"Jeff Morris" wrote in message
...
Sorry about the delay - I've been away for a few days. BTW, I was 125
miles
from my berth - how far offshore was I?

Probably about a mile!



Peter said:

Keep in mind that if Donal tried to go 30 miles offshore,
he'd hit France.

And you responded:

Idiot!!!
The last person who made that dumb mistake was Jax!!!!!
Stick to English literature. You know nothing about geography.
Cherebourg is my nearest French port, and it is 74 nautical
miles from Portsmouth Harbour entrance.

It sure seems to me that you were trying to claim that the measuring
of
"offshore" begins at your harbor entrance. Otherwise, why would you
mention
that point as opposed to any other point along the way? If not, you
might have
said Cherbourg is 56 miles off from St. Catherine's, your actual point
of
departure from the British coast.

Nonsense! I don't go anywhere near St Cat's when I go to Cherbourg.

OK, you would pass a few miles away from it as you go along the Isle of
Wight
coast. Big deal. I didn't really think you touch the light, since its on
land.
You probably pass close enough by to see it on a clear day. So how far
offshore
are you then?

About three to five miles (from Ventnor).




Actually, most measures of "offshore" start a
ways out, perhaps 12 miles. But that starts looking pretty close to
Peter's
claim - not bad for someone 12,000 miles away.

Really, Jeff! Is there no limit to the ignorance that you are willing
to
display in a public forum?
There are *two* major flaws in your (very weak) argument.

Flaws? Doubtful ...

There is no doubt at all. One mile offshore is one mile from the shore.
That is completely different from "offshore sailing".






1) If you sailed 30 miles offshore - how far from the shore would you
be?


That depends on the local geography. Are you claiming that if you sailed
30
miles down a river you would be 30 miles offshore? Are you claiming that
if
Booby went 30 mile NE from his berth he'd be 30 miles offshore?

No. I'm trying t



I am sure that you are not stupid enough to persist in your lame
assertion
that I am actually 18 miles "Offshore" when I have sailed 30 miles out
from
the shore.

I just tossed that out as a possibility - here in the US East Coast an
"Inland"
Master's License is good about 10 miles out. As I mentioned, there are a
number
of ways to measure "offshore," but starting 8 miles behind an island is
not one
of them.

Why not start from the shoreline?

I get the impression that you cannot distinguish between "offshore sailing"
and "sailing x miles offshore".

I can often sail three miles offshore, but that is nothing like offshore
sailing.







2) I don't sail anywhere near St. Catherine's point when I go to
Cherbourg!
If you want to move my "shore" out to sea, then you could use Bembridge
Ledge. That is still 64 miles from Cherbourg.


Do you really think I give a rat's ass what route you take? Even from
Bembridge you're going along the coast of the Isle of Wight for a number
of
miles.

Not unless you have a very unusual tide. It is common to go near St Cats on
the return journey, however it is very unusual to go near it on the outward
leg.



Are you claiming that's offshore? All you've done here is to admit that
the Portsmouth Harbor entrance is not "offshore."

Once again, you demonstrate a pedantic desire to demonstrate that I have
claimed to have done "offshore sailing". I have never claimed to have done
"offshore sailing". I only sail in the English Channel.









But you wanted to play the pompous ass, so you had to use the larger
measure.

Nope! I made a factual statement.


You tried to claim that the Portsmouth Harbor entrance was "offshore."
You're
either incompetent or a liar. Frankly, this casts serious doubt as to
whether
you have even sailed in the area!

This is particularly egregious given that several posts back you scoffed
at my
comments about going 20 mile "up the coast" and I pointed out the I didn't
begin
to count the distance until I was in the open ocean. Now you're claiming
that
offshore is 8 miles behind the Isle of Wight.



BTW, I'm much better at pomposity than you are!

I bow to the master! But this seems to be your only talent.

Correct!






And being greedy, you picked the furthest distance and got burned.
Sorry
Donal - you got just what you deserve. I'll bet your petard is pretty
sore
right now!

Jeff, you should take another look at the chart.

Why? Are you still claiming the Portsmouth Harbor is "offshore"? Has it
moved
lately, or is it still tucked in behind the Isle of Wight?

Jeff, if you sailed a mile out of Portsmouth Harbour, would you be a mile
offshore?




And why would you assume I even have a chart of your home waters?
Frankly, I
doubt that many of the readers here have any knowledge of your area. We
depend
on your honesty in describing your home waters - too bad you let us down.

Tsk. Tsk.





My route to Cherbourg involves a trip to Bembridge Ledge, followed by a
beeline to Cherbourg.

So? Do you have a point here? You're just admitting that the point you
claimed
was "offshore" is actually 8 miles inland of Bembridge.

I think that I claimed that I couldn't hit France when I was 30 miles
offshore.
You have made strenuous efforts to prove me wrong. You are a complete
idiot. So far, your argument is based upon your innacurate interpretation
of some large scale maps of the Solent. Let us assume that you are correct
when you (stupidly) think that I pass close to St Cats. How far is it from
St Cats to Cherbourg? Is it less than 30 miles - or is it 55 miles?






Peter said that I would hit France if I Went 30 miles offshore.

You are a pair of idiots.

And what do you call someone who doesn't understand the water he claims to
sail
in all the time? Surely "idiot" doesn't begin to measure the depth of
your
blunder here, Donal.

30 miles - or 55 miles, Jeff????

Regards


Donal
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