Jonathan Wye wrote in news:61Kcm.47663$nL7.3354
@newsfe18.iad:
I just bought a Searay Sundancer...
The whole array of "cabin cruisers" are "Sundancers". How big is it?
What power does it have? How many engines? diesel or gas? Is it a
stern drive with a foot that looks like an outboard motor?
Your other problem is YOU. You have ZERO experience at sea, no sea time
at all. That, alone, even on a seaworthy boat is more than enough
reason to put this fantasy out of your mind before you kill yourself and
your family aboard....
NEVER go to sea in anything that has no backup power. TWO engines,
minimum, EIGHT if their converted car engines like Mercruisers.
NEVER go to sea in anything powered by a stern drive. You must see a
boat flood because of a cracked stern drive diaphram to understand why.
Stern drives are for LAKE boats where you can swim ashore.
You made no mention, whatsoever, of a Ditch Bag, a Liferaft, or the pile
of safety-at-sea equipment sailors do not leave the harbor without. You
need a REGISTERED-TO-YOUR-BOAT 406 Mhz EPIRB for that liferaft so search
and rescue can be called via satellite....preregistered to your specific
boat. Never leave harbor without it.
You may think you're going to go roar off into the ocean in that speed
boat you bought and drive it like a car. That's simply not going to be
the case. On its BEST days, the ocean has 3-5' waves. On its worst
days, which can crop up as if by magic sometimes out of nowhere, you're
staring at seas as high as 9, 12, 15, 18, 25 feet high! There's going
to be no planing speeds on a 30' cabin cruiser. That's not reality
offshore.
Ok, let's put away the dreams for a bit and help you get more
experience......
I don't own a yacht, but crew on many of them out of Charleston, SC. I
don't go as often as I used to, another reality that sets in when you
get that first social security check. I'm not as useful as I used to
be. 90% are sailboats, which are much more fun than power at sea.
What YOU need is experience. Every yacht at the marina near the ocean
is always shorthanded. They don't sail well unless someone is at the
helm, 24 HOURS A DAY offshore. You can't just stop and everyone go to
sleep. It doesn't work that way.
So, what you need to do is to wheedle your way aboard with some
experienced sailors or motoryacht people who do go offshore. The way to
get aboard is to use your natural skills to make friends at the docks.
I have no idea what you can do. I'm a very skilled electronics
technician. I'm also good at fixing things mechanical including diesel
engines and am not afraid to go home looking like a bilge rat from a
fishing scow after a day fixing stuff in the bilge of some really nice
boats I get to play with at THEIR expense. Define what you can do for
the local yachtsmen, be a very nice person and don't be afraid to roll
up your sleeves to pitch in and help fix it. That's easily the best key
to the boat. When they try to use their money to pay you, refuse it.
"What can we do for you?", after you've fixed the Refusitron 5000,
they'll say. "Just take me with you once in a while.", is my favorite
answer. If you're a nice guy and genuinely helpful, man are YOU gonna
be popular! "Larry, my buddy Mike has trouble getting out on his VHF
radio. Can you help him figure it out like you did mine?" Of course I
can! Mike has that nice Beneteau 40-something on F-dock! I'd love to
go sailing on it...(c;]
This is where you should start. I'm too late to save you from Sea Ray's
clutches, but maybe we can get you enough experience with some
knowledgeable sailors to keep you from killing the kids at sea. You can
always trade off the Sea Ray for a proper boat, later on.....(c;]
Now, tell us more about WHICH Sea Ray Sundancer you have and how it's
powered and what its tankage is so we can discourage you further...(c;]
By the way, there's NOTHING you could do to secure a 55 gallon drum to
that pretty plastic boat rolling 45 degrees in the waves 5 miles towards
Bermuda.....It's NOT A LAKE!
--
Larry
http://flightaware.com/analysis/allflights_movie.rvt
Each tiny red dot is an airliner in this Quicktime movie, ONE recent day
of
air travel in the USA. What would happen if "they" found out this was
the real source of air pollution or cancer or why all the bugs around my
streetlight have disappeared? Would "they" tell us? Would "they" STOP
IT?!