On building your own boat and swimming against the tide of popular opinion...

I am the 99%, Robert Reich continues to make sense, the Senate on the other hand is FUBAR (or as my Mom used to say, Batshit crazy), and the word for today is dehumanization... lifeboat stations anyone?

Over at the ever running forum thread of "Cruising on $500" the current point of discussion seems to be building your own boat and mostly why you should not... Now I'll admit that boatbuilding from the keel up is not for everyone, but for a lot of us it does make all kinds of sense in the right circumstances.

For instance, a lot of folks simply want a boat that falls outside of the same old same cookie cutter boats that everybody else has... Face it, not a lot of schooners selling at the boat shows these days, I mean, does Bendytoy EVEN make a schooner?

For those who don't quite fathom the wonderfulness that a schooner be...

Then there is the cost issue... Done right, building your own boat can save you a huge amount of money while allowing you to fine tune the boat and it's systems to exactly what is needful for your intended purpose (might be a good time to note that most sailboats in the cruising niche built these days are really not geared for cruising but for the bareboat charter market). Not done right, any boat is a money pit waiting to happen whether you're building a Buehler schooner or buying a Hallberg-Rassy. This is something everyone should keep in mind if the need/want issues are not kept in check.

The other thing the nay-sayers will tell prospective boatbuilders is that it takes so much time to build a boat it is hardly worth doing if ever and that you'll be an old man before it's possible to build a boat and go cruising... What can I say, there are idiots everywhere... The truth of the matter is a boat will take as long to build as you take to build it... A friend of mine is just about to start building a 40ish foot catamaran for his daysail charter business and cruising with his family. As it happens, he will be moving in to his building space tomorrow. I'll be very surprised if his boat is not finished, in the water, and taking paying passengers out on a daily basis come Easter... and at a fraction of the cost with a better build than anything available in the current multihull market. You might say he has some serious motivation!

Back when I was a kid I lived up in Northern California and we had a bit of a tidal wave that pretty much destroyed the local fishing fleet. So, as a kid my first experience watching real hands-on boatbuilding close up and personal, was seeing those who had lost their boats build new ones and build them fast as the next fishing season (spelled PAYCHECK) was not going to spend years waiting for them to build a boat... So, if you have the right motivation and some momentum, building a boat in a timely manner is not only possible but a given.

Listening to Muddy Waters

So it goes...

Reflections on a cunning plan...

A really good interview, Elvis Costello just achieved Hero status (as far as I'm concerned), and no wonder the bankers were screaming...

I'm about to rip out a goodly section of the interior of "So It Goes" and make some changes to the galley and move the 48V battery bank for easier access and better weight distribution... Pretty much undoing all the changes I made to Mr Lapworth's interior in the past.

I mention this because one alters a designers work at some risk and what may seem like a cunning plan at the time may, set in concrete, be anything but cunning... Designers in most cases have put a lot of thought into what works and more than likely they did it the way they did because it works better.

Which is not to say changing stuff is wrong but simply to keep in mind that sometimes you'll wish you had left it as it was...



Listening to 10CC

So it goes...

We need more coffee...

This makes my head hurt, this guy really is an idiot, and something of interest for Warren Zevon fans...

Just for the record, I had every intention to do another "Simple Monday" post today on anchoring but last night was some kind of squally with the swell from hell and a nervous making big cat on a too small mooring upwind of us. As a result, I am not quite fully operational and certainly not firing on all cylinders... So, something to look forward to next Monday.

In the meantime, you might want to check out Attainable Adventure Cruising who have some points about the Rocna/Spade that makes some sense though I do have a couple of issues with one or two of their statements... But, more about that next week.

Listening to Jay Brannan

So it goes...

about those little cans...

A politician who deserves some respect, a trillion here (a trillion there) it all adds up, and,  just maybe, think twice about the canned goods while provisioning...

Speaking of canned goods...



Listening to Girlyman

So it goes...

It's that time of year...

A different type of working sail, the one and the ninety-nine percent, and something everyone should read...

So T-Day has now come and gone and all that remains is that Tupperware bowl half filled with some stuffing... The good news is that the stuffing will go finest-kind with lunch today, the bad news is the onslaught of "Best Of" posts and articles are winging their way to my desktop as we speak...

