Sail Away from the Glittering Lights
On September 5,1997 as "Jack de Crow" was navigating the River Severn in the vicinity of Shrewsbury he discovered that Diana Princess of Wales had died.The news came to Captain Sandy not by Facebook or internet news feed, but by reading sympathy cards affixed to a mountain of floral tributes left by the town's cenotaph. Local shops had windows decorated with images of Diana surrounded by flowers.
Apparently the entire country was mourning, even the "lager louts" had stayed in and the town laid down in silence. Being a good natured and eloquent chap, Captain Sandy only slightly expresses his dismay at such an attitude to the passing of a royal mother of two, who passed away while out clubbing in the early hours with her boyfriend:-
"The mood of those weeks had the bright uncrushable, brittle glitter of cellophane ..."
So, apart from being written by a sailor, what does this have to do with sailing I hear you ask. Well, not a lot honestly, it was just the word cellophane that struck a cord. There are some aspects of sail cruising, in certain areas, that have a cellophane wrap that I feel needs to be torn off. Yes obviously, those super plush yachts often photographed with slinky-coiled models dangling off them, but also in the portrayals of cruising in the media, FB or online. That is in dressing up cruising as an extreme sport pursued by the idle wealthy and glamorous of the world.
Our pastime needs to be reclaimed and to shake off the cellophane wrap applied by marketing types and those drawn to the potential for self-advertising. Surely cruising is about common people with a love of the sea, sailing about on well maintained working craft, doing what they can to avoid the media spotlight?
Apparently the entire country was mourning, even the "lager louts" had stayed in and the town laid down in silence. Being a good natured and eloquent chap, Captain Sandy only slightly expresses his dismay at such an attitude to the passing of a royal mother of two, who passed away while out clubbing in the early hours with her boyfriend:-
"The mood of those weeks had the bright uncrushable, brittle glitter of cellophane ..."
So, apart from being written by a sailor, what does this have to do with sailing I hear you ask. Well, not a lot honestly, it was just the word cellophane that struck a cord. There are some aspects of sail cruising, in certain areas, that have a cellophane wrap that I feel needs to be torn off. Yes obviously, those super plush yachts often photographed with slinky-coiled models dangling off them, but also in the portrayals of cruising in the media, FB or online. That is in dressing up cruising as an extreme sport pursued by the idle wealthy and glamorous of the world.
Our pastime needs to be reclaimed and to shake off the cellophane wrap applied by marketing types and those drawn to the potential for self-advertising. Surely cruising is about common people with a love of the sea, sailing about on well maintained working craft, doing what they can to avoid the media spotlight?
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