Spirit of South Carolina Shake-Down Cruise tests New Volunteer Crew as well as the ship.

With a complement of 4 professional crew, 9 new volunteers and 3 guests, Capt Dan Cleveland cast off Saturday afternoon, from Charleston Maritime Center to exercise the ship and crew.  For the next five hours, Spirit of South Carolina  ranged south to Fort Sumter, and up the Wando River to the Shipping Terminals before returning to a well- executed docking at the Center. Besides four professional crew, four Volunteer Deckhands, with one or two full days of dockside training under their belt came aboard, along with four Citadel Cadet Volunteers, recruited by Citadel Senior, and new professional crew member, Ryan. Rounding out the ships complement were three guests of Captain Dan, who quickly found themselves pitching in, as Spirit got underway.  

Immediately following the Captain's orientation muster, Bryan Oliver,  Ryan, a Citadel Cadet Senior and Professional crewmember, with help from Ken Fonville and Sean McQuilken set to coaching  newer crew volunteers in making up dock line bowlines, bending on and throwing heaving lines, and handling dock lines.  Meanwhile, Chef Hunter called up from the the Galley and crew members individually went below to bring up on deck, a fried chicken lunch, then returning to tuck a reef into both Fore and Mainsails. 

Crew, Catie and  Cadet Volunteers
sweating the Foresail Throat Halyard

Once all was stowed for sea, Capt Dan called for dock lines to be taken in, and the new crew  immediately repeated their docking and casting off drills as Spirit maneuvered over to the fuel dock for refueling. Now that our diesel tanks were topped off, dock lines were cast off once more, the helm made hard-over to port and Spirit's bowsprit slowly swung out towards Fort Sumter. Once on a southerly course, into the wind, in a deliberately measured pace, the Captain ordered "Hands to set the Mainsail";  next came the Foresail, quickly followed by setting the Jumbo. Once the mainsail was properly hauled up and trimmed, crew made quicker, more efficient work of raising the Foresail, applying experience learned only moments before to executing the next sail sets. As the Jumbo filled, Captain Dan immediately shut engines, and bore off on a starboard tack down the North Channel.  Because Spirit's design and high rig made her inherently fast, the reef in the sails moderated our speed down the channel, but she was still sailing fast.  Dan quickly explained his next maneuver and the crews duties for it. When the command came to "come about" Volunteers and professional crew together took stations to pass the Main and Jumbo; Spirit's bow slowly slowly swung thru the wind, helped by the back-winded Jumbo. Crew trimmed all sail to the new course towards Fort Sumter. 

Cadet Volunteer Ed Marshall, with Volunteers, Chuck, Sean, and Ken,
 trim the Starboard jib sheet on a new tack.  

Captain Dan explains crew actions for their first Gybe maneuver

For the next four hours, with Mother Nature's cooperation of a moderate southerly breeze and the last half of an ebbing tide, Capt Cleveland exercised the ship and her crew thru a number of evolutions and drills.  Twice more, Spirit Tacked, then executed two Gybes.  Now bearing back towards the Maritime Center, Captain Dan must've sensed a growing competence in his crew, and no doubt a little consternation at the Beneteau 42 creeping up on our stern, so he called to "Hand's to Set the Jib".  Now, under "full press" Spirit slowly pulled away from the Beneteau, and crew took a moment to savor the reason they came aboard. Lots of smiles and big grins on faces! It was reflected back in the several modern sloop crews out on the harbor that crossed our stern or came along side to stare, snap cellphone photo's, wave, and cheer.  Some of us took turns at the helm, others tended sail trim, a constant drill as we angled back up the harbor and under the Ravenel Bridge.  The Captain and professional crew member Jaymi, set up the small salute cannon and fired a round as we passed beneath the bridge. The lasting reverberation surprising everyone.  
By sunset, Spirit was turned towards home, passing under the Ravenel, one by one, sails were doused and flaked, lines coiled, Fenders and dock lines staged and rigged  to starboard, in preparation for coming alongside. In another exercise of ever-improving teamwork, the crew manned small boat stations, together, lifted, swung out and lowered the small boat  to land the dock handlers and act as push boat. The docking, and gangway rigging was just short of flawless;  couldn't have asked for a better high note to end the cruise.  Without a reminder, Volunteers and crew set to coiling, hanging, tucking in canvas and clearing up her decks. It was dark, but crew members were in no hurry to disembark. But the reality of the shore part of our life started calling, and one by one we left her to shipmates now living aboard with a  common thread of conversation seeming to be, "when can I help again.?"