I actually have a lot of issues with the whole concept of "Best". In most cases "Best" translates to something more akin to "most heavily pimped", silly expensive, or whatever the current fad happens to be...

On the other hand, I'd love to see folks do year end articles on subjects more along the lines of "Most easily repaired sensible cruising gear", "The years best bang for the buck", and "Underrated gear that fulfills its function".

Maybe someone will...

Listening to The Kingsmen

So it goes...

A little like Nirvana...

Music you want to listen to (a band you'll want to support), some method to Scalzi's madness, and let's tell Newt NO WAY on bringing back child labor...

Well, the sales of a nautical nature for Black Friday are somewhat less than inspiring... Truth is, that since we just bought a new inflatable dinghy (more about that in the not too distant future) just about the only thing I've come across is a good deal on Antal rings as they are so handy a few extra in the bosun's bag would be no bad thing.

The only other thing I might buy is a couple of Bosch PS-21's to replace my old DeWalts. After months of research and looking at various drill/drivers, this comes out head and shoulders above everything else as the nearly perfect boatbuilding and boatwork rechargeable drill... Trust me, compact, light 12V tools make sense on boats.

But hey, the fact that I don't feel the need to go out and buy stuff means that I'm pretty much content and have just about everything I need...

Even better, the bareboat that anchored way too close last night has departed and, as a result, I find myself in a state approaching nirvana...

Listening to Gordon Lightfoot

So it goes...

and it's T-Day...

Not exactly surprising news, a note on fiscal sanity, and Krugman makes a point about the holiday...

When you sit down and think about it, there has never been a better time to go out and buy a boat as there are a lot of really good deals floating about...

For instance, I recently saw a great deal on a CAL 28 (a favorite boat design) going for $1500 and you'll have to admit that for a very capable and seaworthy boat that might take a little sweat equity to put it into full tilt boogie shape, it's a real steal... The thing is, there are lots and lots of similar deals so the old "only rich folks can cruise" is no longer a valid argument not to actually go out and get cruising.

Of course, the fact that you can buy a boat big enough to live on and cross oceans in comfort for about the same price (or less) as a quality touring bicycle is a somewhat scary thought for most folks as it makes the dream accessible...

Nothing to hold you back...

Just saying...

Gotta go, the lobster and cranberries need tending to...

Happy Thanksgiving!

Listening to Arlo

So it goes...

a dance craze sweeping the nation...

Robert Reich continues to make sense, something you should read, and yep, tickets are still available on the jet propelled wicker basket...

Sometimes I feel sorry for folks who just buy stuff as they miss out on so much...

For instance, over at Tiburon36 someone is making a seriously cool stove/heater for his boat, doing it well and, no doubt, winding up with a much better product at a lower price in the process...

On the other hand, not everyone likes to weld and grind metal so solder fumes and DIY geekery is the order of the day over at Sailboat Electronics...

For others, it's all about epoxy and vacuum bagging...

But whatever "it" is, DIY is the new "BLACK"

Listening to P,P,&M

So it goes...

No boat content today...

Some important words about pepper spray, an interesting factoid about pepper spray, Krugman gets it right (no pepper spray content whatsoever) and a John Lennon song comes to mind...

One of the great things about doing a blog is I can pretty much do what I want as I don't have a boss telling me they need five-hundred "positive" words to pimp a new boat because the company that makes it is going to do a full page ad...  So, I can tilt at windmills, mock people in power, and point out that the Emperor and other assorted targets are somewhat bare-ass... Oh yeah, I also get to write about boats I like and suchlike!

You might say I enjoy my work...

So, as we come up towards (always towards never to) Thanksgiving I'd just like to say how proud I was watching those students at UC Davis stand their ground and take the high road. I'm sure it was difficult not to succumb to the eye for an eye politics that has become common currency and answer violence with violence... They turned the other cheek and by doing that quiet heroic act, showed the world that they were better than those who hurt and mistreated them while they exercised their democratic rights. Proving the point, in the process, that you don't have to kill someone to be a hero.

Lt. John Pike, on the other hand, entered the annals of history (extreme loser division) and will spend the rest of his sorry life as a social pariah... More Instant (and well deserved) Karma if you will.

