Occasionally, when the wind takes us where we don’t want to go and we are upset that we might scrape the bottom, we show an unfavourable side of ourselves and people close to us remind us of the famous phrase: “you are just like your father”. We then blame our hot temper on our genetic heritage. I would like to honour our fathers who transmitted us their genes and their sailing passion.

If some traits of our personality are inherited, what about other things and activities such as sailing or fishing that our parents liked and, as we are exposed to them, we tend to like them as well. Could it be a genetic inheritance, or is it because that particular skill and attraction for an activity evolves and develops under a parent’s nurturing tutelage? For example, learning how to sail would be knowledgebased and can be learned in manuals and on you-tube, but only up to a certain point. Does it take more than textbooks to develop the passion for sailing, like parental nurturing and coaching?

In traditional families established along coastal areas, sailing and fishing were the domain of fathers and sons. Sailing and fishing abilities were learned on deck and knowledge of navigation and reading the weather were taught by a senior sailor, somebody who knew “the how”. The experience and knowledge from the older person to the offspring would be to perpetuate the trade, earn a living and more importantly come back to port safe and sound. I think that a similar approach still exists today, whether it be recreational sailing or fishing. Fathers still take their sons and daughters on the water with them and, unconsciously, nurture an emerging passion in the hearts of their offspring. Learning to tame the sea, battle strong waves, harness the wind next to a father who is in control of the situation must be quite exhilarating. When the young child sees the joy in his father’s eyes, his grin after a successful tack, he probably thinks that his mastery of the sea, which gives his father a strong sense of power, has to be the way to happiness.

Recently, while I was in Vendée, France, I overheard Jean le Cam, a famous Vendée Globe contender who just completed his 4th Vendée Globe race and 5th Cape Horn crossing. He told the journalist how he started to sail with his father when he was five years old on their boat, an Armagnac named Mer Vent. Jean Le Cam started to sail on a canoe equipped with a parasol, as he was not allowed to use a sail. He could fold the parasol when he needed to escape detection from his “protective parents”. For his most recent Vendée Globe race, he named his IMOCA 60: Finistere MerVent, in memory of his father. He remembered his father, like many fathers, who push their children to go further, telling them that “you have nothing if you don’t try”. His father inspired his passion and taught him to always push the limits further and go beyond what he never thought would be possible.

I was humbled and puzzled by this story and when I returned home I looked around my friends at the sailing club and began asking them how they began sailing. They are passionate skippers and I was curious to find out what made them become this way. They were eager to tell me their stories about their youth and began recalling stories of sailing and fishing with their fathers. I was amused at their descriptions of makeshift sails done with whatever they could find. Others, such as our departed friend Clare Jordan who grew up on the shores of lake Ontario, displayed ingenuity: he and his brother used to take their mother’s sheets that were hanging on the clothes line to make sails in order to give more speed and power to their rowboat.

Boys and girls naturally like freedom and adventure, they like Gaby and uncle Olivier Running Fix Summer 2017 exploring new territories, new shores, spotting unidentified shoals. They like to discover the world, see what is going on in the water, look at the reflection of the moon on the surface. They are frightened as they realize how dark the sky can be at night and how terrifying the water can be when your small boat is out there, all by itself. They like to feel the wind in their face. They like to follow the motion of the boat bouncing between waves and the waves splashing the hull. It becomes especially inspiring when they see their fathers, mothers and uncles successfully measuring up to the challenge and winning the battle. This is what inspires young children to change their perception of their parents as role models.

Many people have taken their offspring with them and taught them to sail. I think of Dave Smith who initiated his three boys and daughter Pam early on in their life to sailing. When Pam was about 15, they decided to embark on a special voyage down the River, from Kingston to Long Sault aboard an Albacore. With a tent and a Coleman stove, they camped in the Thousand Islands along the way. They have wonderful memories, sitting around the fire in the evening and chatting about everything and their view of the world. All Dave’s children have continued to sail. Dave’s daughter became a formidable and fearless racer, winning many trophies as she competed in various races on the St-Lawrence River. Today, Pam shares her passion and actively promotes sailing by teaching adults in her community. In the late forties, Bob Branchard’s family was spending summers on the shore of Lake Archambault and his uncle Athur D’Artois transformed old rowboat wrecks into sailboats, using pine sticks for masts, side boards as a keel, sheets and an oar for a rudder. Later, Bob bought one of the first Laser, sail number 1940, and initiated his young son Brian to sailing. Bob described him as a natural helmsman who could really feel the wind and steer the boat to get the most speed possible. Together, they started to race seriously, first on a Tanzer 22, then a 26, winning many trophies for several years, then on a Pearson 26, winning again.

For Bob Dumond, the sailing passion began on a fishing boat as a young child with his father. His father shared with him his passion for water. Later, when Bob had children of his own, he brought them as infants on the family boat wherever they went for holidays. Now, each member of the Dumond Clan has his own sailboat: Papa Dumond maintains the fleet and sails with his wife Sylvie, Shawn with his daughter Charlize, son Cole and his dog Oakley, and Dan and Kelly recently joined in on their new sailboat.

In another family, Liam and Thomas, age 8 and 7, boarded their parents’ sailboat as infants. The parents, Sebastien and Caroline, felt that sailing was a great family activity for these adventurous boys. Fishing on the little Zodiac is the ultimate reward for the children after a day of sailing. But as they continue to grow up dad’s boat continue to get smaller. Like a shoe that has become too small for the growing kid, the old Whisper will soon be too small to accommodate the Arseneault family on their quest for adventure.

We are the children who have learned the skills under the watchful eye of our sailing parents and our children will be tomorrow’s skippers. Our parents have nurtured our passion for sailing. Each time we come back to port, there is a new story to tell, there is something new we have learned, be it something about sailing, fishing or about themselves or even about our father. No one is the same after a sailing voyage, as the young Conrad Coleman was singing upon his arrival at Sable d’Olonne: “He’s got the world in his hands” (1).

I wanted to pay a small tribute to our fathers who shared this love of sailing with their children. Thanks for the voyage guys. (1) Boatner, Edward, (1927). Spirituals Triumphant, Old and New. Sunday School Publishing Board, National Baptist Convention.

— By Christine Ouellet
Christine Ouellet is Media coordinator, Long Sault Yacht Club and a Cornwall PSS member.