CHAPTER 7BASIC SEAMANSHIPAt this stage in your Navy career, you’re learningthousands of things entirely new to you. You’reprobably finding it hard to assign relative importance tothem. The importance of these skills and knowledgewill become more obvious the longer you’re in theNavy. This is true because the most important thingswill be emphasized in your day-to-day living. If you’renot assigned to the deck force, you may think thatseamanship is not important. Well, you’re wrong!Seamanship ties every member of the Navytogether. The uniform worn by Navy members, fromseaman to admiral, implies that the wearer has a certaindegree of proficiency in the art of seamanship. The factthat you may later become an Electronics Techniciandoesn’t change the fact that you’re first a seaman andthen a technician. Be as proud of your ability as aseaman as you are of your ability to perform your otherduties.Even though you don’t work on deck everyday,there will be times, particularly on small ships, whenyou will be required to assist the deck force. You mayhave to carry stores, assist in replenishment-at-seaoperations, assist in mooring to or untying a ship fromthe pier, and so forth. When working as part of the deckforce, you’ll be expected to have a general idea of what’sgoing on, how and why a task is being accomplished,and be able to carry out orders intelligently. Therefore,take every opportunity to observe and learn as much asyou can about seamanship. This chapter provides onlybasic seamanship information.In this chapter, seamanship is divided into thefollowing basic sections—deck, boat, and marlinespikeseamanship.Deck seamanship concerns the general work thatgoes on about the ship’s deck and the equipmentused. Anchoring, mooring, rigging and handlingheavy weights and cargo, underwayreplenishment, towing, and a host of other skillsare considered deck seamanship.Boat seamanship, as the name implies, concernsthe handling of boats.Marlinespike seamanship concerns the use andcare of line and consists of forming knots,making splices, and fashioning useful anddecorative articles from small stuff and twine.DECK SEAMANSHIPLearning Objective: When you finish this chapter, youwill be able to—Identify deck equipment and recognize theirpurpose.Deck equipment consists of all equipment used inthe application of deck seamanship, which is worknormally performed by the deck force. You need toknow shipboard equipment and terminology becauseyou may be called on to assist the deck force in variousseamanship evolutions. To help you, some of the morefamiliar items of deck equipment are discussed in thissection.GROUND TACKLEGround tackle is the equipment used in anchoringand mooring with anchors. It includes anchors, anchorcables and chains, and associated equipment, such aschain stoppers, bending shackles, outboard swivelshots, and detachable links. Figure 7-1 shows a typicalground tackle arrangement on a forecastle.7-1To ensure safety at sea, the best that science can devise and that naval organization canprovide must be regarded only as an aid, and never as a substitute for good seamanship,self-reliance, and sense of ultimate responsibility which are the first requisites in a seaman…—C.W. NimitzLetter to U.S. Pacific Fleet13 February 1945
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