I have no illusions that the course those protesters have set is going to be an easy one, and, as much as I hope not, I expect that it will get a lot worse before (or if) it ever gets better. The powers ranged against change and a just future these days are mighty, have no morality or scruples, and they mean to continue no matter how many people are harmed in the process because, after all, profits are at stake and profits matter more than people. Hard to fight that with a simple phrase like "Shame on you" but those words resonate strongly and I can still hear their echo...

I expect those echoes are resonating in some halls of power and boardrooms while bringing a certain unaccustomed emotion to those that hear it... Fear.

As it happens, I fear for those who go up against such a monster. Just as I fear for all of us in its shadow and it is more than time enough to lend those kids, grandmothers, and other brave souls fighting the good fight a hand...

Listening to Jack Bruce sing my favorite Mountain song.

So it goes...

Simple Monday...Cleats and cleating

Interesting stuff over at Weather Underground, a book on my must read list, and how Groucho would be a big help right about now...

I'm starting out the first of the very basic Monday posts with something a lot of people get wrong... I know this because every time I go to a dinghy dock I notice that 50% or more of the folks tied up don't know how to use a cleat...

Here you go...



That's it... and when I say "That's it", I really mean it! Extra wraps, cute knots and what I can only term as free form rope sculpture is not a needful part of the mix. The cleat will pull out of the dock or your rope will break before the cleat hitch shown will slip so you certainly don't need more wraps...

Since the real strength issue with cleats used correctly is the way the cleat is attached to your boat or dock, I should mention that a wood or nylon cleat is going to be just as strong as one made of stainless steel, bronze, or alloy... For instance, this cleat(nylon) which costs about $7 in a six-inch size that uses 1/4" bolts...

... Will have the same holding power as these cleatsin aluminum ($45) that also use 1/4" bolts to hold them in place...

The strength is in the bolts, not in the cleat. So, if you need something stronger, don't buy a more expensive cleat, buy one that uses bigger bolts...


Listening to Lindsey Buckingham

So it goes... 

Simple makes sense...

NYC as mercenary territory, yet another "compliance" device because this guy needs more firepower (can you spell growth industry?), and who blew up the economy?

Just reflecting on the wonderfulness that is the Antal Low Friction Ring 

Used to make just about anything you can imagine in the realm of rigging and what's better they are bombproof and cheap (as boat things go).

On "So It Goes" I'm using them on the bobstay, running-backs, jib leads, lazy jacks, and here and there, as a replacement for blocks...

Listening to Dave and Jim

So it goes...

Been reading...

The word for the day is contagion, the offer still stands, and a great site for those who want to live on the water...

So, I've been doing the Kindle thing and you might say I'm a happy camper... E-Books really do rock. The new Joe Pike novel was just as good in e-book form as ink on paper...

The downside is there is not exactly a cornucopia of marine design and boat building books but, I'm guessing, it's early days and the marine publishing industry will catch up to the fact that it is nearly 2012.

That said, I've already got growing bookshelf within my Kindle that is labeled Boat... Starting with Phil Bolger's "Boats With an Open Mind" which is actually better than the print version as the plans in the books seem to have a much better resolution.

Of course, my library would never be complete without Dynamite Payson's "Build the "New Instant Boats" and "Instant Boatbuilding with Dynamite Payson" (you never know when the urge to build a new dinghy might arise) and my go to book on junk rigging... No boatbuilding bookshelf would be complete without George Buehler's "Buehler's Backyard Boatbuilding" or Reuel Parker's "The New Cold-Molded Boatbuilding", which sadly are not yet available for Kindle but "The Troller Yacht Book: How To Cross Oceans Without Getting Wet Or Going Broke" is... So there is hope!  

As I keep having thoughts on the dinghy front and recently saw a good deal on Kevlar, "Building Your Kevlar Canoe" seemed like a no-brainer as did "Building Outrigger Sailing Canoes". Can you detect a cunning plan in my future?

Listening to Ryan Bingham

So it goes...

It's time for a few changes...

On cooks and bankers, an 84-year old woman says something important, and, just maybe, it is time to use the "R" word...

I've been talking to a few of Boat Bit's regular readers (and yes, the irony of using the term "regular" in conjunction with the crazed, depraved, and rather motley crew that actually reads this rag is not lost on me) and the input has been good and a little bit of change would be no bad thing.

