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From its modern interpretations to its antecedents whenmaritime nations would send young naval officer candidates to sea (e.g., seeOutward Bound),sail training provides an unconventional and effective way of building many useful skills on and off the water.
By 1900, most commercial sailing vessels were struggling to turn a profit in the face of competition from more modernsteam ships which had become efficient enough to steam shortergreat circle routes between ports instead of the longertrade wind routes used bysailing ships.
Ships were built larger to carry bulk cargoes more efficiently, their rigs were simplified to reduce manning costs and speed was no longer a premium. Owners shipped cargoes that were non-perishable so that their dates of arrival (which steam ships had started to guarantee) were of less importance. Finally as thePanama Canal was opened, sailing ships were used in parts of the world where steam ships still found it hard to operate, mainly on:
Both Chilean and Australian ports were difficult tosupply with coal for steamships to refuel. Also, both routes to Europe went roundCape Horn.The end of theFirst World War saw a brief return to profitability as all ship types were in scarce supply due to wartime losses but that boom became bust as many newsteam ships were built to replace the sailing ships that were lost.
While many countries of the world operated sailing ships astraining ships for officers in theirmerchant marine in the 1920s and 30s, several sailing ship owners such asCarl Laeisz andGustaf Erikson determined that there was still a profit to be made from the last of the sailing ships.
Erikson purchased existing ships that required the minimum ofcapital investment and repaired them with parts cannibalised from other ships. Identifying the bulk cargo routes that would still offer paying freights, he manned the ships with a smattering of paid experienced officers.
Some of the deckhands wereapprentices from steamship lines and other adventurous youth who had paid a premium to sail while being trained, some recruited for very modest salaries. The apprentices were considered trainees and were the first formalization of sail trainers with crew drawn from members of the public who just went for the adventure, as opposed to a career.
With manning costs netted out on Erikson's balance sheet, the ships continued to return a paperprofit. However Erikson was under no illusions as to the long term profitability of his venture, which depended on ignoring thedepreciation on his ships and a shrinking supply of soundhulls andrigs. The company would use their profits to diversify into steam after theSecond World War. While the shipping companies of Erickson andF. Laeisz gradually turned tosteam, the next generation of captains were climbing up thehawsehole and taking command of their own vessels, redefining sail training as a purely educational endeavour with trainees as the cargo.
From 1932 through 1958,Irving Johnson and his wifeElectacircumnavigated the world seven times with amateur youth crews on board their vessels namedYankee. Over the years, their voyages were featured in books they authored, and inNational Geographic magazines and TV specials like"Irving Johnson, High Seas Adventurer". Their archives are atMystic Seaport, Connecticut.
AustralianAlan Villiers purchased the old school shipGeorge Stage from Denmark in 1934. Renaming her theJoseph Conrad, he sailed her round the world with no paying cargo and a crew of youth who had paid to be there. He also took as many non-paying youth as he could afford to fit in the budget, those he considered at risk on the streets of their inner cities and in need of what was then called "character building". These trips were the genesis of current modern sail training, using manually operated ships and the harsh discipline imposed by the sea to further personal development and taking those disadvantaged by circumstance to benefit from the experience.[1]
By the end of the Second World War, the numbers of traditionally rigged sailing ships left were dwindling and public interest waned. After the German school shipNiobe sank in 1932, killing 69, the loss ofPamir in 1957 andAlbatross in 1961 drew further ill will and seemed to signal the end of an era.[2]
In what was conceived to be last great gathering ofsquare-riggers under sail, Bernard Morgan and Greville Howard persuaded a number of ship owners to join together in a sort of farewell salute in 1956, organizing a race fromTorbay on the South Coast of England to race informally across theBay of Biscay toLisbon inPortugal. Five square riggedschool ships entered the race, Denmark'sDanmark, Norway'sChristian Radich andSorlandet, Belgium'sMercator and Portugal's firstSagres. The vessels met again the following year and every year since in an annual series that would astonish its original organizers today. Old vessels were saved or repaired and new purpose built sail training vessels were commissioned. With renewed interest in the age of sail, national sail training associations affiliated toSail Training International (STI) (formerly "Sail Training Association") were organized and large summer events find upwards of 100 ships racing across the oceans.
Crew exchanges allow young people from one country to sail with those from another. Long before the end of theCold War, ships fromRussia andPoland (which in some cases had been built in Germany) joined the International Fleet in 1974. A limited exchange between theEast and West was initiated. One of the largest of the affiliate organizations of the STI is theAmerican Sail Training Association (ASTA). Founded in 1973 with a handful of vessels, it has since grown to encompass an international organization with more than 250 tall ships representing 25 different countries. The UK National Member of STI is the Association of Sail Training Organisations (ASTO) Founded in 1972,http://www.asto.org.uk
Square rigged seamanship was in danger of becoming a lost art. As the 1997 restoration ofUSS Constitution neared completion, theUnited States Navy called on the crew ofHMSBounty[3] to train her sailors to sail the vessel as originally intended.
Many boats are historical vessels and replicas which require coordinated manual labor to sail, operating in the original tradition proposed by Alan Villiers and Irving Johnson such as thePicton Castle while others are purpose built educational platforms carrying out scientific research under sail such asRobert C. Seamans andCorwith Cramer of theSea Education Association. Another new direction is the development of floating maritime heritage centres, connected to a sail training organisation, and often in co-ordination with land based maritime museums.Tall Ship Atyla is one such example of this, with visitors to the Bilbao Maritime Museum enjoying free entry to the ship during the winter months when she is moored nearby. As the crew of theIrving Johnson and the award-winning program at the Los Angeles Maritime Institute like to say"We do not train youth for a life at sea ... we use the sea to educate youth for life".
Tall ships have been found to be effective platforms for sail training as they combine many elements fundamental to sail training.A "tall ship" is not a strictly defined type of vessel. The term is commonly used today to define a large, traditionally rigged vessel, whether or not is it technically afull-rigged ship. For example,USCGC Eagle is technically abarque. A tall ship is usually defined by the topmast andtopsails she carries as opposed to the modern high-aspect-ratio rigs andmarconi mains carried by thesloops andyawls seen in every harbor today.
For the purpose of classification and race rating, the STI divides tall ships into the following classes :
TheUnited States Coast Guard classifies vessels based on their intended use and structure, prescribing requirements forcaptain and crew manning, waters the vessel may operate in, number of passengers allowed and minimum safety equipment required.
With the exception of uninspected vessels, all such vessels are inspected annually and issued a Certificate of Inspection (COI) which must be displayed on the vessel and spells out the requirements that vessel must maintain.
The highlight of his career, however, is the two years and over 15 voyages spent training the crew of "Old Ironsides," the U.S.S. Constitution. He was at the helm as guest Captain/Advisor for the ship's inaugural sail in 1997 after 116 years of being dormant, a moment he remembers as "awe-inspiring," as many in his position would.
