The High Cost of Cruising
 

wrote

No doubt. It is one of his classics to justify his meager existance on
a small little boat welded to a chain attached to an old chevy engine
block.

Remembering his web site, it was actually quite nice (other than the color
selections) for a small little boat. His original personna and I do share
one philosophy, have a small and managable boat and make it the way you want
instead being a slave to too much boat and too many systems.

Too bad he didn't do more with the boat. Given his ego, I'm sure we would
have seen pictures if he'd ever managed a cruise to anyplace interesting. I
doubt his existance is so grand as being on a mooring at this point. His
net presence is too 24/7 not to have a permanent Internet connection. I'm
fairly sure now that the boat on the web site was real even if the crew
wasn't and that he picked up quite a bit of boating and cruising knowledge,
even if he didn't make much use of it. It would take something much more
definitive than over the top boasting though to convince me that he didn't
lose the boat about the same time the web site disappeared and is now
"cruising" from some sort of institution or shelter with free web terminals.

Sad, really, he could have taken that boat some interesting places.

I should talk. I'm here typing on a beautiful Maine day, checking on some
work stuff and waiting for my son to return from a summer job hunt. We'll
be sailing later in the day though. My other son and I are then going to
spend Friday - Tuesday on the boat.

--
Roger Long

The High Cost of Cruising
 

wrote

No doubt. It is one of his classics to justify his meager existance on
a small little boat welded to a chain attached to an old chevy engine
block.

Remembering his web site, it was actually quite nice (other than the color
selections) for a small little boat. His original personna and I do share
one philosophy, have a small and managable boat and make it the way you want
instead being a slave to too much boat and too many systems.

Too bad he didn't do more with the boat. Given his ego, I'm sure we would
have seen pictures if he'd ever managed a cruise to anyplace interesting. I
doubt his existance is so grand as being on a mooring at this point. His
net presence is too 24/7 not to have a permanent Internet connection. I'm
fairly sure now that the boat on the web site was real even if the crew
wasn't and that he picked up quite a bit of boating and cruising knowledge,
even if he didn't make much use of it. It would take something much more
definitive than over the top boasting though to convince me that he didn't
lose the boat about the same time the web site disappeared and is now
"cruising" from some sort of institution or shelter with free web terminals.

Sad, really, he could have taken that boat some interesting places.

I should talk. I'm here typing on a beautiful Maine day, checking on some
work stuff and waiting for my son to return from a summer job hunt. We'll
be sailing later in the day though. My other son and I are then going to
spend Friday - Tuesday on the boat.

--
Roger Long

The High Cost of Cruising
 

On Jun 25, 12:15*pm, "Roger Long" wrote:
wrote

No doubt. It is one of his classics to justify his meager existance on
a small little boat welded to a chain attached to an old chevy engine
block.

Remembering his web site, it was actually quite nice (other than the color
selections) for a small little boat.

I saw it. Neal use to be somewhat respected among mariners.
And he had a few things positive going on. IIRC he even sat for a 5
ton Capt. ticket.

Me thinks he caught the clap, and now his brain is rotting like
Hitlers did in his last days.

Fred

The High Cost of Cruising
 

wrote in message
...

I saw it. Neal use to be somewhat respected among mariners.
And he had a few things positive going on. IIRC he even sat for a 5
ton Capt. ticket.

Me thinks he caught the clap, and now his brain is rotting like
Hitlers did in his last days.

Fred

The Good Captain Neal is still very much respected among mariners. His
accomplishments are legion. His Master Mariner ticket is the highest and
most coveted of any seaman. Proof he http://www.badongo.com/pic/3853394

He e-mails me from time to time and I forward him a large box of his fan
mail. The last box I sent to Cape Town, South Africa. He's going round again
or those are his current plans at least.

Had the skipper of the lost "Red Cloud" procured the services of the Good
Captain on that ill-fated coffee run the Red Cloud would have never
foundered. He's sailed through many a tropical cyclone so some short-lived
little Gulf cold front he would have taken in stride even in a less than
seaworthy such as Red Cloud.

