Bermuda Sun – August 9th 2006

Getting into the Spirit of 19th Century sailing life
By B. Candace Ray

Have you ever wondered what it was like for the island's sailors in times long past? Soon, you'll be able to get some first-hand experience.

Bermuda's 19th Century design sail-training vessel, STV Spirit of Bermuda, is being launched in Rockport, Maine, at 2.30pm this Sunday.

"We think Spirit will make you proud," Bermuda Sloop Foundation (BSF) Executive Director Malcolm Kirkland said. "She has been described as 'vivid' in the sense of the ship as an exciting learning venue and a living icon of Bermuda's world class maritime heritage."

A clean and efficient Bermuda-rigged sloop with a 'Bermudian' or 'Ballyhou' schooner hull, the Spirit, according to Mr. Kirkland, is based on ships built here between 1820 and 1850.

"They were used by the Royal Navy as sloops of war and by civilian Bermudians for the carrying trades," he said. "And they were innovative historically because, for the first time, you see the Bermuda rig, the triangular sail on a blue water vessel."

"After the British were no longer fighting the Americans (in) the War of 1812 and no longer fighting the French, they commissioned the fleet to attack the slave trade," Mr. Kirkland said. "We documented Bermuda-built sloops of war arresting slave ships in the Caribbean and off the West Coast of Africa."

The Spirit of Bermuda was built according to American Bureau of Shipping standards and will operate under the U.K.'s Marine Coastal Agency. It has a deck measuring 88' by 23', a navigation station that's 11' deep and galley that supports several cooks at once. Its 9.6' draught permits entry to Castle Roads and access around the West End.

One for the youngsters

Young people aged 14-to-21-years-old will get hands-on training that combines elements of Bermuda's maritime past with the skills required for the 21st Century.

The public schools' M-3 programme will take precedence, for government, according to Mr. Kirkland, is a major sponsor of this year-round marine classroom. Additionally, however, private schools, Outward Bound students, Duke of Edinburgh Award candidates, Bermuda Sea Cadets and youths identified by the BSF Direct Reach Initiative will be targeted for extracurricular initiatives.

Traditional sail training, formal experiential learning and personal teen development will be coupled with the fun and excitement of being on the ocean and exposed to old world Bermudian expertise of which many youngsters would not otherwise be aware.

The schools' programme is a one-off introduction to the sea, while the Skiller Team Programme is high school-periodic. Following a five-day learning expedition and over the course of their secondary education, teens will feature in a timetable packaged according to The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens.

'Where are we on Planet Earth?' is the all-embracing question students will ask themselves, according to Mr. Kirkland.

"It gets into geology, geography, oceanography, atmospheric science, history (and) culture," he said.

'Who am I? How do I fit into Bermuda's future? What are my strengths and talents?' become the ultimate queries from which conclusions drawn from the sail training experience will offer direction and bolster the sailors' self-confidence.

"After the initial five-day voyage, they will have to select a major in one of the operational skill areas on the vessel," he said. "The boat is replete with systems - sewage, water-making, propulsion, electrical generation, telecommunications."

Learning will follow one of 26 National Training Board (NTB) pathways, and through commitment, result at age 18 in the student's certification in his or her chosen area.

Up to 1,500 young people per year can be accommodated in the one-day, weekend and team events.

The vessel's motto, according to Mr. Kirkland, is: "We take care of everybody else. We are all crew. There are no passengers."

The Spirit of Bermuda will also be positioned for charter, according to Mr. Kirkland, who said:

"We will condense (the exploratory questions) and make it much more recreational - from crewed chartering to soft adventure to formal team training." Beginning this fall, charters will be geared to 12-at-a-time expat professionals paying $300 per person per day for a Friday pm to Sunday pm experience.

Bermudian, Captain Mark Soares will take responsibility for the charters, while senior captain designate, Chris Blake is the ship's master.

"The main purpose of the charter business is to subsidize the youth programmes," Mr. Kirkland said. In fact, a delivery crew devoid of directors will undertake the maiden voyage.

Three permanent crew and six Bermudians, including two who have sailed on the slave ship replica, Amistad will man the vessel.

And in a collaboration between the Bermuda Sloop Foundation and West End Development Corporation (WEDCO), Spirit of Bermuda will make her home port and marine land base at Dockyard.

"We bring value to WEDCO, and they bring value to us by providing protected berthing and a discount on accommodations for the captain," Mr. Kirkland said.

Spirit of Bermuda will be introduced to Bermudians on a geographical basis - Somerset to St. George's - with a series of three to four-hour sailings reminiscent of a coming out party.

And having received invitations to participate in their tall ship celebration from the Mayors of Charleston, South Carolina and Norfolk, Virginia, the STV Spirit of Bermuda appears to have already been recognized for the recall she affects of the island's maritime history and commencement of a 'new' heritage tradition.

Look for STV Spirit of Bermuda to arrive in September.