Missing Skipper

[downunder]

Originally Posted by transmitterdan

Erin,

No need to close the thread. It will live on and help others in your situation. I agree with others who predicted a happy outcome. Thank you for giving us the good news.

I hope in future he has an EPIRB on board as it will be a much more reliable indicator of trouble than missing SPOT messages. EPIRB coverage is much better than SPOT as others have already mentioned. Knowing a boat has both systems can give the folks back home more peace of mind.

+1

Very good news. Spot seems just a nice toy for coastal sailors. Cheaper is not always the best.

[Kettlewell]

By the way, having sailed before the invention of such things as SPOT, I always call or somehow contact my family before leaving on a longer trip giving them a realistic assessment of my timing on the voyage, and I tell them not to contact the authorities no matter what! My feeling is that I take the risk and I should be the one to live or die by that. If I need help, I have ways to call for help, but only if needed.

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by onestepcsy37

please don't close this thread. let us know when he arrives safely at his next port. and be sure to tell him that the cruising community helped out as best we could....

Indeed!
Thanks for your expert input, and effective action, Bill T.

[ericoh88]

Got a reply from his daughter this morning 27th April 2013,

"Hi,

Thanks for messaging; turns out, he’s been found! We finally received a spotcheck from him, seems he’s okay.
We had some feedback from people saying that he was in a zone where signals could be less reliable, and we’ve since had 2 check-ins from him.

Thanks"

[IslandHopper]

Originally Posted by transmitterdan

I hope in future he has an EPIRB on board as it will be a much more reliable indicator of trouble than missing SPOT messages. EPIRB coverage is much better than SPOT as others have already mentioned. Knowing a boat has both systems can give the folks back home more peace of mind.

He did have an EPIRB on board but obviously he was not in trouble so didn't feel the need to activate it.....


EPIRB and SPOT are completely different animals and should never be compared with each other, one was never meant to be a cheaper alternative to the other......

Erin,

Glad to hear your Dad is safe, no doubt he will be amused at all the fuss when he gets home.....