What is it that will secure the future?

Most sports don’t appear much different than 50 years ago, but the same can’t be said about Sailing. With so few rules from an international federation, clever people have used the space to seek improvement, but is the sport now better? What is it that will secure the future? Mark Johnson responds to the Scuttlebutt report, Change is inevitable:

It was a bit of “tongue in cheek” reading this piece. Yes, April 1st, a day for fools, but also quite true in what you spoke.

I, for one, am not a fan of modern society, AI, all the cheats, all the conveniences that take away personal responsibility and ability in the pursuit of making things easier. Challenges make us stronger, mistakes make us better, and the easy road makes us weak and lazy.

Give me an analog car to drive; I’ll row my own gears and take the chance on a skid or slide that gives a bit of anxiety but satisfaction of overcoming the pending excursion. I’d much rather cast off the dock lines, hoist a sail, and steer the boat without the convenience of powered winches, electronic helm control, or a GPS nav system to keep track of me.

Sailors navigated by stars, a compass, and sextant for years. Can one even find a paper navigation chart today?

New school methods may seem more convenient, but I question what we have lost in human self-reliance and satisfaction of completing a task with mind and body – not machines.

I freely admit I’m older, now 74, but I am happy in the fact that I am not tied to a machine that does everything for me.