Notes Apparent—& Building · 12 and counting

Deepenthe sailorwithin

Welcome to Sail Lore

How sail knowledgeleads toself-knowledge.

I’m Stefan Bielski — ASA-certified instructor and race coach, Annapolis and Banderas Bay. Sail Lore began in 2023 as a shingle to hang out; a Seabbatical during the pandemic turned it into something closer to a serendipity engine — coaching, crew matchmaking, and a standing interest in another rail to sit on.

Bio: my sailing background
Sample Services: how I could help you
Seasaurus: sailing’s many synonymous terms
Notes Apparent: …and finally, the part of this site I’ve come to put the most thought into

lore /lôr/ · noun · archaic

somethingthat is taught:workmanship

also

1a particular body of knowledge or tradition
2something that is learned through study or experience

from Old English lār “learning, what is taught, knowledge, science, doctrine; art or act of teaching”

More Lore — four kinds of knowing

apparent /əˈperənt/ · adjective

Apparent is not true.

Apparent wind is the wind you feel on deck — the true wind, plus the wind your own motion makes. It is the only wind you can feel, and it is never the real one. Your telltales show apparent. Your cheek shows apparent. True has to be inferred.

Trim to apparent. Navigate by true.

True: 12.0 kt · 090°
Apparent: 12.0 kt · 090°
Divergence: 0°

Scroll. The boat accelerates; the true wind never moves.

“All knowledge leads to self-knowledge.”
Bruce Lee

About the series

12* Notes
Apparent—& Building

This section/series contains some brief attempts to explain connections, epiphanies and other ideas I’ve noted while sailing.

Some came from conversations: trying to explain things to my sailing students and racing coachees, conversing with other crew members, or interacting with parts of the boat. Others originate in inner dialogues: manning 3 a.m. watches alone during crossings and even sitting on the rail while racing provided me device-free time for deep thinking.

Also, I try to cross-fertilize and synthesize ideas from my other businesses/projects.

Cross-fertilized withProfessions on Purpose Cross-fertilized withF.A.R.M.

The numeral preceding “Notes” reflects my current number of entries.

Written for sailors,open to landlubbers.

While the intended audience here is primarily those that have at least some appreciation and understanding of sailing, I hope others can use them as an entry into nautical worlds. I plan to work on “Landlubbers Lore” introductions to explain nautical terms & processes to a broader audience.

Cross-fertilizing knowledge through simplification, systemization, translation, and metaphor is a worthwhile challenge, I find.

There’s a scene in HBO’s The Wire that I hope to emulate. In it, the character D’Angelo, disappointed to see his less-educated cadre in the hood playing checkers with chess pieces—explains the rules of chess to them. Meanwhile, he simultaneously explains the dynamics of drug dealing to the show’s audience.

The wind is building.

Read the notes

Notes Apparent—& BuildingStefan Bielski

Notes published

Newest: ZAFL Skills
In draft: 1
Lore domains: 24
Series: Ongoing

The (k)notes

Boat Sitting | Deliveries | Coaching | Teaching

Partnering? I’d love to talk.

Email: [email protected]

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References (local and relevant): available upon request.

Conflict statement: I receive no commissions, referral fees, nor have any financial interest in any related industry.

12Resilience · Skills

ZAFL Skills

Apparent: Your résumé says what you are worth.
True: When it actually matters it is fix and food. Nobody's ZAFL wants your follower count.

I have come to value what I like to call “ZAFL” (Zombie Apocalypse Friend List) skills. Basically, if the proverbial sh*t hits the fan, for what would others want me on their team?

It ain’t going to be for my cocktail party wit nor for my ability to get to the crux of a messy career transition. For you, it’s not going to be your credentials nor your SEO skills nor your social media follower count nor your status in your industry.

The most fundamental revolve around fix and food, I reckon. Fix: heal people, repair things. Food: grow, fish, hunt and gather, prepare, store (includes hide from competing ZAFLs). Other nice-to-haves include: Communicate — ham radio will be King, I predict, assuming the internet is toast — and language skills. Construct — shelter, protective barriers, floating vessels even if only a raft.

ZAFL is both a heuristic and more broadly a thought experiment. Ask not just what your ZAFL can do for you, but what you could do for your ZAFL. The heuristic has two parts: what do you want of and from them, and what would they want from me?

ZAFL diversity differs greatly from what HR means by diversity. It would have a lot more tradesmen than does my current cohort of friends and acquaintances. While that ratio hasn’t yet changed, I found myself talking more to them and more broadly the practically minded.

This is open to apocalyptic scenarios of all types: war, climate disaster, alien invasion, deadly pathogen, AI-robot alliance. Since I spend considerable time sailing — and that’s when I encounter the most remote landscapes — I conjure a mashup of a Robinson Crusoe / Gilligan’s Island shipwreck during a solar flare storm that knocks out StarLink, navigation equipment, and maybe even ham radio.

DIY or DIE. Most drivers today know how to change a tire in theory, but probably most have never done so alone. Specialization markets break down when sailing long distance. Far from civilization and help, I saw how you need to be able to do these things for yourself. You need to own the tools—and how to use them—before you need them. Plus, there’s the need to improvise and be resourceful.

Knowing what to gather is an underrated skill. The original wisemen of tribal societies knew what plants had nutritional value, which could poison you. We can still see this connection in the similarity of words like taste and wise in various languages: savoir/saber, sabor.

Read on sail-lore.com