'Waves of Courage' is a short book written by Claud Sharp, Skipper of 'William Cantrell Ashley' and Second Coxswain of Scarborough Lifeboat, 'telling the tale,' in a sincere but not too serious fashion.
Price $8-90, US.
£5-70 UK. Euro 8-50.
UK and Euro at current rates of exchange with the US Dollar.
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ISBN 1 86029 065 5
'Claud Sharp is the Second Coxswain of Scarborough Lifeboat - having also served on the crew at Filey and Bridlington - and this slim volume makes compelling reading.'
'The most common question asked of lifeboatmen is, 'Why do you do it?' and it is this which Claud attempts to answer in a very modest and down to earth way. The result is an un-putdownable 54 pages of reminiscences. Some are tragic, some are humerous, some epics, some routine - but through them all runs the thread which answers that basic question.' - Lifeboat Magazine, August '97.
THE BOOK.
"Waves of Courage."
"The wind was terrific, rocking the boat - all twelve tons of it - on the carriage, as if it was a toy. When we tried to launch, the waves pushed us backwards right on top of the tractor, staving in the solid steel front. The next wave washed us off and the boat slowly clawed its way out to sea. It was impossible to tell where the snow stopped and the white water of giant waves started, and the falling snow made it impossible to see beyond the bow of the boat from the steering position."
"The waves were about 40 feet high - bigger than the
average house. At just 37 feet, our little boat struggled to
climb them. Almost vertical, the bow started to fall
backwards, sending a horrible feeling to the pit of your
stomach, then the engine power and the weight of the boat would force a passage through the wave. The boat would
break out of the crest and crash 40 feet down the other side. The motion was violent and within minutes our newly fitted radar and one of the two radios were smashed."
