Launching a gig is generally a simple affair. Back the trailer down the ramp, float the gig off, and you’re away. With Middle School kids, though, launching offers a plethora of learning opportunities.
The beauty of this particular boat and ramp is that because of her size and the angle of the ramp we don’t put the rudder in until she’s floating. Or, in this case, not at all. Putting the gig dockside without a rudder is simple for an experienced cox. It is amazingly scary for the young and inexperienced.
Rocks on one side, an inconveniently placed large boat on the other, students had to truly focus, drawing on weeks of training. They had to truly depend on one another. The crew needed to trust the cox. The cox had to know that the crew would be sharp on their commands. Four students maneuvered delicately towards the dock as I pushed the gig off the dock again and again and put different students in “the hot seat” of command.
Red Jacket sits comfortably in her slip in Rockland’s south end, a tribute to the courage of seven 12 and 13 year olds, and the community that recognizes the value of launching a gig as education.
No comments:
Post a Comment