We are going to introduce a once a week feature that will dwell on real basic stuff, sort of a newbie sailing, boatbuilding, and cruising 101... So you now have something to look forward to (or maybe not) on Mondays.

Another new series will be some interviews with some exceptional boat designers who are ahead of the curve, have strong opinions, and not the sort who simply pump out cookie cutter designs. Point of fact, I'm really looking forward to this and I'll be asking some very hard questions. So rest assured it won't be the same old, same pimp fest... The first up against the wall (so to speak) will be Rodger Martin who has a lot of shoal draft sharpie fans some kind of excited, check out his Presto Sharpie  (Cruising World's "Boat of the Year") for a taste...

Lastly, in the run up to the Buford Self-steering gear plans going active, there will be a lot of information on self-steering and various related projects in the works which should tie in nicely to the whole basic Monday theme.

Nuff said.

Listening to Girls, Guns, and Glory

So it goes...

A possible future Boat Bits...

A guy quits his job (this is actually important as a political windvane), an apt historical note, it does not have to be the same old same, and a needful read/watch...

For those who are curious about what Boat Bits might look like under the proposed SOPA or Internet Protection Act... Here's a preview.


























Not so great is it?

Maybe a good time to let your folks in Congress know that you'd rather not have SOPA as part of your life...

Listening to Mr Marley

So it goes...

Social cliques and safety...

This guy just made my day, Lefsetz on the best protest song of the twenty first century, and Krugman makes a very good point...

I mentioned a while back that a friend of mine had to make a decision whether to help bring a boat down to the Caribbean when his "Spidey' sense kicked in and he chose not to...

So, reading the current account of the N.A.R.C. carnage over at Lectronic Latitude got me thinking about group think, safety, and cruising rallies.

Now, I've made no secret that I think cruising rallies are, shall we say, a less than optimum way to go cruising... I don't like the way rally folk tend to posse up and how, in every instance of rally groups I've seen, the "rally" insulates them from interacting with locals and other cruisers... But, hey, that's a social clique thing and if you're a social clique kinda person and you want that kind of experience... Why not?

I'm told by a lot of defenders and promoters of cruising rallies that the real reason folks do it is they like the added safety net such an event of this sort provides... I don't know about you, but in the current N.A.R.C. as it unfolds I see the safety net being provided by the USCG and ships diverting to help sailors in peril. Point of fact, once you leave the dock on any of the various rallies you are really ON YOUR OWN. The illusion that you are not, tends to dampen down or silence that needful "Spidey" sense that would be in full tilt boogie mode if you happened to be leaving port on your lonesome.

Then there is the element of keeping to a schedule and the group think thing... Since I had a close friend coming down in the same time window, I was keeping an eye on the weather for his passage down and I was not having warm and fuzzy feelings about the weather picture. The weather system that was to become tropical storm Sean frankly bothered me and I felt that waiting a bit would be the prudent thing to do. I certainly would not have left in the N.A.R.C.'s chosen window. Then again, I'm not on a schedule and don't have to be in St Martin by such and such a date or part of a group that feels they need to be there either. It's a lot easier for me to make decisions on safety, route, and when to depart or more importantly when not to depart, without the pressure of the rally and group think...

Listening to Kitty, Daisey, & Lewis

So it goes...

Just so we're all clear on a few things...

Common sense on Iran, legal insider trading, and since the mere mention of the word "waterboarding" made them cheer, I wonder what the combination of the words visegrips + testicles might accomplish...

"Toto?, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore."

                                                                                         Dorothy

I'm not sure about you but I don't actually recall a tornado whisking me into what can only be described as a seriously dark "Twilight Zone" landscape where, considering the other options, a zombie apocalypse is looking better all the time. Zombies you can deal with, it's simple, you just make dead things deader...

But hey, we're here to talk about boats... right?

In point of fact, we're going to talk about boats that will take you as far away as you can get from the sort of madness that has become common currency in our so-called civilization...

We're also talking about how real working people without trust funds can get on the water and sail off into the sunset on a blue collar salary in comfort and safety...

We'll continue to talk about improving sailing and DIY skills (Hey, it goes with the gig...)

We talk about things that affect folks on boats cruising (and if you don't think that the political situation in the world does not affect cruising may I interest you in a coastal cruising vacation in Somalia?).

