Remember steaming in to port while manning the rails?!? San Diego… the land of Nautical Navy nonsense and rarely condoned activity… and there we were… the Navy’s finest in all our glory!! We managed quite an attractive curiosity while manning rails on this particular two hour tour of spectacular stupidity!!!
Manning the rails is a method of rendering honors used by naval vessels throughout the Navy! The custom evolved from that of manning the yards, which dates from the days of sail!! On the ol’ wooden ships, iron men stood evenly spaced on all the yards (the spars holding the sails) and gave three cheers to honor distinguished persons of honor!! Today the crew is stationed along the rails and superstructure of a ship when honors are rendered!!!
Unsurprisingly... well, it's no fun! You stand there for hours shak’n a leg trying to get the cramps out as you try to stay still and frigid keeping that brave appearance of a full ship’s compliment on deck projecting pride and professionalism!! But I’ll bet nine out of ten sailors can’t stand manning the rails!! That's why they’re so happy to oblige the special sea & anchor detail ping’n their eyeballs off the radar console... Any other time they would bitch about that!!!
Sometimes while manning the rails it could be frigid enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey as they say! I’m talk’n about pecker shrink’n frigid!! Especially in the dead of winter pulling into Bremerton, Washington with the cold rain bearing down like ice picks on the steel deck!! Other times it could be hotter than a whore house on nickle night!! The nylon material of those dress whites could feel like an aluminum foil sweater in the heat of high noon in Death Valley, not to mention the oven skillets we call corframs baking our feet to the nonskid! Try doing that for four hours on a long sea & anchor detail!!!
But as Crackerjacks always do, we survived and took the usual gab about what we were all about to do once we got ashore while taking center stage! Seeing friends and family, finding the nearest watering hole, carousing with the finest wimmins and eating a good dinner were all subjects of conversation!! Then came the call to attention over the ships loud speaker as the sea & anchor detail prepared the mooring lines!! We could see the approaching pier or quay wall... sometimes looked close enough to jump off and make a run for it!!!
Conversely speaking, on one particular day onboard the ‘Chucky V’… we had the most memorable manning the rails of all time! Somewhere’s around the spring of 1993 as we were pulling into San Diego for much needed liberty, as we were rounding the horn of North Island ready to approach the quay wall!! Just as the ship pulled in with tug boats on all sides, a small motorboat drove up our port side about 50 to 100 yards from the bow and had five bodaciously topless young beauties on its forecastle holding up a sign for the Déjà vu Gentlemen’s Club!! Just as we were mooring to the pier they all turned around and gave us a big juicy moon!! OOOH Yaaa….. everyone was whistling & hoot’n holler’n… it was quite a celebration!! The Officer On Deck (OOD) had to tell everyone to settle down and get back into ranks!!!
After going below deck our Divo who was an old salty Warrant says…
“Ya’ll look as excited as a bunch a blind queers in a hot dog factory! What the hell’s got ya’ll grinn’n like a cat eatin' shit out of a hairbrush?”
That ol’ fart was a riot! He could be mean as hell but he always knew how to makes us laugh!! Rest assured the Déjà vu Gentlemen’s Club got plenty of patronage from the “Chucky V.” And needless to say, it was a very interesting welcome ashore!!!
At times there was no better job in the entire world better being a Crackerjack Sailor while manning the rail! Well, maybe it's number two behind being Hugh Hefner or Larry Flynt… you can have your soft porn or you can have it hard… take your pick!! There ain’t nothing like paradise where the female cohabitants are all butt nekkit with perky tits!!!
Back in 1991, after my ship the USS Marvin Shields (FF-1066) came back from Desert Storm we were granted a trip to the Portland Rose Festival. We picked up my Grandfather, my uncle (who were old salts), my mother, my little sister and a couple of cousins (one of who is now a submariner) in Astoria to make the 6 hour journey up the Columbia. While most of the trip upriver was uneventful, it wasn't until we got into downtown Portland and the Nav let me go so I could hang out with my family. As I stood along the helo nets with my Grandfather and Uncle (luckily everyone else was one the opposite side of the flight deck) we noticed a couple of boats full mostly filled with women...bearing breasts and beaver and the only thing they were missing was that damn brass pole. I turned and smiled at my Grandfather, he hung his head down and I could see a smile from the side of his face clear as day. He piped up and said "Damn the Navy hasn't changed much in 46 years." My uncle said..."don't tell my wife or she'll never go a cruise with me."
ReplyDeleteBrian Wool
QM1
I remember that trip like it was yesterday
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ReplyDeleteWe had some guys come in their Speed Boat in Port Everglades Florida (Ft Lauderdale)With there wives or girlfriends and the girls pulled of their tops off and the guys ask if wanted to buy them. Many a Sailor Reached for there money in their socks or breast pocket. The Guys realized the sailors were serious and sped off in a hurry. Some us laughing are asses off and other standing there full of testosterone and could do nothing about it. Funny Shit.
ReplyDeleteI remember pulling into Perth on the Big E in 86. Boats filled with women, most of them topless. My long lense provided great photos, but I no longer have them. Great cruise!
ReplyDeleteI was on that deployment, USS FLINT, AE-32. We pulled in and some women were on the quay wall topless with a big sign. Don't know what the sign said but those bobbies were doing all the talking.
DeleteI was on that deployment, USS FLINT, AE-32. We pulled in and some women were on the quay wall topless with a big sign. Don't know what the sign said but those bobbies were doing all the talking.
DeleteI was on the Forrestal in 86 when she pulled into Cannes France. A few days after our arrival they were having a regatta and they changed the route to include the FID. I got stuck with a watch that day and had to spend four hours checking out the boats that were near by for anybody having any weapons. I didn't see any weapons, but, when we were done the Marine I stood the watch with almost got into a fight with his relief. He told the relief to get lost that he would take his watch. The other Marine took one look at what was on the boats around us and said "No #*5kin way!" I took off because I was allowed to go ashore after standing my watch because I was subbing in for a guy who was in Medical and it wasn't my duty day.
ReplyDeleteWinter of '68 the Josephus Daniels went to Sydney on the way home from a deployment. Winter in Australia is like summer here, so it was 100° in the shade, and bikini time on all the small craft welcoming us to the harbor. Long time manning the rail there wasn't so bad!
ReplyDeleteI was on that deployment, USS FLINT, AE-32. We pulled in and some women were on the quay wall topless with a big sign. Don't know what the sign said but those bobbies were doing all the talking.
ReplyDeletePort Everglades was always fun. Girls in boat going past while we were tied. Never failed to give good flashing.
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