Gilligan wrote:
RB Wrong!

http://www.franksingleton.clara.net/beaufort.html


RB never really said anything specific, only a very subjective
observation - the wind was "near perfect" and "a good breeze." He
even showed the airport wind which was under 10 knots, up to 14 knots,
as some sort of proof that this was a "good breeze." The wind near
his slip was even lighter than that.

As for the Beaufort Scale and wave height, that can only be used
reliably in a fully developed sea where there is enough fetch and time
for the wave to achieve their full potential. For example, according
to Bowditch, for the seas to develop to 90% in a Force 5 would take 12
hours if there is unlimited fetch, or a fetch of 60 miles if there's
unlimited time. RB doesn't have more the 10 miles fetch from any
direction except a narrow slot to the north-east, and the night before
the wind had been light, so the seas were pretty flat. The result is
that even if it had blown up a bit, the seas would still be pretty flat.

On the other hand, it doesn't take long for a representative sample of
the final number of waves to emerge - even in a Force 4, it only takes
a few hours and a fetch of 5-10 miles for there to be some
whitecaps, though they will not be "numerous." It clear from the
picture the wind had stayed closer to 10 knots than 15.

So what we have here is RB's claim that it was a "good breeze," enough
to heel over a "very stiff boat." And he posts pictures and a weather
report that indicate 8 to 14 knots, although a closer report indicates
it wasn't even that strong. Thus, RB's ideal sailing conditions are
flat seas, 10 knot breeze.