Wayne.B wrote:
On Fri, 21 Jan 2005 11:45:30 -0500, Jeff Morris
wrote:


Without the basic skills, you're in deep ****
when the GPS fails.


================================

No argument with the need for basic skills but there's no excuse for
GPS failure with hand held units selling for around $100. I was on a
Bermuda race in 1996 where we lost every electronic device on board
except my hand held GPS.


I've heard this often said, and in fact I keep an eTrex just inside the
companionway. However, things tend to go wrong at the least convenient
time. If the spiffy chartplotter goes south while your negotiating a
tight channel, its little consolation that a cheap handheld is
available. It may need batteries; it will probably take a few minutes
to power up; its only giving Lat/Lon which is of little value unless the
chart is handy; it won't have the current waypoint; etc., etc.

A hundred miles offshore, this is not a problem, but we've specifically
been talking about coastal cruising - the OP lives in Maine. The last
day I cruised Maine I was leaving Casco Bay in peasoup, and I had my
eTrex at hand with fresh batteries, just in case.