The Hollow Woman
5 years ago
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Surfing the blender 2
The blender is what sailors call the waters between St. John and St. Thomas, because the chop goes in all directions. It's essentially a big bowl where every wave bounces back on itself between the islands and cays that rim it. Imagine a cup of water on a speaker playing really loud rock and roll. Most of the time, the water's not rough enough to cancel out the effect of the wind, so you can manage ok in a decent size boat, if you know what you're doing. You won't find this definition online, I don't think the guys who make the tourist runs through that area spend a lot of time blogging it. They don't live in it.
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I spent most of my early years on and around the water. I know those kinds of currents.
ReplyDeleteThere is a kind of zone one gets in, when you are navigating them, where your body rolls with the boat and the wave.... it is not as simple as it sounds and it is not going with the flow.
Yet, it is a rhythm unto itself. And when you can do this, you get through the cross-currents without jarring your teeth against each other, and without wrenching your back or shoulder.
You can't exactly follow someone through it either. You have to find your own way.
Yet, it is somewhat comforting to see another sailor doing it too. At least it always was for me.
Hugs.