Ruining it For The Rest of Us?

[chad.lawie]

one drunken night resulted in the idea that we would "free" abandoned boats, tow them a ways into the ocean, throw on some dive gear, and then open the sea cocks drill some holes and "ride" the boats to the bottom. just for fun.

we progressed into thinking we could provide statistical data about how fast boat X sank. do some bilge pump tests. get an underwater camera. play chess or something while she went down.

Then we sobered up. but the ideas still on the drawing board for the next party.

Originally Posted by ssullivan

BTW: Chad Lawie is exactly the right kind of person to keep our anchoring rights going strong. Look at how well his boat is kept. It's beautiful. He's living at anchor (a lot of the time), working from the boat and is courteous and respectful to others.

I think he understands my observation because he is doing what I do. Living at or below poverty on an older boat, doing so at anchor and working.

aw thanks man! i'm honored!

[dana-tenacity]

At a marina I once lived at was an old derelict. I used to say nasty things about it and the owner. Then I found out the owners daughter had fallen overboard and drowned. It was several years before he could face going back to the boat. It fell into disrepair. He eventually recovered from the loss, as much as anyone could. Last time I saw the boat it was spotless. I never criticise someone else's boat now.

[Divecoz]

Chad is doing an excellent job with his boat, I agree as well.
He could make a strong case for old boats, but then again he could show that you need to and you can. . . . make steady progress. . .
The previous owners of Chads boat are the types, we are talking about here. Have you seen the mess this young fellow bought into?
This wasn't just a clean up job..... Every system was in need of massive repair. Repairs made by someone who knew and understood or was willing to find the knowledge somewhere somehow. NOT just bugger it together again. . . with Elmer's and Caulk from Ace Hardware.

Dana: Your's is Sad sad story but those are not the common case.

[markpj23]

While discussing anchoring rules & enforcement in St Petersburg with the dockmaster today, he told me of a recent 'experience' in the Vinoy basin. The local "rules" say 7 days at anchor, then must leave for 72 hours. As a practical matter, they are well aware of the Marco Island ruling and the State law. They choose not to try to enforce their more restrictive ordinance unless someone is creating a true nuisance (pollution or something similar).

Anyway, a boat owner from Michigan decided to anchor in the basin, then go home to Michigan for several weeks. Left the boat unattended of course, strong front came in and above-normal tide had the usual effect on inadequate scope. The City ended up with a full-keeled cruising boat on the rocks and no owner to be found. Guess they had to dip into their budget to get it removed. Not sure if the owner was ever tracked down.

Hope he eventually says "thank you" to the people of St Petersburg for their underwriting of his irresponsibility.