I've been meaning to post something about this boat for a while. Becca's Baby Sloop. It was not the first sailing boat I came across in SL. I already knew the Shelly and the Fizz. However, the Baby Sloop was my first boat using Becca's BWind system, and it sorta started a wave of new and exciting sailing boats in SL. So it is a historic boat in some way.
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| Me and Xanadusu in the Baby Sloop. |
I logged in to say hi to friends and maybe sail a little, and this guy - Xanadusu was in bad need of a sailing course. I had one in my backpack, but he insisted that practice is needed too. So we set sail, and went for a training session. Normally, I'd prefer the
Shelly Fizz, because it has telltales and a really good windvane, i.e. it is more realistic. But, - Xanadusu just got the Baby Sloop, and it is simpler. Fewer things to worry about. By the way, Ivie was there too, eagerly motoring about in a Trudeau boat of sorts. It's the boat in the background.
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| South of Tradewinds; North of Schiffsratten. |
We sailed around, - ehm... it took a few minutes to get out of the marina, because well... easterly winds. I talked and explained about trimming, and how you cannot sail directly upwind, and after a few minutes Xanadusu actually was sailing. Well done. The Baby Sloop worked perfectly for a training session; Rudder on left / right and sheets on up down. Capiche? Oh, and smooth simcrossing, low lag and no crashes. The trademarks of the BWind.
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| Tradewinds ahead. |
After a few more minutes, Xanadusu spotted the island up ahead on starboard side, and we moored there, to see the sights. Sand, seagulls and a hut. Quite nice actually. I went on about the hundreds if not thousands of islands just waiting to be explored in and around the Blake Sea, Fruit Islands and more, and I think Xanadusu was bitten by the bug, - the sailing explorer bug. The BWind? It is being improved, stabilized and enhanced in many ways, and rumours has it, that a new and exciting version is coming up.
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| Looking forward to the new version |
Did I mention the Baby Sloop is available for free at
Tradewinds Yacht Club?
Why do I always like stopping in for the views in Second Life and why do I never think of anything to say?
ReplyDeleteThe pictures simply leave you speechless..? On this particular post you're excused ;-) It is a little too technical for my blog. Eventually I will be in a race somewhere, resulting in pure sailing posts with questions for Matt from Unruly.
ReplyDeleteIf I would only understand one word from you comment, Noodle. This SL thing seems to be beyond my imagination, though there is a great variety in boats and some I really like and would add to my collection ..ha ha ..
ReplyDeleteHad an amazing Moth session in my RL yesterday evening from 9pm till 10pm. Just the last tack before the weather mark during my training sessions always went wrong, sometimes I even splashed and I thought that I would not have got wet in your world...
True. SL is beyond imagination. I was very skeptical, when I logged in for the first time. I still am, but the sailing keeps getting better and better.
ReplyDeleteSailing in SL was not built in from the start. It was retrofittet. The boats sail due to a piece of software inside the boat that emulates the physics of sailing; We call that the sailing engine.
The post about the Baby Sloop mentions one of those engines, but it is rather geeky. Actually it is way too geeky for my blog, and I would definately not expect RL-ers to understand it. So - in the future - no more techie-mumbo-jumbo from me.