I agree for the most part,Wayne,And the Johnson incident was really
more to illustrate the hazards near shore....I live about 4 or 5
hundred yards from where they went aground, and I have been awakened by
helicopters trying to save people in the same location,and I've seen
surfers paddling back to the beach with lifeless bodies on their
boards,not to mention untold #s of boats on the beach....and many of
them got to that point from loss of primary power. Truth be told,the
power boats outnumber the sailboats in that predicament 3 or 4 to 1,
but a number of those incidents could possibly been avoided,yet vessel
assist would not have been able to deploy fast enough to be anything
more than a salvage assistant. I have a full draft salboat,but in this
area there is not an optional "anchor out" area to ride out weather by
default, and when its blowing straight down the mouth of the
harbor,sailing is not often a viable get home solution; therefore I
still like having that 15 horse OB on the transom...Granted on a larger
boat it would be ineffective, but on my little 27 footer it does just
fine...Luckily the prevailing winds here are favorable most of the time
and I can sail practically to my slip (and have once or twice) But
I know that it's those times that deviate from the norm that can cause
the biggest problems for someone less than prepared....I like having a
plan B... If you can afford it,Why not?....Also,as I said before,much
of the Channel Islands system is 20 or more miles from assistance...
regards,
markvictor