The unscrupulous individuals engaged in shanghaiing were called crimps hence crimping is synonymous with shanghaiing. It was most likely called “shanghaiing” because at the time a lot of ships simply sailed to Shanghai. In essence, you would be tricked (at best as some were just kidnapped) into contracting with the Navy for your services. It is called shanghaiing or crimping and was a common practice to combat an enormous labour shortage in the navies around the world. However, the origin of “ bottoms up” is much more sinister. So to cut a long story short, the brandy was in all likelihood sucked out of the barrel during the trip by the crew and that is simply too disgusting to ever forget!īottoms up! A cheerful gesture in today’s language encouraging your mate to finish his drink already so you can order another one… Looking around for answers to solve this mystical disappearance of alcohol, they found most of the crew looking relatively happy with themself with rather glazed over eyes.

“I have an idea, let’s double him over and stuff him in one of the barrels of brandy so the alcohol will preserve him and all will be okay.” “Smithy, that is a great idea: make it happen.” Up to now, the story is a bit bizarre but it was 1805 after all so what the heck, let’s just accept it…īut then the story becomes a bit creepy because when they arrived in Gibraltar to take a still fine-looking Horatio out of the barrel, they discovered that the brandy was gone. Now, remember Lord Nelson and his glorious demise at the battle of Trafalgar in 1805 where his fleet defeated the Frenchies and Spainyards off the coast of Spain? So he died during the battle and the rest of the fleet wanted to bring their hero back to England but they were a long way from home and corpses do not last very long in the sun so a solution needed to be found. So in modern-day language, if you are “tapping the Admiral” you are stealing booze often by using a straw or any such acts that falls within a broader scope. “Real boats sail offshore.Okay, this one is a bit obscure and to be honest, rather disturbing. “Offshore is a state of mind, like the difference between a sprinter and a long-distance runner,” he said. The 400 sailors who headed to Kerry this week are certain to have enjoyed the fast conditions and Ryan reckons the organisers of next June’s Round Ireland should have no difficulty achieving their goal of 60-70 entries.Īnd still Ryan harks back to the golden era of offshore racing when crews might head off of a Thursday evening to thrash about the Irish Sea before returning home on the Sunday as being the essence of the sport. However, he points to the record turnout of 43 boats for this week’s race, while the Rolex Fastnet Race in August – for which the D2D is a qualifying event – almost instantly had 500-plus boats registered in January. Ron O'Hanley's Cookson 50 Privateer passing the Muglins Rock at the start of the Volvo Dun Laoghaire to Dingle Race. Ryan says he is personally pessimistic that offshore racing may have hit a plateau, perhaps at risk of losing a critical mass for routine events and the knock-on effect on loss of experience and skills. Ryan does also highlight the cyclical nature of the lifelong sport with people returning perhaps after rearing families leading to a multi-generational effect. It’s an issue that causes some boat-owners to become disillusioned and drop out of offshore racing – or sailing altogether. “You can still get a reasonable entry level but you may not know it until the day.” “Now everyone is a weather expert and on a Monday are looking ahead to the weekend and make other plans if a blow is likely,” he said. Photograph: David Branigan/Oceansportīut lifestyle changes have brought challenges for boat owners and crews alike, and while higher profile events like the D2D create great enthusiasm, numbers for regular races are a struggle in terms of securing enough crew and, in turn, achieving good turnouts. “Holyhead was a breeding ground for offshore sailing and an ideal race destination.”įrank Whelan's Greystones entry Opal passing Dalkey Island at the start of the Volvo Dun Laoghaire to Dingle Race. “We hit an absolute peak before Covid then we were hit by the loss of Holyhead Marina followed by the pandemic,” he explained to The Irish Times. Yet, sustaining interest in offshore racing closer to the grassroots and club levels of the sport is facing into new challenges according to 20-year veteran organiser Peter Ryan, chairman of the Irish Sea Offshore Racing Association.

Sailing slang