We will not be talking about the "America's Cup", fashionable color coordinated foul-weather gear, or the new flavor-of-the-month-consumerist-wet-dream boat that the cruising press is in love with... That's just not who we are.

Listening to Crazy Horse

So it goes...

Something approaching a plan...

Scalzi pretty much nails it, why don't we have anything like this for boat stuff, and this ruined my day...

I like the point where you have something approaching a plan and you reach that head-space where it's time to actually start collecting charts and cruising guides... It's kinda like Christmas!

We're really pretty lucky these days as we have so much better access to information than we did when we were sailing Loose Moose 2 and set off with old and xeroxed copies of charts, hand drawn or traced chartlets, several years of SSCA bulletins, nearly undecipherable notes on scraps of paper of anchorages not to be missed, and a firm belief that we'd run into folks with more and better proper charts along the way (the unforeseen problem we'd never considered was that as everyone was sailing in the same direction, folks only wanted to trade charts/guides from places in our wake).

Right now, some books that are on my must get list: "Cruising the Coast of Brasil" by Marcal Ceccon, "South Atlantic Circuit" by Tom Morgan, a Portuguese-English Dictionary & Phrasebook, another Portuguese book for the Kindle, a Portuguese tape for the iPod... I'm sure there will be others as well as those old and xeroxed copies of charts, hand drawn or traced chartlets, a decade or so of SSCA bulletins, and lots & lots of nearly undecipherable notes on scraps of paper of anchorages not to be missed...

Fun stuff!

Listening to Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66

So it goes...

Two interesting designs...

A glimpse of the future, B of A getting richer, and in the wake of Veterans Day, what the troops find when they come home...

One designer I keep an eye on is Tad Roberts... He first caught my attention in the 80's with his scow "Harry" and every time I visit his site I find something cool.

For instance, last night I found myself looking at the current incarnation of his Harry design and a sixty-foot cargo schooner in steel.

The cargo schooner really appeals. My "Spidey" sense tells me that the days of working sail is going to come back in a big way sooner rather than later (though not as the media and experts would lead you to believe) and even though it is a design made of steel (never my chosen material to build with) it makes a lot of sense.

The new Harry on the other hand, sports a balanced lug rig, is plywood, and a scow... What's not to love? Sure I know I go on about how the Balanced Lug is easily the best rig and most bang for the buck you'll be able to find for a cruising boat but very few designers are brave enough to actually design a cruising boat sporting one no matter how much better it is because the status quo is, after all, the status quo.

Listening to Redbone

So it goes...

Around and around...

Welfare for the 1%, a needful skill when listening to politicians, and this is just neat...

Simply too good not to pass on for those who want/need to make some grommets or loops...


From the excellent blog Greement Courant

Listening to Les Rita Mitsouko

So it goes...

Working on your "Spidey" sense...

I'm not finding this 5-year plan all warm and fuzzy, cyclists take note, and, for answers about bankers, you just follow the money...

A friend called me the other day wanting to discuss some issues he had concerning helping someone else bring his boat down to the Caribbean and his "spidey" sense was kicking in and telling him that, ,just maybe, this particular passage with this boat/captain was not a great idea.

I've actually been told more than once that I take a somewhat cavalier view of sail education and my "any idiot can sail" theory is somewhat off-base. While I continue to consider sailing a very simple set of tasks that anyone can do (OK, maybe not this guy), there is a hard part involved and it is not about trimming a sail, remembering which side you pass a red buoy while returning to port, or being able to pick up a mooring without having it become a "day of shame"...

The hard part most people have is allowing their brain to actually fire with all cylinders and take advantage of the myriad inputs available to us... "Spidey" sense included.

Your gut instinct, intuition, and subconscious situational awareness are a sailors best friend but most folks on boats have a really hard time learning to listen to it, even when it is screaming DANGER WILL ROBINSON, DANGER!!!

You have to learn to listen...

As it happens, my friend listened and made the decision that this was not a passage that he wanted to have anything to do with and last I heard he was in a rented car heading home.

Listening to John Lee Hooker

So it goes...

I used to take clocks apart as well...

Yet another "Big Lie", The White House on "government interactions with extraterrestrial beings", and ZTC asks a question and makes a point...

