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Saltwater Suzi and Cap'n Larry's advice for the cash-starved boater
How to Sound Salty
Magnetic bearing - An absolute bearing using magnetic north.
Magnetic north - The direction towards the magnetic north pole. Varies slowly over time.
Mainmast (or Main) - The tallest mast on a ship.
Mainsail - The largest sail. (Except for the spinnaker.)
Mainsheet - The line used to pull the mainsail in or let it out.
Marconi rig - Another term for bermudan rig. The mainsail is triangular, rigged fore-and-aft with the lead edge fixed to the mast. Refers to the similarity of the tall mast to a radio aerial.
Marina - a docking facility for small ships and yachts.
Mast - A vertical pole on a ship which supports sails or rigging.
Masthead - The top of the mast.
Mizzen - The sail set on the second (aftermost, or rear) mast - as on a ketch.
Mizzen staysail - Sail on a ketch or yawl , usually lightweight, set from, and forward of, the mizzen mast while reaching in light to moderate air.
Monkey fist - a ball woven out of line used to provide heft to heave the line to another location. The monkey fist and other heaving-line knots were sometimes weighted with lead.
Moor - to attach a boat to a mooring buoy or post. Also, to a dock a vessel.
Mooring - Permanent anchorage. It consists of a heavy weight (or an anchor), a chain of a certain length, and a buoy.
Nautical almanac - A book containing all current data: navigational, tidal, astronomical and so on, published annually.
Navigation rules - Rules of the road that provide guidance on how to avoid collision and also used to assign blame when a collision does occur.
Outhaul - A device located on the aft part of the boom , used to secure the clew , so that the foot is kept tense.
Overhead - Inside a boat, what, on land, would be called the "ceiling;" essentially, the bottom of the deck above you.
Pier - Usually a wooden structure (although it may be built from other materials) built over the water, used by boats for landing. Also called a “dock.”
Piling - A thick post supporting or mooring a dock or pier. It is deep inside the seabed, and it projects above the water level.
Pitch - A vessel's motion causing the fore and aft ends to rise and fall repetitively.
Pitchpole - To capsize a boat end over end, rather than by rolling over.
Pooped - to take a wave over the stern
Port - Towards the left-hand side of a boat (facing forward.)
Port Side - The boat's left side.
Port tack - When sailing with the wind coming from the port side of the vessel. Must give way to boats on starboard tack. When on a port tack, the sails are on the starboard side of a boat. During a sailboat race you will often hear and aggravated team yell, “STARBOARD” when they have ‘right-of-way’ over a boat which is not giving up their position.
Porthole or port - an opening in a ship's side, hinged to open for admitting light and air, fitted with thick glass or clear plastic.
Preventer (gybe preventer, jibe preventer) - A sail control line originating at some point on the boom leading to a fixed point on the boat's deck or rail (usually a cleat or pad eye) used to prevent or moderate the effects of an accidental jibe.
Propeller walk or, more commonly, prop walk - tendency for a propeller to push the stern sideways. A right hand propeller in reverse will walk the stern to port. This tendency can be used in lining up a single propped boat when maneuvering to enter his slip.
Radar - Acronym for RAdio Detection And Ranging. An electronic system designed to transmit radio signals and receive reflected images of those signals from a "target" in order to determine the bearing and distance to the "target".
Radar reflector - A special fixture fitted to a vessel or incorporated into the design of certain aids to navigation to enhance their ability to reflect radar energy. In theory, these fixtures will materially improve the visibility for use by vessels with radar.
Range - The distance between two objects (horizontally).
Range lights - Two lights associated to form a range (a line formed by the extension of a line connecting two charted points) which often, but not necessarily, indicates the channel centerline. The front range light is the lower of the two, and nearer to the mariner using the range. The rear light is higher and further from the mariner.
Ratlines - Rope ladders permanently rigged between stays.
Reaching - Sailing across the wind: from about 60° to about 160° off the wind. Reaching consists of "close reaching" (about 60° to 80°), "beam reaching" (about 90°) and "broad reaching" (about 120° to 160°). See also beating and running.
Ready about - A call to indicate imminent tacking (see going about or coming about)
Reef - (verb) to shorten sail usually by lashing a lower section of the sail to the boom. (Noun) a ridge of rock, sand, coral, etc., the top of which lies close to the sea’s surface
Reef points - Small lengths of cord attached to a sail, used to secure the excess fabric after reefing.
Relative bearing - A bearing relative to the direction of the ship: the clockwise angle between the ship's direction and an object. See also "absolute bearing" and "bearing".
Rigging - The system of masts and lines on ships and other sailing vessels.
Rode - A chain or rope (or combination of these) used to secure a boat’s anchor to the boat.
Roll - A vessel's motion rotating from side to side, about the fore-aft/longitudinal axis.
Rudder - underwater, movable plate beneath the stern of a boat used for steering, controlled by the helmsman with a tiller or a steering wheel.
Running before the wind or running - Sailing more than about about 160° away from the wind. If directly away from the wind, it's a dead run.
