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wrote:

After 20 yrs of sailing, this is the first time I have had my boat in
a large marina so last night when I went to tie her up for Arlene, I
walked the docks just lookin at how other boat owners do things.
The biggest surprise was how little prep there was for Arlene although
all the models have it hitting 200 miles away. I s'pose I am just
paranoid.

Nope. Other folks aren't paranoid enough, or maybe they're hoping for an
insurance coup -- for example:

Second surprise is how many "trashed out" boats there are in the
marina. These boats have rotted sails hanging in tatters, mold and
fungus all over the decks, varnish peeling in sheets, frayed lines.
The owners do not appear to have visited their boats in several years
but the slips cost $225/month. Weird.

Every marina has 'em! I don't understand it either. I guess some people have
enough money it doesn't matter, and they never get around to taking care of the
issue.

Sometimes where waiting lists are long, these derelict boats are just
placeholders for the dream boat that will be parked there someday. Buy the boat
and the slip comes with it, but it's a 7 year wait otherwise. A rowboat on a
mooring in the right neighborhood can sell for $50k!

Another observation that is no surprise, smaller boats get used more.
It is obvious from the fouling at the waterlines that boats less than
30' get used far more than the big boats.
I was also surprised to see so many smaller boats kept in slips.
There are many 21-23' sailboats that are obviously trailerable but
are kept in slips. Many look as if they are used regularly.

Well, if they are used regularly it saves hauling and launching all the time.
Not that the task is so difficult or time consuming, but many people find it
nerve-racking. I bet more divorces start on launch ramps than anywhere else.
Just go down there on a Sunday afternoon and watch!

I never paid any attention to roller furling systems intil I installed
my oversized CDI system on my 28' S2 last year. Roller furling
totally changed my sailing life. So, I took a good look at them
(most boats were bow in so I got a close look). Older RF systems
look really gawdawful. My newer CDI system seems far more robust
than older systems on bigger boats. Probably just a case of
technology getting better with time.

I've noticed this too. Older systems were designed with tradtion and appearance
in mind -- nobody wanted a big furler on their bow, so the drums were way
undersized compared to now.

Most boats were hooked to shore power and I am not sure why. In 20
yrs I have never had shore power and never needed it so am not sure
why so many people take the chance with potentially bad hookups.
Somebody enlighten me here, why so much shore power?

To keep the batteries up, and the bilge pump running! Gotta keep those science
experiments going in the fridge too.

Matt O.