Wilbur Hubbard

The High Cost of Cruising
 

On Jun 25, 2:06*pm, "Wilbur Hubbard"
wrote:
wrote in message

...

*I saw it. Neal use to be somewhat respected among mariners.
And he had a few things positive going on. IIRC he even sat for a 5
ton Capt. ticket.

Me thinks he caught the clap, and now his brain is rotting like
Hitlers did in his last days.

Fred

The Good Captain Neal is still very much respected among mariners.

More like a laughing stock, town clown, puppet show producing wanna-
be.

His
accomplishments are legion.

What French Legion?

His Master Mariner ticket is the highest and
most coveted of any seaman. Proof hehttp://www.badongo.com/pic/3853394

I bet it is to a seaman, but to the Captains out there it is a leaners
permit for a tiny boat. Neal's so pathetic no one would hire him, so
his ticket is useless and by now expired.

I know a fellow who has a Masters degree in electrical engineering but
works as a fireman

He e-mails me from time to time and I forward him a large box of his fan
mail. The last box I sent to Cape Town, South Africa. He's going round again
or those are his current plans at least.

Sure thing Nealbur, and I bet he has one hand tied behind his back
too...right? And he's on a 68 ft Swan named Chippawa just like your
Swan named Chippawa .

Pathetic

Fred


Wilbur Hubbard

The High Cost of Cruising
 

On 25 Jun 2008 09:21:02 -0500, Dave wrote:

On Tue, 24 Jun 2008 21:56:11 -0400, Wayne.B
said:

That's an oxymoron. There are *no* well-found blue water sailboats
with outboard engines.

Neal has a well-known propensity for trying to make a virtue of necessity.

I guess. It is certainly interesting in a weird sort of way watching
him talk to himself in these contrived discussions. Knowing better of
course, I could still not let the "blue water outboard" pass without
comment.

Having a nice little 4 stroke Honda of my own for the dinghy, and a
couple of 6 gallon tanks, I know something of the fuel range of such
animals. Figure about 1 gph if you are lucky, at maybe 6 knots on a
small light sailboat, times 12 gallons for typical tankage, I get a
fuel range of 72 miles. Just the ticket for a nice blue water
crossing to Bermuda, the Exuma Out Islands, the BVI, etc. Let's hope
for favorable winds and lots of time for the crossings.

What nonsense.

Even with proper diesel inboard aux, most of the serious cruising
sailboats that we see are carrying 40 to 60 gallons of extra fuel on
deck. These are boats that actually go someplace of course.

The High Cost of Cruising
 

"Wayne.B" wrote

Knowing better of course, I could still not let the "blue water outboard"
pass without comment.


Nor should the idea of a "blue water" Coronado 27 pass without comment,
welcome though the unintended humor may be in these unnerving times.

People have certainly made blue water voyages, even circumnavigations, in
less but my E 32 is twice the boat and I would not consider her a "blue
water cruiser", despite windvane and extended tankage. That doesn't mean I
wouldn't undertake a passage to Bermuda or a transatlantic in the safest
part of the year but I wouldn't push my luck by making a habit of it.

A "blue water" cruiser is one designed, built, and outfitted primarily for
passages and long cruises. More importantly, it is one that actually does
these things.

--
Roger Long

The High Cost of Cruising
 

On Thu, 26 Jun 2008 06:26:50 -0400, "Roger Long"
wrote:

"Wayne.B" wrote

Knowing better of course, I could still not let the "blue water outboard"
pass without comment.


Nor should the idea of a "blue water" Coronado 27 pass without comment,
welcome though the unintended humor may be in these unnerving times.

People have certainly made blue water voyages, even circumnavigations, in
less but my E 32 is twice the boat and I would not consider her a "blue
water cruiser", despite windvane and extended tankage. That doesn't mean I
wouldn't undertake a passage to Bermuda or a transatlantic in the safest
part of the year but I wouldn't push my luck by making a habit of it.