Running rigging - Rigging used to manipulate sails, spars, etc. in order to control the movement of the ship.
Magnetic north - The direction towards the magnetic north pole. Varies slowly over time.
Mainmast (or Main) - The tallest mast on a ship.
Mainsail - The largest sail. (Except for the spinnaker.)
Mainsheet - The line used to pull the mainsail in or let it out.
Marconi rig - Another term for bermudan rig. The mainsail is triangular, rigged fore-and-aft with the lead edge fixed to the mast. Refers to the similarity of the tall mast to a radio aerial.
Marina - a docking facility for small ships and yachts.
Mast - A vertical pole on a ship which supports sails or rigging.
Masthead - The top of the mast.
Mizzen - The sail set on the second (aftermost, or rear) mast - as on a ketch.
Mizzen staysail - Sail on a ketch or yawl , usually lightweight, set from, and forward of, the mizzen mast while reaching in light to moderate air.
Monkey fist - a ball woven out of line used to provide heft to heave the line to another location. The monkey fist and other heaving-line knots were sometimes weighted with lead.
Moor - to attach a boat to a mooring buoy or post. Also, to a dock a vessel.
Mooring - Permanent anchorage. It consists of a heavy weight (or an anchor), a chain of a certain length, and a buoy.
Nautical almanac - A book containing all current data: navigational, tidal, astronomical and so on, published annually.
Navigation rules - Rules of the road that provide guidance on how to avoid collision and also used to assign blame when a collision does occur.
Outhaul - A device located on the aft part of the boom , used to secure the clew , so that the foot is kept tense.
Overhead - Inside a boat, what, on land, would be called the "ceiling;" essentially, the bottom of the deck above you.
Pier - Usually a wooden structure (although it may be built from other materials) built over the water, used by boats for landing. Also called a “dock.”
Piling - A thick post supporting or mooring a dock or pier. It is deep inside the seabed, and it projects above the water level.
Pitch - A vessel's motion causing the fore and aft ends to rise and fall repetitively.
Pitchpole - To capsize a boat end over end, rather than by rolling over.
Pooped - to take a wave over the stern
Port - Towards the left-hand side of a boat (facing forward.)
Port Side - The boat's left side.
Port tack - When sailing with the wind coming from the port side of the vessel. Must give way to boats on starboard tack. When on a port tack, the sails are on the starboard side of a boat. During a sailboat race you will often hear and aggravated team yell, “STARBOARD” when they have ‘right-of-way’ over a boat which is not giving up their position.
Porthole or port - an opening in a ship's side, hinged to open for admitting light and air, fitted with thick glass or clear plastic.
Preventer (gybe preventer, jibe preventer) - A sail control line originating at some point on the boom leading to a fixed point on the boat's deck or rail (usually a cleat or pad eye) used to prevent or moderate the effects of an accidental jibe.
Propeller walk or, more commonly, prop walk - tendency for a propeller to push the stern sideways. A right hand propeller in reverse will walk the stern to port. This tendency can be used in lining up a single propped boat when maneuvering to enter his slip.
Radar - Acronym for RAdio Detection And Ranging. An electronic system designed to transmit radio signals and receive reflected images of those signals from a "target" in order to determine the bearing and distance to the "target".
Radar reflector - A special fixture fitted to a vessel or incorporated into the design of certain aids to navigation to enhance their ability to reflect radar energy. In theory, these fixtures will materially improve the visibility for use by vessels with radar.
Range - The distance between two objects (horizontally).
Range lights - Two lights associated to form a range (a line formed by the extension of a line connecting two charted points) which often, but not necessarily, indicates the channel centerline. The front range light is the lower of the two, and nearer to the mariner using the range. The rear light is higher and further from the mariner.
Ratlines - Rope ladders permanently rigged between stays.
Reaching - Sailing across the wind: from about 60° to about 160° off the wind. Reaching consists of "close reaching" (about 60° to 80°), "beam reaching" (about 90°) and "broad reaching" (about 120° to 160°). See also beating and running.
Ready about - A call to indicate imminent tacking (see going about or coming about)
Reef - (verb) to shorten sail usually by lashing a lower section of the sail to the boom. (Noun) a ridge of rock, sand, coral, etc., the top of which lies close to the sea’s surface
Reef points - Small lengths of cord attached to a sail, used to secure the excess fabric after reefing.
Relative bearing - A bearing relative to the direction of the ship: the clockwise angle between the ship's direction and an object. See also "absolute bearing" and "bearing".
Rigging - The system of masts and lines on ships and other sailing vessels.
Rode - A chain or rope (or combination of these) used to secure a boat’s anchor to the boat.
Roll - A vessel's motion rotating from side to side, about the fore-aft/longitudinal axis.
Rudder - underwater, movable plate beneath the stern of a boat used for steering, controlled by the helmsman with a tiller or a steering wheel.
Running before the wind or running - Sailing more than about about 160° away from the wind. If directly away from the wind, it's a dead run.
Running rigging - Rigging used to manipulate sails, spars, etc. in order to control the movement of the ship.
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