Yes, the Little Dipper is back on the water after last week’s encounter between the prop and a gill net buoy (if you haven’t read last week’s post, the buoy won but click the blue button below if you’d like the whole story).
Back on the water but not without climbing a steep learning curve that involved navigating a whole new language about the propulsion of boats, a “master’s level course” from my new friends at the Prop Shop in Duluth.
The ordeal was not without its benefits however. Standing in the grease-tinged air of the Prop Shop listening to the dissertation, the PhD of props, I was reminded of the tides of bountiful, melodious, and often colorful language that lifts all boats. Spend any length of time listening to a serious boater and you are likely to encounter a headwind of words as exotic and serpentine as the tattoos on a sailor’s bicep.
So in preparation for the new post on the joy of all words nautical, here’s your “prop” quiz, three questions to test your knots of nautical terms: put your answers in the comments and look for the new essay later in the week.
What is the purpose of a Boom Vang on a sailboat?
What is the difference between a “knot” and a “knot”?
How many feet in a fathom?
— Jeff
A boom Vang works in tandem with the topping lift to control the vertical position of the boom, thereby affecting sail shape
1. Knot- a manipulation of a rope or line to create a tool used for securing, holding, etc. or for decoration.
2. Knot- a unit of measure. One nautical mile = 1 knot
One fathom equals 6 feet
Boom vang is a device usually block and tackle used to shape sail.
A knot is a unit of speed originally defined by using a trailing rope to plot distance vs time and also a rope fastening used to secure various objects.
A fathom is 6 feet if you can fathom that.