>>I just today got the time to sit down and read this, and just now
>>started the sailboat scene, and damn.
>>
>>*wince* doesn't even BEGIN to describe it.
>
>Ice dodging is a very-well-calibrated way of measuring the brass
>content of balls, yes.

That's one way to put it.

If they were anything less than -master- sail-handlers, or action-movie protagonists (the latter of which they are, fortunately for all involved), I would describe the entire concept as "actively suicidal, of the Darwin Award variety".

I know a lot of very experienced sailors who simply will not go out in otherwise-ideal conditions with 20-25 knot winds, because you're edging onto ranges where the wind is really outmuscling anything you can do in the way of sail-handling, especially on a small open hull. The boat is going to be extraordinarily hard to handle, and any crew is going to come home with bruises, muscle strains, hypothermia, frostbite, and generally in need of some serious TLC.

Brass balls? Sorry. Vibranium at the very least.