Boat Handling and POD systems

[srokag44]

Seafarer is a sweet looking yacht Doug, I would love to come for a ride but $42k/week isn't quite in my budget. Any chance there's a Trojan boat owners discounted rate?

[prowlersfish]

Seafarer is a sweet looking yacht Doug, I would love to come for a ride but $42k/week isn't quite in my budget. Any chance there's a Trojan boat owners discounted rate?

Yes there is , only 41k a week but its BYOB

[aaronbocknek]

Seafarer is a sweet looking yacht Doug, I would love to come for a ride but $42k/week isn't quite in my budget. Any chance there's a Trojan boat owners discounted rate?

Yes there is , only 41k a week but its BYOB

i'll bring the pussers!! and the newcastle ale!!

[summer storm]

The 42K is just for the boat. dockage, food, fuel, crew tip, and booze is extra. On average a one week trip is about 70K

I just did a 3 day with some Russians and the wine bill was 7,480.00!!

I am sure I could get that down a bit for a Trojanboats.net member but you need to talk to Aaron for the free plane tickets

[captainmaniac]

While we are taught to always plan for failure, electronics have become so reliable that the new era of POD drivers will look good for years to come. And Kudos to them too, because I dont have to worry so much about them slamming into me at the dock!

Well... yes you do. SkyHook and similar 'techologies' are going to kill a lot of people. Advertised by the sales guys as 'just push a button the the boat won't move'.... but it's all based on GPS positioning. GPS accuracy is not 100%. GPS signals vary based on surrounding interference. Your GPS position ALWAYS wanders... even if only 2-3'.

So, the next time a 50+ POD dude hits 'skyhook' or similar feature, then leaves his boat to deal with his lines (knowing that the boat won't go anywhere), and the boat suddenly launches 3' sideways into yours... don't say you weren't warned! The next time someone hops off his boat after engaging Skyhook and then notices a fender in the water, so leans down between the boat and the dock and gets crushed... don't say you weren't warned.

If you don't learn basic boat handling, if you can't manage basic boat handling, if you can only function safely if a computer is doing everything for you, you shouldn't be on the water. Same concept with electronic charts. If you are completely reliant on your GPS and chartplotter, and don't know how to get back to port if they fail, you are a reckless boater.

[summer storm]

I like the skyhook (station keeping) idea. They claim its good for 10 to 12 ft. Would this work next to a dock? No, and only a fool would try it but it would come in handy while you are waiting for a bridge or a fuel dock. Ships have been using DP for years so its only a matter of time before the yachts get it.

[captainmaniac]

I like the skyhook (station keeping) idea. They claim its good for 10 to 12 ft. Would this work next to a dock? No, and only a fool would try it but it would come in handy while you are waiting for a bridge or a fuel dock.

If the sales guys described it that way I wouldn't have a problem with it. But they just say "Hit the button and the boat won't move!"...

[todd brinkerhoff]

So thats what that guy was doing. He had a 45 Cruiser and was doing is own lines while the boat stayed stationary. That guy never owned a boat before either.

[aaronbocknek]

i will never forget the conversation i had with my dad after i phil bought me a gps for our 32. he was, to say the least, remotely pissed. i reassured him that i also have 'paper' charts as a back up although my chart reading skills are a little rusty at best.

[RWS]

So thats what that guy was doing. He had a 45 Cruiser and was doing is own lines while the boat stayed stationary. That guy never owned a boat before either.

============================================================

Now that's very scary.

reminds me of my introduction to boating - and it was NOT a good one

A former close relative bought his first boat, a 36' Sea Ray Aft Cabin motoryacht for use in SW Florida's waters.

mid 1980's

This was a first boat, a custom ordered, brand spankin new boat with every conceivable option except the engines were undersized and no genny. Otherwise she had all the bells and whistles.

he did all the right things and had all the best intentions, including taking the USCG intro course.

his son had many hours of experience with a 19' ski boat on a lake

every outing was an event for the father & son to argue on how to "do" things.

they never figured out how to anchor out but that is whole different story.

I remember going from a bay into a narrow channel portion of the intercoastal waterway - a well posted no wake zone.

we went through at planning speed and people along the shore were yelling at us to slow down.

Both the owner and son honestly believed that they were so impressed with the boat that they must have been cheering !

I was not a boater, just a passenger who knew how to check the batteries and oil and knew no different

this is a TRUE STORY

those experiences kept me away from boats for a few years.

The truth is that simply having adequate funding to buy the nicest boat you can does not translate into any kind of boat handling skills.

Good seamanship is not something that comes out of a book or a 3 hour course.

I got mine from smaller boats and a true education on two different on line forums where more experienced boaters shared experience with me.

Besides that, I have also made numerous mistakes of my own and have learned many valuable lessons on what NOT to do.

so, IMHO all the pods, joysticks, plotters, radars, autopilots, night vision systems, and all the other high tech crap cannot replace knowledge and experience, PERIOD

ok that's my rant for today.......

NEXT ?

RWS