3 Volunteers advanced their deckhand skills aboard Spirit of South Carolina.

Ken checks his Stopper knot on
the Fore peak halyard while
Sean takes turns on the pin,

Ken Fonville, Sean Mcquillen, and Dan Maurin, spent an intensive day aboard Spirit of South Carolina  on Saturday, with Bryan Oliver and Ryan as Trainers and Coaches, practicing and demonstrating over 15 skills in the categories of line handling, Docking, Boat Checks, and Marlinespike Seamanship. For Ken and Sean, this was their second training day aboard, and they attained second sign-off on a number of skills, demonstrating their ability to perform those deckhand tasks without direct supervision; a prerequisite for selection to join the crew for day sails or cruises.

 Hunter prepared a lunch of Chili, Grits, and brownies. Captain Dan Cleveland  provided an update about upcoming programs with the Citadel Alumni cruise to St Augustine, and the Boy Scouts, and added a word or two about new crew members arriving soon, and the preparations required to support those programs (lots of work to be done). After lunch it was gathering around the rope locker, for making a few knots, and the foresail for  practice in tucking in a reef.  A brisk southerly wind across the harbor made raising and dousing the jib a risky job, but that didn't stop a climb out into the head rig to slap the jib halyard block and inspect mousings at the downhaul. 

Crewman Ryan with Dan and Sean in the head rig at the
furled jib inspecting the downhaul block.

This was the second Deckhand Skills Training Day since our Volunteer Corps began reorganizing, with several others already in planning over the next few months, interspersed with maintenance days; the goal being to provide Captain Dan Cleveland with an ample bench of Volunteer Crew to augment  the Ship's company as needed for day sails, cruises, and other on-deck activities.  Check the Volunteer Calendar for upcoming Maintenance and Deckhand Training Days.

Volunteer Deckhand Training Days posted for April.

Volunteers!   One training day, 21 April has been made available aboard Spirit of South Carolina.  The second scheduled day (22 April) turned out to be Easter Sunday. My failure to enable the "Holiday" calendar overlay.  The agenda is focused to get you ready for stepping aboard as Volunteer Crew, as Captain Cleveland selects crew for the next Day Sails and Cruises, coming up the first week of May.  Its also a good opportunity to learn  about near-term plans.  If  conflicts keep getting in your way, give me a call, or email, and we'll work out a mutually agreeable date/time for you to come aboard and get some progress under your rig belt.

Your Volunteer Deckhand Skills Checklist is your guide for the activities we'll work on those weekends.  Your own copy is waiting for you in the Volunteer Log Binder below in the Saloon. You can download a copy with the link in the Green Column at the right.  

As a general guide, two good days of dockside training are a prerequisite to be considered for signing on as a Volunteer Crew. Additionally, volunteer time for ship maintenance, or other work are always indications of commitment to the ship, and demonstrate you are all the more familiar with her deck layout, storage, and standard operating procedure. 

So come on aboard!  The only thing holding you back is you.  

Looking forward to seeing you at Crew Muster.

"Brine"

The Sail trading  Brigantine, "Tres Hombres" is planning to dock in Charleston 15 April.

This engineless cargo vessel has spent the last 10 years circling the Atlantic delivering tropical cargo to Europe— for the second time they will be coming ashore in the USA, and will commence trading!  Her exact docking location is still to be announced,, currently negotiating the Department of Homeland Security Maze.  When more details are available, I'll post here. They have an interesting Webpage;  
Link to Tres Hombres Website

Volunteers !  We need your help this month.  April is Shaping up to be a good month for Volunteers -Skill-building Opportunities. 

First things first.. Specific days in April have been set on the Volunteer Calendar where Volunteers are needed to help on a number of projects.  Additionally, we've set out at least one day a week for Volunteer Training.  Skilled Volunteers are starting to take on added importance in our programs.  Please sign up on the Volunteer Calendar for as many of these dates as you can.  Your availability will drive some of the Ship's work priorities, so "vote early and often", so to speak..
I would like to get your feedback as to which days are better than others for you to help, currently our dates are arbitrary selections. We can afford to tweak them. Obviously, weekends are easiest to schedule, and we will do so, but keep in mind, our professional crew have families, and home responsibilities too, which happen on weekends, so we'll work some balance in there.
Spirit of South Carolina completed an annual Safety Inspection recently, and surfaced some issues that will need volunteer help in order to resolve expeditiously. Additionally, the Ship still needs some last maintenance work done to make her ready for the next programs that are forming up in May for the Scouts and later.  

Things are starting to shape up this month for Spirit's programs. CAPT Cleveland has been head-down searching across the Tall Ship industry for the right crew to hire onboard.  We may see the results of his work later this month and early next month when they report for duty. 
He is also interested in augmenting the crew with Volunteer Deckhands, particularly for day sails, but only if they've demonstrated a level of proficiency in line and sail handling, docking drills, small boat launch and recovery.  If you're interested in this kind of involvement, this is a good month to surge your skill-building efforts.