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In article .com,
wrote:
After my aborted cruise, I want to bring my boat back from Sarasota to
Shell Point in N. Florida (Just south of Tallahassee) for hurricane
season. It is 185 miles straight across the northern Gulf of Mexico
and I estimate this is about 36-48 hours sail. My only crewmember
currently is my 14 yr old son who isnt really qualified to do a watch.
I do not want to do the several days coast hopping route as I have done
that too many times and just want to get her home (a 28' S2). So, I am
wondering if I should venture to do it with just my son or if I really
need another crew member. Strange but I no longer know many qualified
sailors, most I know are beginners who would just get in their own way.
"Ragtime" is a 1981 8.5 M S2 with new standing rigging, running
rigging, sails etc, Epirb, etc so is probably well equipped. What do
Y'all think?
I'm a little nervous about you (or anyone) pushing to get somewhere on a
time table, a recipe for disaster.
That said, we pushed Xan about 175 NM in 3 days, anchoring each night.
In the next 7, including a couple of lay-days for weather, we went
another 250.
The first days, we started hauling anchor at first glimmer of light,
well before dawn, and stopped just before sunset, giving us 15+ hours
per day. Most of the time, we motored to just get through areas we'd
already cruised, but somtimes the wind was helpful. Because good
anchorages were often a couple of hour detour, we often took less than
ideal ones, just to save time.
In other words, it is possible to move quickly and sleep in a safe
place. But it requires an autopilot or the crew get very very tired.
--
Jere Lull
Xan-a-Deux ('73 Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD)
Xan's Pages: http://members.dca.net/jerelull/X-Main.html
Our BVI FAQs (290+ pics) http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI/
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