simple vs complex boats
Cal sailors:
A little while ago there was a brief thread about simple and complex
boats. I fall on the simple side (maybe in both senses--can't
understand the complex systems). Recently I was reading a nice article
on Bruce Schwab, the around-the-world solo sailor in the Jan/Feb
_WoodenBoat_ magazine. Bruce was discussing a new boat with Tom Wylie.
"In light of the equipment failures that many of the boats suffered,
Bruce and Tom agreed that a simple boat would serve the solo sailor
better than a complex one. The theory behind the simple boat says that
the skipper will be able to sail the boat closer to 100% for a greater
percentage of the time than he would a complex boat...."
Technology is wonderful, but the more complex it becomes, the more
opportunities there are for equipment failures, and the greater is the
effect of those failures on the ability to sail the vessel.
Chris Campbell