty sailing ships to carry one toward the end of the great age of sail, I will be posting a “Week of Windjammers.”  (Technically, it may be only five days but I like the alliteration. And who knows I may add on a few days to make it a full week.)

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Update: Gunfire at the Washington Navy Yard – At Least Twelve Dead

Posted on by September 16, 2013

Updated: 15:30 – The number of dead has risen to at least twelve. One shooter is dead and one may be still at large.
Updated 13:02 – The Washington Post is reporting that as many as three gunmen opened fire this morning at the Naval Sea Systems Command in the Washington Navy Yard killing at least nine.  From the Washington Post: “At least nine people are dead after as many as three shooters dressed in military style uniforms opened fire a rampage at the Washington Navy Yard on Monday, police said, spreading fear and chaos across the region as authorities tried to contain the incident.  D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier said in a mid-day news conference that one of the suspected shooters is dead, while authorities are looking for two other possible suspects wearing military style clothing.”  The Navy Yard is about 1.5 miles from the U.S. Capitol and 4.5 miles from the Pentagon.  The Washington Navy Yard is the oldest shore establishment of the U.S. Navy, established in 1799.

America’s Cup – Oracle Charges Back, But is it Too Late?

Posted on by September 16, 2013

etnz1At first it looked like the 34th America’s Cup races would be a route. Emirates Team New Zealand was simply out-sailing the defender, Oracle Team USA. Not only was the crew making fewer mistakes but the Kiwi’s boat seemed noticeably faster to windward. In the first five races, the Kiwis won four, compelling Oracle to call a time-out before race six, using its one race postponement card to give the team time to reassess.  Races 6 & 7 were also Kiwi wins but things changed dramatically in Race 8. The Kiwis almost capsized, losing the race and coming perilously close to ending their hope of winning the Cup.  The Oracle boat also seemed much quicker to windward.  Races 9 & 10 confirmed the transformation. Once the laggard, Oracle now appears to have a windward speed advantage, either due to changes in the boat, new crew tactics or both.  They won Race 9 and only lost 10 in an exciting squeaker, falling 47 seconds behind the Kiwis.

Is this Oracle resurgence too late?  The Kiwis only have to win two more races to claim the Cup while Oracle has to win another seven to hold it.  If the last two races are any indication, the final races in 34th America’s Cup will be extremely exciting. If Oracle manages to dominate the last races and win, it will be a comeback tale for the ages.

Costa Concordia Parbuckling Salvage Begins

Posted on by September 16, 2013

The parbuckling of the cruise ship Costa Concordia is proceeding as intended after a three hour delay due to a thunderstorm. If all goes well, the process should take 10 hours to roll the ship upright from its current position, rolled 65 degrees over on its side off the island of Giglio. If successful, the operation will be the largest intact ship salvage in history. For a live video feed of the operation, click here.

Costa Concordia How the salvage is progressing

AC Race 8 – Team New Zealand Nearly Capsizes, Oracle Picks Up a Win and Momentum

Posted on by September 15, 2013

In brisk winds on Saturday, Emirates Team New Zealand’s hopes of winning the America’s Cup nearly came to an end when they came perilously close to capsizing during a tack in Race 8 of the Americas’ Cup races in San Francisco. The Kiwi wingsail did not release in time during the tack and the boat rolled high on one hull before slowly righting itself.  Two AC72s have capsized in practice sails. In both cases, each boat was significantly damaged, and in one case a man was killed.

Race 9 was cancelled due to winds being too strong.  Oracle Team USA came back with a win after two losses to the Kiwis and showed improved windward performance overall.  Notwithstanding the considerable point lead by the Kiwis, Oracle is clearly not out of the competition.

“Parbuckling” the Costa Concordia & a Little Matter of Tonnage

Posted on by September 16, 2013

costaparbucklingTomorrow, if all goes well, a small army of engineers, technicians and mariners will attempt to roll the stricken cruise ship, Costa Concordia, upright from where she sank on the island of Giglio on January 13, 2012. Once upright the ship will be refloated and towed to a scrap yard.  If successful, it will be the largest intact salvage of any ship in history.

The process is called “parbuckling.”  Parbuckling is commonly defined as the use of “a kind of purchase for hoisting or lowering a cylindrical burden, as a cask. The middle of a long rope is made fast aloft, and both parts are looped around the object, which rests in the loops, and rolls in them as the ends are hauled up or payed out.”  The salvage companies involved in the project have set up a website to explain what will be done – The Parbuckling Project.  In this case the Costa Concordia is a very large cask, indeed. See also Parbuckle salvage.   Parbuckling has been used successfully to right the battleship USS Oklahoma (BB-37) which was sunk at Pearl Harbor in 1941 and the passenger/ro-ro ferry Herald of Free Enterprise which capsized in 1987.  Both ships were significantly smaller than the Costa Concordia.

Fortunately, the ship itself  is not quite as heavy as is being reported in the media.  There have been repeated references to the Costa Concordia as a “100,000 ton” ship or as a ship that weighs over 100,000 tonnes. Slate is pretty typical in asking, “How Do You Move a 100,000-Ton Capsized Cruise Ship?”   (The obvious answer is – very carefully.)

