When we shouldn't encourage people to "just go"

[Muckle Flugga]

Originally Posted by Mr42

I met a guy on the ramp at Okahu Bay in Auckland who was about to paddle a kayak around NZ.

He was a well spoken Australian, fit looking and wind-beaten, like the kind of guy who would jump off very high places for kicks and use the word "awesome" a lot.

I walked up with my black dog, Munter. The man had all his things laid out on the grass out the back of Ferg's and was sorting and checking all manner of aquatic survival technology- the miniature version.

As I'd never seen such a comprehensive collection, outside of a boat shop, ( in this case, literally,) I pulled up for a gander and a chat, as you do.

The guy had never kayaked in the sea before and was just getting ready to set off. He said something about learning to roll or some such and I got that, " listening to a dead man talking," kind of feeling.

The guy knew his ****. He'd done all sorts of hung-ho stuff for fun and professionally and he'd invested serious money and planning in the thin layer of dry-bagged goodies in front of us. It boggled the innermost depths of my salt-addled mind to reconcile the apparent preparedness this guy had to undertake one of the most daring nautical journeys in the history of mankind, learning to paddle on the way.

I don't have a clue what happened to the guy. Perhaps someone can enlighten me. Perhaps you, reading this, are he and I got it all wrong. If so, let me know.

I set off on my own for the first time once. It hurt, but I did it again and again, like any real addict will tell you. No matter who told me it would kill me, I still had to try. On the other hand, I sold a boat to a blind idiot once and I rue the day that man became able to go to sea.

As long as they're out there, none of us are safe.


Peace.

Not him of course, but reminds me a little of Andrew Macauley, be he ne'er so prepared, he was still not prepared, but rather driven to his own destruction:

https://vimeo.com/10150048

One wonders whether his mates and others encouraged, or sought to discourage. His own emotions betray some sense that he did not want to go at all, but nonetheless felt compelled to do so. A case where a quiet, or even loud word of dissuasion and reassurance that he need not go might have saved his life?

[FamilyVan]

I find the advice on this forum for new sailors to be very, possibly excessively conservative.

Advise is often something like- you need to spend at least $40000 on the initial purchase of your 35+ sailboat plus another $40000 on upgrades before you can safely do a Chesapeake Bay crossing. But if you really know what you're doing then you need to spend triple that on a multihull.

What? No you don't. You need a hull that's not going to tear appart or randomly sink and a functioning sailing rig and or engine and some kind of an anchor. Everything else is either a bonus for comfort, security, safety, or to increase speed or range.

If you want to hop down the coast in 6 or 10 hour trips in fair conditions, you really don't need a lot of bells and whistles.

Sent from my XP7700 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[Muckle Flugga]

Originally Posted by FamilyVan

I find the advice on this forum for new sailors to be very, possibly excessively conservative.

Advise is often something like- you need to spend at least $40000 on the initial purchase of your 35+ sailboat plus another $40000 on upgrades before you can safely do a Chesapeake Bay crossing. But if you really know what you're doing then you need to spend triple that on a multihull.

What? No you don't. You need a hull that's not going to tear appart or randomly sink and a functioning sailing rig and or engine and some kind of an anchor. Everything else is either a bonus for comfort, security, safety, or to increase speed or range.

If you want to hop down the coast in 6 or 10 hour trips in fair conditions, you really don't need a lot of bells and whistles.

Sent from my XP7700 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

Hard to be too conservative when you are dealing with words only, strangers across the internet. I would prefer to be too conservative than think that my words may lead to the death of a stranger.

[Delancey]

For every train wreck there's a Bumfuzzle.

[FamilyVan]

Originally Posted by Muckle Flugga

Hard to be too conservative when you are dealing with words only, strangers across the internet. I would prefer to be too conservative than think that my words may lead to the death of a stranger.

Maybe conservative isn't the right word, some of the dollar values thrown around on here might be better described as elitist rather than conservative.

Sent from my XP7700 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[denverd0n]

Originally Posted by thinwater

In my experience, people that really have a dream are not so easily dissuaded, and certainly not by a forum.

Exactly. That's why all of the "you're stomping on their dreams!" postings are so dumb. If a negative comment from some stranger on the internet is all it takes to "stomp" their dreams, then the dreams had to be pathetically flimsy to begin with. And if the dreams really were that flimsy, then you're probably doing them a favor by stomping them now, instead of letting them get stomped by cold, hard, reality.

There may be a few people out there who need a little bit of encouragement. But for the overwhelming majority, if they have the desire needed to make it work, then they don't need any encouragement, and they aren't going to be discouraged by a few internet naysayers. For the rest... Well, there are some people who desperately NEED to hear someone say "NAY!"

[Muckle Flugga]

Originally Posted by FamilyVan

Maybe conservative isn't the right word, some of the dollar values thrown around on here might be better described as elitist rather than conservative.

Sent from my XP7700 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

Very happy to agree about the dollar value. I sailed for a decade in an Albin Vega 27, which is an excellent Ocean boat. I ended up selling it for around 5000 dollars, perhaps a bargain but needed work by that time. Still would have taken it across an ocean after a few weeks work. And chappie the other year sailed a Vega (stopped production in 1976) around the whole of the Americas nonstop and solo, so there ya go!

[Mr42]

Originally Posted by FamilyVan

What? No you don't. You need a hull that's not going to tear appart or randomly sink and a functioning sailing rig and or engine and some kind of an anchor.

What? No you don't. Ask all those Cubans with their fridge doors.


Peace.

[Mr42]

You need a good pair of spoons. It's amazing what can be achieved with a good pair of spoons.


Peace.

[CSY Man]

. For every train wreck there's a Bumfuzzle.

Ain't that the truth...

[Mr42]

Originally Posted by CSY Man

Ain't that the truth...

What's a bumfuzzle?


Peace.

[Delancey]

A Bumfuzzle is a young couple with little skill or knowledge and zero experience that bought a cat and circumnavigated, pissing off a lot of salty old farts along the way. They used to be CF members at one point.

Bumfuzzle » Intro & The Start

[CSY Man]

What's a bumfuzzle?

A couple with little experience who bought a boat, and could not stop yakking about their travels on the Internet.
I had to tune them out pretty soon, but many kept reading and could not stop commenting.
The Bums also become heros to the truly clueless crowd.

[Delancey]

My wife enjoyed the blog. I didn't want to hear about it after they painted their man-overboard-pole a gray color because they didn't like the orange color it is supposed to be, so I guess I am more an old fart than a fanboy.

Won't stop me from giving credit where credit is due...

[Muckle Flugga]

Originally Posted by CSY Man

A couple with little experience who bought a boat, and could not stop yakking about their travels on the Internet.
I had to tune them out pretty soon, but many kept reading and could not stop commenting.
The Bums also become heros to the truly clueless crowd.

Well I just googled them and now they appear to be on a bus… A more publicly and extremely documented child's birthday I could not begin to imagine… Sheesh!