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

[hoppy]

Originally Posted by caldawson

Hey guys,
Ok so, I read this and it scared the life out of me.
I recently decided that I wanted to give up the rat race and semi-retire at 33, I have just purchased a 45ft Beneteau, and have just started taking sailing lessons and live about courses.
My question now is with no sailing experience (mind you I can read Nav charts and know what boats look like on my radar), how am I ever going to fulfil my dream of circumnavigating the globe unless I thrown myself out there.
Look I'm not going to just decided to sail from home to panama but now I don't know how much experience is experience, especially considering I had thought I had been on the open ocean but now realise I don't think I have.

There a lot of VERY conservative people on the forum who are afraid to do anything but take baby steps with their hand held tight.

Where are you mooring on the bay?

[caldawson]

Originally Posted by hoppy

There a lot of VERY conservative people on the forum who are afraid to do anything but take baby steps with their hand held tight.



Where are you mooring on the bay?

She is currently in Sydney but plan on bringing her down in the next couple of weeks and staying at docklands.

[hoppy]

Originally Posted by caldawson

She is currently in Sydney but plan on bringing her down in the next couple of weeks and staying at docklands.

That will be expensive and depending on where, parking will be a PIA. My old man was paying more than $10k for a 40 footer near DFO. It must be $15k for your boat.

You can get a 15m marina berth at RMYS for about $9k. The walk out is a little bit of a PITA but as I can get to the club house from home in 5 minutes, it suits me fine. RMYS is trying to be more active in cruising and maybe if you join other boats for crewing in races, you might be able to get experienced crew for cruises to King Island.

[MLOI]

Originally Posted by hoppy

That will be expensive and depending on where, parking will be a PIA. My old man was paying more than $10k for a 40 footer near DFO. It must be $15k for your boat.

Even more that the cost, navigating up and down the river for an hour each way is a pain in the butt. Docklands is a cool spot to visit for a weekend in a boat, but try and find a berth closer to where you live, and with easier access to the bay.

I had my boat at docklands for 6 months - the novelty wore off after about 4 trips and we moved down to SYC.

Mike

[hoppy]

Originally Posted by MLOI

Even more that the cost, navigating up and down the river for an hour each way is a pain in the butt. Docklands is a cool spot to visit for a weekend in a boat, but try and find a berth closer to where you live, and with easier access to the bay.

I had my boat at docklands for 6 months - the novelty wore off after about 4 trips and we moved down to SYC.

Mike

We went up to docklands and it was a long boring commute. The walk down the pier in St.Kilda is a PITA and worse when you forget something in the car, but as I live in Albert Park and the admiral enjoys the walk from home with our daughter and dog, it means I don't get the "you go to the boat too often" comments. Instead, on a nice day she wants to come down and meet me after a race or an afternoon working on the boat

[danielamartindm]

I think on the whole that the advice given on CF is responsible and considered. I never see advice given to newbies to "just go" on blue water cruises with little or no experience. It's admittedly a fine line to scribe sometimes, urging caution while not discouraging people; but ultimately, we're all adults and we are responsible for the safety of ourselves and crew, there's no buck to pass there; and the challenge of that, I think, is one of the things that draws people to sailing, and flying as well. It's good to keep this issue before us, thank you for doing so.

[james247]

Originally Posted by danielamartindm

I think on the whole that the advice given on CF is responsible and considered. I never see advice given to newbies to "just go" on blue water cruises with little or no experience. It's admittedly a fine line to scribe sometimes, urging caution while not discouraging people; but ultimately, we're all adults and we are responsible for the safety of ourselves and crew, there's no buck to pass there; and the challenge of that, I think, is one of the things that draws people to sailing, and flying as well. It's good to keep this issue before us, thank you for doing so.

There is a difference between just go and just do it.

[denverd0n]

Originally Posted by danielamartindm

...urging caution while not discouraging people;

See, here's my philosophy. Cruising is rarely as glamorous and easy as newbies imagine. It takes a certain amount of determination and real desire to be able to deal with all the little issues that come up. There's a reason for the old saying that cruising is a way to spend time fixing your boat in exotic places.

If your dreams are so utterly flimsy that a few negative words from some complete stranger, on an internet forum, is enough to discourage you from going... Well then it's best that you not go. You are JUST a dreamer, in that case. Looking as much for an excuse NOT to go, as for an opportunity to go.

If you really have the desire and determination that you need to make it succeed, then you are probably not even going to bother asking a bunch of strangers if you should. You will just go. You most certainly won't be discouraged enough to give up if you happen to read some vague negativity on the internet!

Given the above, I don't think discouraging people is such a bad thing. It might be the best thing we can do for them. If they have what it takes they will ignore that and go anyway. If they don't then we probably just saved them a lot of money and headaches.

My two cents worth, anyway.

[Group9]

In my experience, the people who really want to cruise, can't be talked out of it. On the other hand, the ones that think they do, but don't, can't be talked into it.

[Meanderthal]

Broadly, I would be less enthusiastic about encouraging newbie travelers to 'just go' on longer trips if, in addition to lack of experience, any of the following apply :

-- unwillingness to accept the potential consequences of inexperience
-- not handy nor wanting to be handy AND low budget
-- recent major medical issue with significant probability of recurrence (aka noncompliance with therapy)
-- multiple minor medical issues requiring ongoing services
-- minor children aboard
--singlehanding
--******** (who needs them?)

[sailorboy1]

That wasn’t nice, I like it

[Meanderthal]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

That wasn’t nice, I like it

Was it unkind? I intended sensible/straightforward.

[boatman61]

When it comes to crossing oceans everyone is inexperienced the first time.. even racing sailors who think a hack across the Biscay qualifies them as a 'made man'..
Whole different thing to coastal pottering.. as they discover with a shock.. no place to hide.. no quickie rescue and definitely no tow home..

[double u]

...let me modify Matt. 22:14:
"...many feel themselves called, but few are chosen..."
(or as a kraut-sailing-pope said when asked by an attendee at a lecture he gave if blue-water cruising was for him: "it's for 1 in a million, & not for you!")

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Meanderthal

Was it unkind? I intended sensible/straightforward.

I for one read it as straight forward. I guess a couple could be taken wrong if someone read them not as intended.