Excellent What not to do in heavy weather The Sea Challenged by F Scott Hafner Overcomer writing prompt entry Artwork by seshadri_sreenivasan at FanArtReview.com

I was at the helm of a 46-foot wing keeled sail boat on route to Florida from the British Virgin Islands. My watchmate just had a very exciting stint at the wheel. There was lots of wind and wave action in a pitch black night. It felt like a ride on Space Mountain at Disneyland, kicking, bucking, and all sorts thrills, just no music. Then it was my turn, no 30 plus knot winds me, it almost felt calm if you can call skirting a low pressure near the gulf stream calm. It did not feel like Space Mountain. Then it happened, a very low deep throated roar that spun up to a high shriek similar to opening the valve on a scuba tank with no regulator. My only visual reference was the lighted compass, and a tad glow from the front nav lights. The compass started to spin. My instinct was to answer the compass with the wheel. There is a perfectly good explanation for why I did it, it was kickass fun. My feet left the deck and I was able to keep one hand on the wheel as I came down to port. My thought was had I not held onto the wheel I may have gone overboard. My watchmate seemed asleep, there would have been no help there. There were two lessons learned, holding onto the wheel did not allow enough power to answer the compass and deft handling of the wheel was required to keep my feet on the deck. Would it be possible for such an event happen again? I thought it would be next to impossible, but mentally prepared for that unlikely event. Boom, it hit again. I shot my hand to the wheel spoke and cranked hard, much better results here, but a spoke strike missed its mark, a quick spin and we were out of it. To say I was absolutely and thoroughly pissed at missing an opportunity would have been and large understatement. Further mental preparation followed. I had to take my eye off the compass for an instant to get sure strikes. Tally ho, that low throated roar that spun up into that glorious song of the Valkyries -- and so was the sensation of charging through unknown opportunities. It glanced at the spoke and the strike was sure. Looking up, I saw a steady compass. Bang it started spinning in the opposite direction. I felt like I was going rip the wheel from the deck. But within that maximum display of power, I was very light on my feet. Floating off the deck felt a constant possibility. I had to balance power with a delicate balancing act. The boat was heeled over hard, would estimate more than 45 degrees, it just felt that way. I was getting a feel for it and glanced to the side. The water looked agitated like being in a giant washing machine, the water was glowing. Then a moment of absolute calm. It felt as if the boat was balancing on a knife edge ready to fall off the cliff in either direction. And the boat was ripped out of the calm -- it was a day I fought the sea and won. It all ended in an instant with a whoop like sound, then perfect calm. A few seconds passed, not sure how many, could have been five of fifteen. Then the sky opened up and dropped water. It was nothing like rain or a shower. Picture a massive dump truck overhead full of water. The dump truck released all the water at once or so it seemed. Then calm. Writing Prompt What was a time that you were faced with a problem that you overcame? Write about the problem and how you solved and overcame it.

© Copyright 2024. F Scott Hafner All rights reserved. F Scott Hafner has granted FanStory.com, its affiliates and its syndicates non-exclusive rights to display this work.