European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 02, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Fancy Imp knots Byj. Kin Cruger Mediterranean bureaus avy Boatswain s males Al As Simonella in Sicily arc struggling to keep alive an ail that s As old As sailing itself. It s the weaving of threads line or knots into ornamental patterns some people might Call in macrame but sailors of the u s Navy who have  practising in for More than 200 years Call in Lanc work " Bosun s males Are us chief practitioners and they Uso it to orientate ceremonial areas aboard ships and to  the Admiral s barges and Captain s gigs Thoy inn i my work also kills Long hours at sea Becj in is Ilia Navy s oldest rating and bosons air the Scamon who work the open decks performing to Odilion Al Sailor s chores you can spot Bosun s mates by the Paul on their clothes mid potty of Liccar 2nd class Eldon l Schneck.31.a Bosun like other bosons Schnuck proudly says he is a Jack of nil Liades it Opl look upon us As stevedores bul we Are a lol More to Are trained to drive boats to paint and varnish to fibreglass and to do any kind of rigging and Lino  said the Sid Cal of Colorado Springs Colo to said most of the Knols he uses in his Lanc work Are simple knots any Sailor learns in boo Camp. I use those Knols every Day in rigging to Oll Load cargo they May save my life or someone else  said Schneck. Who is assigned to Simonella s port Liaison off Tco Schnock 5 biggest fancy took project was the year Long 1,-ir.k of refurbishing the Quarterdeck aboard the earner Constellation  work is the most demanding because everyone sees your work and your mistakes Schnuck who entered Iho Navy 12 years ago. Said so Spiotta Gary Miller an example of celtic Knotting on the Quarterdeck at the Naples naval support activities Headquarters. He s been doing knots since he was a boy All lines Are different and have different qualities. I store the line i use for fancy knot work in plastic bags they keep the line fresher and easier to work  he said to can lie about 100 different kinds of knots without having to think about How to do them. I used to to Able to do about 200 of them but not anymore he said Schneck said Iho number of sailors who can still do fancy work is in tiled because a person not Only has to have a Knack for it. Bul a lot of patience Loo. The Art of Lanc work is dying out with Tho younger sailors they Don t really want to get into it and they Don t ask to be taught fancy work has been passed on by generations of bosons it s All out. You can l learn it out of a Book someone has to show you or it never comes out  he said some Guys never gel Tho hang of in. If you Don t have Iho Palienco you la never be Able to do in Schneck added Petty officer 2nd class Eldon Schneck above demonstrates a knotty problem. At left a rope formed into a double chinese weave. Erma Bombeck throughout the years i have eliminated from my life one sport alter another it began Vilh skiing when i did t see the Wisdom of pursuing any Typo of recreation where an  parked Al the Bottom of the Hill synchronized swimming did t do in for me either As my Best feature is my nose and i Don t necessarily need a nose plug attached to it i discovered Lens to be a sport that attracted people you could t Trust one minute they suited when you serve lipped the net and shouted. Take Vivo " tin next they purposely slammed a Ball into the opposite court from where you were standing wailing font people a Tio hop on a luge and Bounce along out of control at 80 Mph on a Sheet of ice Are just real strange and beside., my stomach Sticks out ,. Even when i lie on my Back. You May nov Adel Tock climbing to my list. I remember the first time i saw a Rock climber on television. He weighed about 38 pounds and Lor no reason began to scale a perfectly vertical slab of Rock. Iii had velcro hands and Robert Bedford was hosting an Amway party Al the lop you could t have gotten me to do that. You can imagine my Surprise when i read a Story the other Day that said climbers Are now using artificial Walls to eliminate environmental  i care about this planet As much As the next person bul How Many people do you know who go out on sunday and hang onto a piece of Rock with their fingernails five ten Twenty Are we talking crowds Here there could t be More than a handful with that kind of guts and that does t exactly add up to Rock gridlock. There Are fears that go with every sport fear of having your Bowling Ball Bounce into the next Lane. Fear of knocking your Tennis Ball into the club dining room. Fear of having a leg cramp playing goofy Golf. And fear of being the Only person Ever to ride a chair lilt All Day without gelling off once. But Rock climbing i did t figure on being afraid i d destroy the Environ men. I would prefer to wonder what would happen if you reached for a Little Bolt to hang onto the Rock and it turned out to be a Snake s head. What happens if you gel Halfway up and yur shoestring comes untied i m sorry bul i want a sport where i can show my broken Nail to someone without having it be my last words. As for adventure appearing in aerobics in a yellow Leotard is As crazy As i want to get. C Erma  1989 Page 16 the stars and stripes monday october 2,1989