BoatBanter.com - View Single Post - Under Way, Not Making Way, Aground and Not Under Command, revisited

Bruce in Bangkok[_5_]

On Tue, 22 Apr 2008 08:01:51 -0400, wrote:

On Tue, 22 Apr 2008 13:02:03 +0700, Bruce in Bangkok
wrote:

On Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:01:45 -0400, Wayne.B
wrote:

On Mon, 21 Apr 2008 18:28:27 -0400, "Roger Long"
wrote:

As soon as you put the
engine in gear, you uniformed crew smartly hoists the day shape cone up the
forestay.

Carrying all of this to its silly extreme, you now blithely motorsail
along with your cone up until some awkward right-of-way situation
arises, at which point you strike your cone and put your engine in
neutral to reassert your rights.

That's why the rules say that you become a powerboat when your engine
is on, not just when your engine is in gear. Otherwise you could just
shift into neutral whenever it was convenient.

Is there some U.S. version of the regulations as the international
regulations I carry state:

(b) The term power-driven vessel means any vessel propelled by
machinery.

(c) The term sailing vessel means any vessel under sail provided that
propelling machinery, if fitted, is not being used.

No where does it discuss the engine being in gear, or not.

Bruce-in-Bangkok
(correct email address for reply)

In fact the engine itself is not mentioned at all. Only the "propelling
machinery". On most sailboats, the engine has more than one purpose, and can be
used in conjunction with other parts to become propelling machinery, or it can
be an electricity generating machine, or a refrigeration compressor. You could
even have a sailboat with an engine for use as all of the above EXCEPT for
propelling machinery. Ho about I'm off on a cruise and I somehow manage to
destroy my prop on a rock? On the way home for the next several days, I still
have to run the engine to keep the batteries up and the reefer cold. Does that
make me a powerboat? I still have all the same equipment, except i can no longer
PROPELL my boat with that running machinery.

A baseball bat is not a "deadly weapon" until you swing it at someone's head.
:')

But that seems to be covered by the rule "The term power-driven vessel
means any vessel propelled by machinery." Obviously if it is not
propelled by machinery it is not classified as a "power driven
vessel".

Thus my question. the International regs seem quite straight forward
but there4 has been much mention of in grat/out of gear that I do not
see in the regs. I was wondering whether there was some U.S.
modification or amendment of the regs that modifies their use or
intent in US waters.

Bruce-in-Bangkok
(correct email address for reply)