{"id":1849,"date":"2018-04-09T13:13:25","date_gmt":"2018-04-09T20:13:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tradewindssailing.com\/wordpress\/?p=1849"},"modified":"2018-04-09T13:13:25","modified_gmt":"2018-04-09T20:13:25","slug":"get-a-knife-keep-it-ready","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tradewindssailing.com\/wordpress\/general\/get-a-knife-keep-it-ready\/","title":{"rendered":"Get a Knife! Keep it Ready!"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’ve only been sailing for about 20 percent of my life.\u00a0 Not much when you think about it.\u00a0 I was actually a late comer into the sport.\u00a0 However, one thing I have learned is the importance of having a knife available within easy reach.\u00a0 I think the most important lesson I’ve learned is that when you need a knife, you need it now, not a “let me get a knife from below” amount of time, but now … and lives may depend on it.\u00a0 In one case that comes immediately to mind, somehow a line got wrapped around someones upper leg.\u00a0 No one really knows how.\u00a0 Unfortunately that line was under a lot of pressure, and the leg was at risk.\u00a0 Some quick work cutting the line with an available knife relieved the pressure, but not before enough damage was done to a blood vessel in the leg that surgery was required.\u00a0 I can only imagine what might have happened after a minute or two of pressure.\u00a0 Enough of the scare tactics.\u00a0 Its time to move on to what I believe makes a good knife.<\/p>\n

Much of this tip is my own personal opinion, however, based on the research into the topic I have conducted, it’s supported by most of the experts in the sailing community.<\/p>\n

I never step on a boat without at least one knife on my person.\u00a0 Generally, two or three of them.\u00a0 Why? Because there is no such thing as the perfect all round knife good for everything.\u00a0 The knife that is perfect for safety cutting a line on a pitching deck is going to be less than perfect at removing that same line from around a propeller shaft, and will fail dismally at cleaning that fish you just caught for dinner or for buttering your bread for dinner (I know, not an emergency, and you have time to look for a better option.)<\/p>\n

There are two basic types of knives.\u00a0 Folding knives and fixed blade knives.\u00a0 Everyone has there own opinion of which is best.\u00a0 For a variety of reasons, folding knives are the more popular.\u00a0 Not necessarily better, but more popular.\u00a0 For example, 4 inch blade on a folding knife fits in a 4 1\/2 inch package.\u00a0 4 inches on a fixed blade comes with a 4 inch handle, nearly doubling it size. On the other hand, a 4 inch fixed blade worn on the hip can be deployed in a matter of a second or two using either hand, whereas a folding blade knife generally needs to be fished from a pocket and then opened, often requiring two hands.\u00a0 Once you have decided on folding vs. fixed, the following features can be found in both varieties.<\/p>\n