So, the big rock did not go bump... Color me a happy camper! On the other hand, an astute reader sent me something else to worry about.

John Vigor recently had a great post relating to mainsails and roach and, as usual, he made a lot of sense and got me thinking...

Now, you might say that I'm real committed to battens in my Simplicity rig but, at the same time, I am very curious about how the Simplicity rig would compare to a roachless main given the same luff and foot dimensions. So I'm on the hunt for just such a used sail to play with because I'd like to actually have a little more knowledge only available through real testing. What can I say, I'm addicted to knowing how things really work...

I do have one point of contention with Mr Vigor on the whole batten thing and that is they work just fine and do not cause the sort of issues mentioned if actually done right... That said, most batten installation done by sailmakers (and I use that word very loosely) these days are simply accidents and problems waiting to happen.

Listening to the Wailin' Jennys

So it goes...

Things that go bump and some trust issues...

Regarding the current "Big Lie",  some surfboard porn, and this is going to cause me some sleepless nights...

I woke up this morning thinking about a chunk of rock the size of an aircraft carrier and I would not be telling the truth if I did not mention the fact that I find it just a little nervous making.

I'm pretty sure I'd feel a lot better about it if we still had a real space program as the cutting of funds for space, weather, and other important programs has, more than likely, not left the best and brightest minds watching the skies for things that might go bump or doing calculations on trajectories for things they do see...

Then there is that little fact that we get lied to a lot these days by people who we elect into office. We keep seeing a trend of the powers that be doctoring the work of scientists because it gets in the way of various agendas... The Texas approach to climate change pops to mind. True, I do have some serious trust issues but in my defense, I have good reason to.

Not that this big chunk of rock is going to... you know, destroy the world, end civilization, or even ruin anyone's day but folks win lotteries all the time and the chances of that are not too different than two astronomical bodies bumping into each other...

Me, I'm off to go buy a couple of lottery tickets...

Listening to Dan Bern

So it goes...

World records, fishy business, and a nudge...

A marine review with teeth, the war heats up in Somalia, and you wonder why things are so screwed up...

So the results are in on the "How often do you fish" poll and, for a bunch of cheap-seats cruisers, the results were seriously disappointing...

For those folks who never fish, might I point out that if you never fish you'll never catch anything? Just for the record (and talking about records), are you aware that both Babe Ruth and Micky Mantle both held the record for being struck out while kicking some serious butt in the whole hitting lots and lots of home runs? Am I making a point?

Lately, I've been doing a lot of looking at food costs and it is getting real scary as the prices seem to be skyrocketing. Last week we noticed that the ground turkey we buy as a semi-regular staple just went up 50%. I'm sure you'll all agree that a 50% rise in something is substantial and over the last year we have noticed that most items on our shopping list have risen along those lines... Like I said, scary.

I've also been watching the costs of a lot of the food we don't eat, canned corned beef for instance, which down at the big supermarket on island is $6.95 for a 12-ounce can... Is that nuts or what? My guess is that people who do buy corned beef and Spam, tend to think of them as cheap so don't quite twig that they are spending as much for over-salted canned mystery meat as they would for a T-bone steak or three times as much as fresh pork chops. Something to keep in mind...

But, we were talking about fishing/not fishing and one thing to keep in mind when making the choice regarding to fish or not, is the effect it will have on your monthly budget.

Unlike what a lot of people think, fishing does not cost much to get into. For less than a couple of Mahi filets, a one pound lobster, or a case of Old Milwaukee you can outfit a boat to catch fish... Sure you can spend more but you don't actually need to.

For those new to all this, check out "The Any Fool Can Catch Fish Guide... Basic Kit" article over at "Fishing Under Sail" and keep an eye out for new entries on the subject as there will be a lot coming up over there in the not too distant future.

Some of you may be aware that from time to time I make flies and lures and have even come up with a basic three lure trolling kit of the all-you-need-to-catch-fish-while-on-passage variety that I sell at the odd nautical flea market here and there. So, a carrot for those who need a nudge to get fishing... I'll be giving a kit away to the best fish caught between now and December 15th from a sailboat (you'll need to send a picture)... I hardly have to say that you actually need to have caught the fish, do I?

Listening to the Mighty Mighty Bosstones

So it goes...

A boat worth taking a look at...