A "blue water" cruiser is one designed, built, and outfitted primarily for
passages and long cruises. More importantly, it is one that actually does
these things.

Roger,
That definition of a "Blue water Cruiser" is dependent upon an
individual's viewpoint. I have met many boats that would not meet your
criteria including several barebones Wharram cats that I would
consider grossly inadequate for my own needs. However, to their long
time owners and crusiers they are considered ideal for crossing
oceans. Quite a lot of what are advertised in boating magazines as
"blue water cruisers" are not, regardless of their size and how many
people have bought them to go "blue water cruising" Jenneaus, Oceans
and Benetaus are only a few of them. They are certainly not made for
out of sight of land crusing though doubtless some are taken there.

Each owner has a different set of criteria. Your friend Wilbur for
example, extols the virtues of a simple wooden bucket. The texbooks
say that twin or bilge keel boats are not good cruisers. The cruiser
who has one would extol the virtues of shallow draft and being able to
anchor close in and dry out level.

Provided the vessel is sound and seaworthy and the sailor has
knowledge of his boat and its behaviour in all sea conditions, the
main component of a "blue water cruiser" is the sailor him/herself.

Neither Bligh nor Shackleton captained the ideal "blue water cruiser'
though I dare say they would have prefered one such.

Peter

The High Cost of Cruising
 

"Herodotus" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 26 Jun 2008 06:26:50 -0400, "Roger Long"
wrote:

"Wayne.B" wrote

Knowing better of course, I could still not let the "blue water
outboard"
pass without comment.


Nor should the idea of a "blue water" Coronado 27 pass without comment,
welcome though the unintended humor may be in these unnerving times.

People have certainly made blue water voyages, even circumnavigations, in
less but my E 32 is twice the boat and I would not consider her a "blue
water cruiser", despite windvane and extended tankage. That doesn't mean
I
wouldn't undertake a passage to Bermuda or a transatlantic in the safest
part of the year but I wouldn't push my luck by making a habit of it.

A "blue water" cruiser is one designed, built, and outfitted primarily for
passages and long cruises. More importantly, it is one that actually does
these things.

Roger,
That definition of a "Blue water Cruiser" is dependent upon an
individual's viewpoint. I have met many boats that would not meet your
criteria including several barebones Wharram cats that I would
consider grossly inadequate for my own needs. However, to their long
time owners and crusiers they are considered ideal for crossing
oceans. Quite a lot of what are advertised in boating magazines as
"blue water cruisers" are not, regardless of their size and how many
people have bought them to go "blue water cruising" Jenneaus, Oceans
and Benetaus are only a few of them. They are certainly not made for
out of sight of land crusing though doubtless some are taken there.

Each owner has a different set of criteria. Your friend Wilbur for
example, extols the virtues of a simple wooden bucket. The texbooks
say that twin or bilge keel boats are not good cruisers. The cruiser
who has one would extol the virtues of shallow draft and being able to
anchor close in and dry out level.

Provided the vessel is sound and seaworthy and the sailor has
knowledge of his boat and its behaviour in all sea conditions, the
main component of a "blue water cruiser" is the sailor him/herself.

Neither Bligh nor Shackleton captained the ideal "blue water cruiser'
though I dare say they would have prefered one such.

Peter


Well said. The boat and the crew work as a team. Even the best of boats
skippered by an inept crew hardly stands a chance of making a successful
blue water voyage. On the other hand, even a marginal boat, well-fitted out
and modified to eliminate potential weaknesses and crewed by an experienced
expert such as myself who knows the boat inside and out and can and does
handle all the maintenance has a near 100% chance of a successful ocean
voyage.

