WEDNESDAY, MAY 22, 2024
Ajit John
This is an interest which should be shared by every second Goan living in the State. It is the most obviously interesting thing to have, considering the fact there is water all over the place. One is not talking about swimming, which is a life skill but about sailing with wind power, a zero carbon footprint activity. That sadly is not the case. Swimming is not popular among Goans so then why would sailing be too.
Rui Lobo, who has been involved in sailing for decades having nurtured his love from the time he was in school, has much to say about sailing. He says, “Being a Cancerian, a water sign, the sea always attracted and fascinated me. In higher secondary school, we had a NCC Naval Unit, which I promptly enrolled in. The high point of the NCC experience was a sailing outing in a class of boats called ‘Whalers’. These were boats with oars and they had a basic rig to mount sails. We, the cadets, were taken for one outing with the sails set up. I prayed to the weather Gods that we would not have to row back if the wind shifted against us unfavourably. Little did I know that the physics of sail boats allows them to move towards any destination, regardless of
wind direction. You can sail with the wind or tack against it!.”
After completing BTech from IIT-B, he took a sabbatical in Panjim, Goa, indulging in his love of the sea - swimming, learning how to sail and figuring out a relatively new sport back in 1985 - called windsurfing; there were no trainers at that time. At the end of that sojourn, he returned to Bombay to take part in his first big race, the National Windsurfing Championship. He stayed on to join the rat race of his engineering career for a dozen years while nurturing his passion for sailing and water sports in Bombay. He maintains that contrary to the myth, leisure sailing can hardly be called an adventure sport because there is a minimal risk factor. The risk is in going out sailing when weather warnings are on. Ironically, the same experienced sailor who once warned him to ‘never get cocky with the sea’, took him out sailing once, when there was a storm brewing. It was certainly a close call.
He joined the Colaba Sailing Club, a subsidiary of the Royal Bombay Yacht Club, and participated with the Club’s sailboats in weekend regattas in the vicinity of Bombay harbour. During that time he also bought a windsurfer and enjoyed the freedom of practically walking on water; but that is another story. Over the years, he did three long distance sails from Bombay to Goa and back, and a lot of National race events. Now back in Goa, he enjoys leisure sailing once a week. He says, “It gives me immense pleasure to introduce friends and acquaintances to the joy of sailing. The sense of freedom of being one with the elements - sea, wind and sun without the constant hum of technology around us, far from the madding crowd, is unmatched for me. I love to share the joy of this experience with others.”
Sailing is an expensive sport. It attracts all kinds of people. Rainer Dias, who is a hotelier was attracted to the sport as a boy who grew up in Dona Paula. He says, “With water around me I was always involved in activities that involved water. I wish I could be still as active but a paucity of time means I don’t sail anymore. I was involved in windsurfing and won the Nationals and was then the coach of the Indian team. For the past 10 to 15 years, I have been more concerned with getting children involved in sailing. New sailors were not being created. It takes a while like 3 or 4 years to get competitive. As a member of the Goa Yachting Association committee, we have been successful in improving the infrastructure. We have the cooperation of the government which has helped us with new infrastructure for training. We will hopefully get a new coach from next season which is fantastic because we have not had a coach since 2008. This is not a cheap sport. We need a support boat going out with a new sailor and people.” Despite this he went on to say that Goa had fared quite well in the sport nationally.
Another passionate sailor is Siddharth Satardekar. He used to go sailing every week but after Covid it has reduced to once every two weeks. When asked why he loved sailing so much he gave a very clear and simple answer. He says, “It is very relaxing, there is no sound. Watching the water going past the boat and the wind going through the sails is so relaxing. I have not done any long distance sailing. I recently sailed from Agonda to Dona Paula. I have been sailing for ten years. As a child I had an affinity for water. I lived in Vasco and most of the training took place in Dona Paula. Once I started working I became part of the Goa Yachting Association and it has given me a chance to be part of the sailing world”.
It is not just him but his entire family that is involved in sailing. It usually is a family outing. He says, “People are scared of the water and this fear starts at childhood and the parents are responsible for this. Beaches had no life guards then but today they are there and the safety factor has increased ten times. I just attended a windsurfing camp with my son. The Goa Yachting Association conducts camps every month for children and adults. We lack infrastructure and we need places to park our boats.”
Dr Astrid Monteiro, who is the secretary of the Goa Yachting Association says she got involved after her son got interested. She does not sail but does everything to ensure the sport gets popular. The association organises camps regularly to ensure that the number of sailors increases. She says the cost of the sport meant many people stayed away but the camps were not expensive and were bringing in more sailors.
There are devoted fans of sailing in Goa and Atish Fernandes is one of them. Having started sailing as a boy he has been doing it for 40 years. Several of his uncles sailed and owned boats so it was but natural for him to join them. He now goes sailing once or twice a month. He started off going on weekends and it then turned into a passion. He has definite ideas on what needs to be done to make it popular. He says, “Accessibility is important to make it popular. The number of boats is limited and we need more knowledge. We need more schools. The Goa Yachting Association should do camps. Outreach programs would certainly help.”
With all that water around, sailing - as a sport or for recreation - is the one activity that is little known and has the potential to be developed as a way of life for Goan identity.