A good breakdown on what "Occupy" is all about, license to bully, and, it's official, irony is now dead...

I was checking out used boats the other day and saw a particularly good deal on a Bill Tripp design... A Coronado 35.

The Coronado has always been a bit of an odd duck design wise... A center cockpit ketch with an exterior styling sure to put off folks at the time (it had a windshield, need I say more?).

That said, Bill Trip knew how to design a boat that worked and the hull (previously proven as a Columbia) is without fault. The interior squeezes so much living area into a 35 foot envelope that you keep asking yourself is it really 35 feet?

My one complaint about the design is that the cockpit is not great on lounging area and, as someone who is 6'5", I find it just that little bit cramped. On the plus side, the "cramped" cockpit is very dry and secure when things get nasty...

Obviously a boat before it's time but one that still does not quite mesh with what most people thing a cruising boat should look like and that folks spells a pretty good deal if you're looking for a lot of boat for very little money...

For those interested in looking for more info on the design there is a pretty active Yahoo group for the Coronado 35.

Listening to Flogging Molly

So it goes...

Looking like Billy the Kid might be silly but the alternative can be a lot worse...

On Florida not exactly being a cruisers paradise, record profits while pleading poverty, and proof positive that there are idiots in office up there in Wisconsin.

As a skier, climber, and slinger of flies, the whole neck gaiter/bandana thing for sun protection is somewhat old hat because they've been part of those scenes forever, but it has come to my attention that what we now call "Buffs" are quite the fashion statement for folks riding bikes, power walking, and even (yes, dear reader) sailing...

Unlike a lot of fads having to do with fashion, there is a lot to be said for the neck gaiter/bandana/buff thing because it fulfills a lot of needs... and when speaking of needs related to sailing, it's keeping the whole UV stuff at bay.

The very worst sunburn I've ever had was in a very odd place... Humping loads across a glacier in Alaska for a climb of Denali, I had taken Don Whillians' advice and instead of getting in shape for the climb, beforehand I had upped my intake of beer and comfort foods so that I would be about fifteen pounds over my normal climbing weight which, the theory went, I'd lose on the approach and the ferrying gear stage of the climb. It sorta/kinda worked, as carrying big loads gets you in shape fast but Don never told me about the pain of it all. A good portion of that load carrying at altitude had me gasping like an old man with a three pack a day habit and my constantly gasping caused me to get a horrible sunburn on the roof of my mouth. Talk about nasty...

Ever since for such silliness I go the balaclava, neck gaiter or Billy the kid look with the bandana because I never ever want that to happen again.

The "Buff" seems like a good product and they have some way cool patterns and suchlike dedicated to us folks who like to fish, but then your cheap over-sized basic bandana fulfills the needful pretty well and is a heck of a lot cheaper. Speaking of bandanas, one very cool bandana  looks just the thing if you feel the need to make a statement of the political sort...

Plus, you never know when those helpful hints about tear gas might come in handy...

Listening to Rod Stewart

So it goes...

No scow content whatsoever...

Old news does not mean no news, life makes so much more sense when drawn, and something that makes sense...

It's raining... The sort of can't-get-anything-done-maybe-I-should-find-my-ark-plans kind of deluge. Bummer!

What I really hate about this sort of rain is it lets you know where all those new leaks are, and that, of course, adds to my project list and since I can't actually fix anything till it's all dry it's all kinds of stressful... My better half just pointed out that the U-bolt on the starboard side is just such a leak... Aaarrrrghhh!

Actually, it's not all bad, as I do have to repaint the deck soonish so removing deck hardware and re-bedding is par for the course, but the various torrential drips are as annoying as being stuck doing the wash in a laundromat with FOX news on.

That being said, it is a good day to do nothing as I have finally got off the fence on the e-reader front and got a Kindle and I like it. We also picked up a lighted cover for it which I balked at for $20-something (the one I linked to is silly expensive but it does go on deep discount from time to time) on sale but, for someone like myself who does most of his reading late at night, it is a must have. So I may just kick back with the new (to me) Crais book, put on some leak canceling headphones, and do some reading...

Listening to John Fogerty

So it goes...

About those new clothes the Emperor has, and Bob gets his rant on...

Arab spring hijinks, a really bad deal, and there's a new forum over at ProaFile (the new hip place for folks of a bilaterally asymmetrical sailing bent to hang out)...

