INS Tarangini - Tacking For A Broader Reach : Stay at Kristiansand 28 Jul

Before departing Plymouth the ship had Midshipmen Frederich Flood and Christopher Windle from the Britannia Royal Naval College. They were the first of many that the ship is scheduled to embark for training from many other countries. So, immediately on arrival the two Midshipmen put to task. After a welcome address by the Captain they were conducted around the ship by the Divisional Officer. Practical aspects of sailing was explained to them which included sail evolutions and the organization onboard. The midshipmen performed the duties of Midshipman of the Watch during the watches.

Midshipman Frederich Flood And Christofer Windle Learning Chart Work

During the past three months the ship had been working hard to get ‘Race Ready’, both materially and as a team. The passage from Plymouth to Kristiansand gave us an opportunity to take that to whole new level. The crew was divided into two watches and the rig was pushed to its maximum limits to ascertain what best could be achieved from the ship. Excellent winds and an enthusiastic crew took this “Old Lady’ to a sustained speed of 12.5 knots with winds of 24 knots. As we wanted to test the sustainability of two watch system during the race, especially in this cold and almost always rainy climate, we continued to push. She logged an average speed of 10.7 knots for a period of three days. Every day we would spend a few hours practicing Tacks and Wears, fine tuning Race Starts and then get back to racing.

12.5 Knots – Fastest So Far

The race was between the two watches. A formula was devised to ascertain which watch sailed better, after catering for, the prevailing winds, distance covered in the watch, distance covered in the direction of the next wave point, the tidal pattern and the current in the region. Watches were given some leeway in case of fog and low visibility, however rain and the bone chilling cold was no excuse.

Bow Wave At 10.7 Knots

After having reached the outskirts of Kristiansand a day and a half early we used the opportunity to prepare here for the festivities alongside. She was thus bathed, painted, brassoed, greased, varnished and the bathed some more. She was finally dressed over all while the crew manned the ship’s side for ‘Man and Cheership’ during the entry into Kristiansand, which was mired with strong winds and heavy rain.

Sailing Full And By

Entering Harbour Kristiansand

On Air Chief Marshal Nak Brown (Retd) Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Norway visited the ship. The Ambassador had a walk around of the ship. Thereafter the ambassador addressed Sea Trainees and the crew of the ship. He congratulated the ship’s company for the voyage so far and wished the best for upcoming events. During the address he also shared his experiences during his tenure as the Air Chief. On completion of the address he interacted with ship’s company and Sea Trainees.

Air Chief Marshal (Retd) Nak Brown Ambassador Of India Addressing The Crew

A host of Crew Games were organized for the Tall Ships on 26 Jul 15 from 0900 hrs to 1200 hrs. Sea trainees and the ship’s crew actively took part in various games like beach volley, street basket and Steeplechase. To further the cause of friendship across the oceans all teams were mixed and Tarangini Team thus had Norwegians and Dutch playing as part of our team while the Sea Trainees from the ship played in their teams.

Beach Volley Ball as Part Of Crew Games

A Crew Parade of all the participating ships was held from Kristiansand City Square to the Main stage in the port area. The ship paraded two contingents. A marching contingent of Officers and sea trainees and a contingent of ship’s company dressed in traditional wear representing different states of India.

Crew Parade at Kristiansand

The crew of the ship had created a two minute continuity drill for the marching contingent. This drill was practiced at sea and then finally fine tuned on the jetty at Kristiansand. The ship’s marching contingent which was lead by the “Nishaan Toli” in full ceremonials, with the Bugler playing and the Sea Trainees singing along has been a big hit with the spectators. Even the crew from other ships stopped during the parade to watch our drill.