reference

reference

‘Tramping’ before the wind… a Weathercat windy snap

the last of
afternoon coming
down on the
day
the rigging
of moored boats
minor pleasure
craft
shrill with wind
on the other side
of the estuary low
low cloud running
before the storm
‘tramping’* they say
of sailing boats,
said of, in my
day at least

and anyway
my life now mostly
footnotes to myself
written for one
clear reference back
to the inexplicable

november 2015
bucklands beach, tamaki estuary

*‘tramping’: such was the term my dad taught me. I could only find one reference online to this usage, which was as follows:
‘On a reach she is capable of averaging 6.5-7.5 knots in all but the choppiest waters. She does lack downwind performance, so needs a big fat spinnaker to really get her tramping along.’
http://www.yachtingmonthly.com/yacht-reviews/our-verdict-on-the-moody-36-31155

Copyright © 2021 Peter Le Baige. All Rights Reserved

The music is from a Youtube performance by Chris Thile of Bach’s Sonata No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001 on mandolin.