Yeah, me too. When I was a kid it was in the history books at school. But nowadays nobody wants to to remember that that was a part of our history because the "wicked" sailors were hunting the whales to extinction. And true there are some who still hunt whales that should be stopped. But a hundred and eighty years ago it was an honest but dangerous trade.
So for those who might be interested. Nantucket is a small island located in the North Atlantic, about 25 miles (40 km) south of Cape Cod. In 1819 it was the whaling capital of the world, with a fleet of over 70 ships.
When a whaling ship sighted a whale the whale boats, each with a crew of about 6 men, would be lowered into the water to go after the whale. When one of them got close the Boatsteerer would throw a harpoon with a rope tied to it into the side of the whale. The whale would then pull the boat for miles, sometimes as fast as 23 miles an hour. This "ride", being pulled by the whale became known as a "Nantucket Sleighride". Certainly it was a white knuckle affair, especially when you consider that the whale would some times dive and pull the boat under.
End of history lesson. You may now return to your regular listening pleasure.
BoxB