"As far as we can discern, the universe is a very silly place,"
                                                                                     Albert Einstein

You know, there is a whole lot of established knowledge floating around in sailboat design that simply does not stand up to scrutiny.

I've lost track of the number of times I've heard that the gaff rig won't sail to weather, catamarans don't do windward, shoal draft is unseaworthy, or that a Marconi is by far the most efficient rig. The fact is, all of these are simply not correct but they are a part of the great group think and make me want to use a silly word...

Balderdash!

Ooh, I get all steampunky when I say that...

It would be funny, if it were not so tragic, that so many folk aboard boats with sails have bugger all knowledge of how things of a sailing nature actually work... I'm reminded of this as several folks who apparently browse Boat Bits felt the need to tell me yesterday that scows...

• Are unseaworthy
• Slow
• Don't or can't sail to windward
• Don't sail well down wind
• Are prone to capsize
• Don't sail well on a reach
• That the boat that just won the Mini was actually not a scow (because if it had been it would not have won as the the Mini has rules and they would never allow such a thing to happen)
• Would be horribly uncomfortable at anchor

I could actually go on but do I need to? The fact is that none of the above comments are correct but that "mythical established knowledge" says it is so, so it must be right.

For those with a high pain threshold, take a look at a recent forum thread on that Mini winning scow... Off hand, I'm guessing of course, the naysayers and snark slingers in question don't have a lot of sea miles on scows, deep experience in naval architecture and more than likely use their motors a lot more than their sails.

The scary thing is, we as a group tend to care more about what folks think of our boats than thinking (and in this I mean real thinking) about boats and how they work. As I've mentioned before, back when we were building our Wharram Tiki 31 most of the sailing journals and magazines were running editorials and articles about how cats and tris were unsafe, could not sail to weather, and other spurious information that well-meaning folks kept quoting to us to show us the error of our ways... Hindsight, being 20/20, tells us that the "mythical established knowledge" of those days was just that... M-Y-T-H-I-C-A-L, so it was then and so it continues to be.

Listening to BTO

So it goes...

Fever dreams...

Greece makes a choice, a pivotal sailing design by Harle, and while the world is going to hell in a turbocharged wicker basket there is a silver lining amidst the gloom...

To steal a quote from one of my favorite Southside Johnny songs, where scows are concerned, "I got the fever"...

Not made any easier by the fact that a scow (designed and helmed by David Raison) just kicked ass in the Mini easily winning leg 2, a 3120 miles passage between Madeira and Salvador de Bahia. Raison set a new course record and easily beat his nearest competitor by 130 miles while leaving the rest of the pack over 300 miles behind.



Like I said, KICK ASS!

Of course, for those with a sense of history, scows and speed are often entwined. For instance, did you know that the very first planing sailboat which spawned a lot of the modern design thinking we take for granted in go-fast boats was a scow designed back in 1928 by Uffa Fox?

Or that the A-Scow held the sail speed record for ages...

Yeah, an evolved scow schooner cruising boat would be just the thing!

Listening to Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes

So it goes...

Making headway...

An interesting solar water still, the key word here is "adapt", and DoryMan points us to a cool scow project and makes a point...

Yeah, I keep having all sorts of warm and fuzzy thoughts about a scow cruising boat. So much so, that it's hard for me to concentrate on the various jobs and projects I need to be doing. You know how it goes...

That said, the weather is good (spelled n-o-t-r-a-i-n-i-n-g) and even though the last couple of days the anchorage has been rolling like a drunk pig, stuff is getting done.

One of the current small projects is building a few dedicated camera mounts into key areas (hard dodger/spreaders/mast head) of "So It Goes" for our plethora of GoPro cameras (soon to be made larger with the addition of the new and even better GoPro2). A pretty easy task as the camera mounts are simple stock FCS skeg mounts designed for surfboards so it is a simple matter of drilling a hole, sealing the area with epoxy, and then gluing the fixture in place...

In the now for something completely different department, is this cool or what?


Near Tag Quality from Graffiti Research Lab France on Vimeo.

I'm thinking it would be a very cool way to give "So It Goes" that dazzle paint job I keep threatening to do...

Listening to Quicksilver Messenger Service

So it goes...