Problems Solved

Sailors are notorious for being some of the best storytellers. Movies depict old salts at bars doling out wisdom learned through their many trials and tribulations. Books are written about the tales of mariners. It’s no wonder that when cruisers get together for sundowners, after the talk of weather and anchor scope used for the night subsides, they turn to storytelling.

It’s been my experience that the best stories rarely involve beautiful sails in 15 knots of wind ending in a gorgeous sunset. No, the best stories are the ones about problems that arise even as seemingly everything else is also being stacked against you: storms rolling in, the anchor dragging and—topping them all—the motor not starting. These are the tales that bind sailors together, give them a sense of camaraderie and allow them to learn from one another’s mistakes, as opposed to making them over and over again.

At their core, these stories are about problem