{"id":64585,"date":"2016-07-21T17:12:02","date_gmt":"2016-07-21T21:12:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/?p=64585"},"modified":"2023-05-06T20:48:58","modified_gmt":"2023-05-07T00:48:58","slug":"the-best-way-to-learn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/racing\/the-best-way-to-learn\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Way to Learn"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\"learning\" <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n
\n The author (yellow) helps call a cross aboard the GP 26 Pithy<\/em> at Sperry Charleston Race Week 2016.<\/span>\n Ridge Turner<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n\n

I didn\u2019t sail as a kid, and I was a simple cruiser when I sought out racing. The first guy to take a chance on me was Elliot Peterson, who had a Merit 28. After a few months of Wednesday nights in the Solomon Islands, I\u2019d discovered my new passion. The only way to fuel it was to keep finding rides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

I signed up for the 120-nautical-mile Down the Bay Race from Annapolis to Hampton, Virginia, aboard Trevor Harney’s Merit 25, Audrey<\/em>. All the good sailors had looked at the forecast and decided against an upwind slog on a 25-footer in 25 knots, so there was room for me. Three of us began and finished the race in a driving rain, winning our class. With my first big win, my addiction grew stronger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

The next step in my journey was aboard the 1930s-era Chesapeake Bay log canoe Flying Cloud<\/em>, owned by Allan Noble. Originally designed as oyster boats with shoal drafts and centerboards so they could reach the shallows, these historic 6-foot wooden boats are overcanvassed and unballasted. The experience of sailing them is a combination of yelling, dynamic body movements, lots of 10-ounce beer drinking, and even a little sailing. Under the tutelage of Ed Schut and our skipper, Sean Callahan, both lifelong log canoers, I learned a few new expletives and a lot about racing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

Through circumstance, I was invited to help out aboard the competitive Mumm 30 Rhumb Punch<\/em>, owned and driven by John “Papa” Edwards. Here I found that my initial crew value was as nautical scapegoat. What started as an accurate reflection of my performance became a team-building activity. When, inevitably, I would rig something wrong or have my trim not quite right, someone (usually Papa) would yell, “Damn it, Ridgey!” As I progressed in my abilities, I gave my fellow crewmembers fewer opportunities to shout our battle cry, but they soon found a workaround: Anytime there was any issue, it could just as easily be blamed on me. I discovered that sometimes it worked best for me to beat them to the punch and yell my own “Damn it, Ridgey!” My sense of humor and ability to take a joke kept me getting invited back. We sailed fast and hard, but we had fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

During these three years, Rhumb Punch<\/em> traveled to Key West Race Week, Charleston Race Week and the Annapolis NOODs, but I did not. I knew I wasn’t prime-time regatta material yet. I gradually progressed in each of the crew positions. It was incredible to be part of such a successful team. The Mumm 30 is a veritable high-performance classroom, and on Rhumb Punch, I feasted on knowledge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

In December 2015 I got an email from Peter D\u2019Arista, the owner of two local Donovan GP 26s. I was being called up to the majors and had a ride for Quantum Key West Race Week 2016. This was my first opportunity to sail with true professionals, and though I knew I wasn\u2019t one of them, I resolved to give everything I had and learn as much from the experience as I could.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

On a blustery Key West morning on Day 2, I arrived at the dock and realized for the first time in my life that I was hoping the races would be called for the day. I needed to recover from the previous day\u2019s blow. I decided then and there that this would be the last time I would feel this way, and committed to improving my strength and endurance. To be part of a successful team, I had to ensure I was physically up to any task in all conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

Each of these experiences taught me different lessons. Although I continue to progress, I strive to learn something from each race and program. After Key West, I asked Joe Gibson, a pro from Annapolis, for his advice on developing as a competitive sailor. \u201cNever be the best sailor on the boat,\u201d he told me. Luckily, I never have been, but I think what he meant is to surround myself with others who can help me develop. Early in my racing, I decided I would take any role on any boat, but as I progressed, so did my value and the boats, skippers and crew I raced with. I learned how important it is to show up early, stay late, work harder than anyone else, be fun, and be interesting. Develop thick skin, learn to take and make a joke, and be ready to ride.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Firsthand lessons are often the most valuable way to become a better racing sailor.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":27821,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"BS_author_type":"BS_author_is_guest","BS_guest_author_name":"Ridge Turner","BS_guest_author_url":"","hydra_display_date":"20160721","hydra_display_updated":false,"_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"159","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Firsthand lessons are often the most valuable way to become a better racing sailor.","_yoast_wpseo_title":"The Best Way to Learn %%sep%% %%sitename%%","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","arc_story_id":"FC7DOA32UYR3IIO6G6CBF34AMA","arc_website_url":"best-way-to-learn\/","custom_permalink":"","arc_subtype":"right-sidebar","arc_exclude_from_feeds":false,"sponsored":false,"sponsored_label":"Sponsored Content","sponsored_display_label":false,"sponsored_image":0,"post_right_rail":true,"post_right_rail_ad_1":true,"post_right_rail_ad_2":true,"post_right_rail_ad_3":false,"post_right_rail_ad_4":false,"post_right_rail_recirc":true,"fixed_anchor_ad":true,"post_top_ad":true,"post_off_ramp":true,"post_taboola":false,"labels":false,"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":"\"\"","apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[159],"tags":[178,267],"class_list":["post-64585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-racing","tag-sailboat-racing","tag-starting-line"],"acf":[],"apple_news_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64585","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64585"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64585\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sailingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}