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Scout TransAtlantic – Autonomous Robotic Boat Battling the Atlantic Ocean

Posted on by September 15, 2013

scouttrackScout is on its way to Spain! It is a twelve foot long autonomous robotic boat designed to cross the Atlantic Ocean, relying only on pre-programmed commands and information that it can collect about its environment through sensors. Built by a group of engineering students it looks like a bit like a surfboard with a sailboat keel covered with solar cells. It departed 21 days ago from Rhode Island and is now almost 700 miles closer to its destination.  Other autonomous robotic boat projects, such as Robotboat Mark VI, rely on sail propulsion. The designers chose solar power driving a propeller as the simplest solution.  To follow Scout on its slow but steady voyage across the Atlantic, click here.

scout2

 

Emirates Team New Zealand Wins Races 6 & 7 – Only Three More Wins Needed to Take the Cup

Posted on by September 13, 2013

The Emirates Team New Zealand challengers continue their winning streak against the defending Oracle Team USA, winning races 6 and 7. The Kiwis need only three more races to win the best of nine series to win the America’s Cup. To keep the Cup, Oracle needs to win another ten races. The Kiwis continue to appear to have a noticeable upwind speed advantage while Oracle may have a downwind edge.

AMERICA’S CUP FINAL – RACES 6&7

Update: Salvaging Astrid

Posted on by September 13, 2013

At the end of July, we posted about the sinking of the Dutch sail training ship, Astrid, a 136′ (41.65 M) brig, which ran aground on rocks on the western mouth of Oysterhaven, on the Irish coast, near Cork.  She was recently salvaged by West Cork-based Atlantic Towage and Marine with a 937-tonne floating crane, the Atlas, which lifted the steel brig off the rocks.  The Astrid was moved safely to the port of Kinsale where she was placed on a deck barge. A video of the salvage:

Astrid salvage off Cork Coast

Picton Castle Apprenticeship

Posted on by September 12, 2013

A very interesting opportunity posted on the Tall Ship Challenge Official Blog: Looking for more sea time and experience? Picton Castle is looking for apprentices to join them in the Pacific. For the cost of room and board, you can join Leg 3 of the current voyage, sailing from Auckland, New Zealand to Nuku Hiva in the Marquesas, via Pitcairn Island and Mangareva, from October 25 this year to February 1 next year.

pc-apprentice

Kiwis Thrash Team Oracle in AC Race Five, Oracle Calls Time Out, Score: 4 to Minus 1

Posted on by September 12, 2013
Photo: Emirates Team New Zealand

Photo: Emirates Team New Zealand

On Tuesday the Emirates Team New Zealand beat the defending Oracle Team USA in the fifth race of the America’s Cup finals with a victory of 1 minute, 5 seconds on San Francisco Bay. This is the fourth Kiwi victory. The challenger Kiwis only have to win five more races to take the Cup, while Oracle needs to win ten races in order to keep it.

Shortly before the scheduled start of Race 6, Oracle Team USA radioed in to the race committee that it was playing its one postponement card of the regatta, meaning the race was scrubbed until Thursday. Skipper Jimmy Spithill said Oracle Team USA needs to regroup and make some changes.

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An American Dunkirk – Looking Back on 9/11 Twelve Years Later

Posted on by March 31, 2015

Of all the things worth remembering on 9/11, one incredible event is often overlooked.  After the attack, all the bridges, tunnels and rail lines in and out of New York City were shut down. Somewhere between 300,000 and one million people were trapped trapped in lower Manhattan. Amazingly, perhaps miraculously, they were all evacuated by that evening by a flotilla of ferries, tugs, excursion boats, fireboats, buoy tenders, patrol boats and yachts. The evacuation was unplanned and almost spontaneous.  The Coast Guard called for “All available boats,” and all available boats responded, the captains and crews doing what needed to be done.  It was truly an American Dunkirk.

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Smoke on the Water – Crew Sets 30 Tons of Hashish on Fire on Cargo Ship Gold Star

Posted on by September 11, 2013

As reported by NPR: A fire aboard a cargo ship in the Mediterranean Sea was set in order to get rid of 30 tons of hashish, according to officials in Italy and Malta. Authorities had approached the Gold Star, a Tanzania-registered ship, for an inspection Friday afternoon. But members of the crew reportedly set fire to their cargo, which Italian authorities identified as hashish resin. The incident began in waters about 30 nautical miles north of Malta, where police and firefighting ships converged on the Gold Star as it burned Friday night. They succeeded in quenching the flames around noon Saturday.

Last night the Daily Show put its own spin on the story. Thanks to Phil Leon for contributing to this post.

S.S. Puf’n Stuff

Bicentennial of the Battle of Lake Erie at Put-in-Bay, Ohio & a 90 Second Animated Battle

Posted on by September 10, 2013

battlelakeeriebiTwo hundred years ago today, in what would become known as the Battle of Lake Erie, a squadron of ships under the command of Oliver Hazard Perry defeated and captured a Royal Navy squadron at Put-in-Bay in Lake Erie off the coast of Ohio.  Last week on Labor Day, there was a reenactment of the battle, the largest naval reenactment ever undertaken in the United States.  (No surprise the Americans won again.) The boats and ships involved in the reenactment had the additional challenge of avoiding the more than 2,000 spectator vessels. The Battle of Lake Erie Bicentennial site has a wonderful slide-show of photos taken during the reenactment.  Click here to view it.

Here is a wonderful 90 second video from the Plain Dealer with an animated history of the battle: