On Sun, 15 Apr 2007 15:00:22 +0000, Larry wrote:

Thanks for the support Larry.

I have started to use a strobe attracting attention - to let them know
that I'm there. As I have the mast down - repainting, re-rigging etc I
have migrated it to my masthead where it sits above the nav and all
round white.

The interesting thing is, I have got a lot of criticism from other
yachtees who say that it is not "regulation" is a distress signal that
ships will detour to investigate and so on. Someone even called me
"selfish and arrogant in flaunting the rules". I wonder if any of
these people have spent much time on passage, especially at night as
they are commonly used to mark ends of fishing nets and long-lines as
well as being displayed by fishing boats having a braek.

I have used it when lying to my para anchor, on passage to ensure that
I am seen when ships come close. Not a single ship has condemned me
using it when I have spoken to them on the radio. Several have said
that that are pleased that they can see me.

I noticed that Aquasignal now have a combined all round white and
strobe below a tricolour (Please note the proper spelling!!). It looks
identical (on the shop shelf) to the one without the strobe.

cheers
Peter-

All of this might have been avoided if the Ouzo had violated all the
stupid 1920's lighting regulations of those tiny little light bulbs on
your mastheads, bows and sterns and had an incredibly bright strobe light
on top of his mast(s), the kind you see on aircraft. NOONE on the bridge
of any ship could miss a horizon-focused high intensity strobe's blinding
flashes, even in the fog.

LED marker lights my ass. Everyone should have a very high intensity
strobe on top of each mast they can turn on to wake their lazy asses up
on those big bridges....coupled to some serious whooping audio horns
wouldn't hurt, either.

No boat lighting is anywhere NEAR bright enough. I wonder if Ouzo had a
high intensity search light available. I've played 2,000,000 cp across a
few bridges to get their attention when they won't answer the damned
radio calls. There should be a handheld quartz-iodine searchlight in
every cockpit, even in the daytime. You can't help but notice them for
10 miles shined in your face!

Larry