Capt. Neal's blue water Coronado 27 did not start life as a blue water
designed vessel. She was sold as a coastal cruiser. This designation was
more due to the limits of tankage, storage, interior layout etc. than her
ability to withstand the rigors of ocean voyaging. The good captain went to
work to shore up the few weaknesses the Coronado 27 was produced with. He
re-designed the interior to make it more practical for voyaging. He has
installed 1/4" Lexan on the inside of the deadlights in lieu of outside
storm boards. He added flotation foam between the liner and the hull where
there were voids. He poured a block of flotation foam just forward of the
transom to seal and support the rudder post tube. He claims his blue water
Coronado has positive flotation and will not sink but settle on an even keel
to about the rubbing strake if seriously holed. But, even the eventuality of
being seriously holed is greatly lessened by virtue of the flotation foam
poured into all the voids.

He has replaced all the standing rigging and terminals are all Sta-Loks.
Running rigging is kept in tip-top shape. The boom has been internally
reinforced. Sails are plentiful and new and hanked-on in the fore triangle.
He even ships storm try and storm jib. His philosophy has always been,
"first she's a sailboat" and everything he has done to modify her and
improve her weaknesses was done with this in mind. He claims he is safer in
his blue water Coronado than in any other boat except for an Etap of similar
size due the Etap also having positive foam flotation built in. The good
captain has always claimed it's just plain stupid to go to sea in a boat
that is sinkable when holed (like the erstwhile "Red Cloud") when unsinkable
vessels are being mass produced or when you can modify your existing vessel
to also be unsinkable due to a hole or holes in the hull. The old gentleman
is entirely correct.

The world famous Master Mariner himself told me that a small
outboard-powered sailboat is the only way to go and I believe him. It makes
sense. Small, light, fuel efficient engine, economical to purchase, maintain
and operate. Easy to remove and stow when crossing oceans. After all, an
auxiliary is supposed to be just that. Anybody who goes around with a huge,
heavy, built in diesel and a 100 gallon tank so he can attempt to motor
across oceans is an idiot and no sailor. He should have bought a long range
trawler like the former sailor Doug King.

One of the virtues of a 27-footer is she is handy and easily driven. Even a
two knot wind is enough to sail her just about anywhere and she can be
anchored under sail and gotten underway under sail. The only rationale for
even an outboard is maneuvering in close quarter situations where there is
no wind or less wind than current. In all other cases, learn to sail but
that takes a handy small vessel in order for a single-hander to be entirely
successful.

It is a well-known fact that inboard diesels get you into trouble more than
they get you out of trouble. That's a fact of life and you'd best accept it.
Even if you didn't have to live with the smell of the beast which permeates
every diesel boat I've ever stepped aboard it would still be folly to
embrace them like today's so-called sailor has. They make you lazy, they
turn you into a motorhead moron. They harm your health. Breathing the
exhaust is carcinogenic.

So, to sum up, Captain Neal's Coronado is, indeed, a blue water voyager for
two clear reasons.

1) She has completed many a blue water voyage and weathered severe storms
and has never been compromised or beaten back.

2) She has a qualified, experienced, intelligent, handsome captain who knows
her inside and out and has fitted her out for blue water voyaging.

Wilbur Hubbard

The High Cost of Cruising
 

On Jun 25, 11:06*am, "Wilbur Hubbard"
wrote:

The Good Captain Neal is still very much respected among mariners. His
accomplishments are legion. His Master Mariner ticket is the highest and
most coveted of any seaman.
Proof hehttp://www.badongo.com/pic/3853394

Wilbur Hubbard

My Fellow Marinier:

I can not agree with your opinion that Neal's "...Master Mariner
ticket is the highest and
most coveted of any seaman...."

I do not belive a 25 GRT NCW license supports your claim regardless if
it his 2nd Issue. To paraphrase the USCG licensing site, one day sea
service over 5 GRT will qualify you for a 25 GRT license. So the the
guy self certified he had 360 days NC in 18' skiff and one day getting
drunk on a friend's 6 GRT stinkpot. Not what I would call "most
coveted" nor capable ability............................ :/

Bob