Bananas: Bad Luck or Good Eatin?

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Cadence

mesh hammock for fruit.

PS. I bought a boat from a couple that kept fruit in a mesh hammock along with a couple of whole garlics? Since they had cruised for 10 or 12 years Carib. and South America I might put some credence to it?

[ArmyDaveNY]

According to the old movies, it is the banana skin that is bad luck. At least that's what Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Harold Lloyd all said.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMDgmHB4znc

[nknowland]

I've heard one source of the issue is that bananas give off some chemical when they ripen which will cause other fruits and veggies to spoil. So store them separately.

That said, I've never met a boating superstition that I don't embrace. Didn't change our boat name, never start a trip on a Friday, and no bananas once we leave the dock!

[44'cruisingcat]

Originally Posted by nknowland

I've heard one source of the issue is that bananas give off some chemical when they ripen which will cause other fruits and veggies to spoil. So store them separately.

That said, I've never met a boating superstition that I don't embrace. Didn't change our boat name, never start a trip on a Friday, and no bananas once we leave the dock!

My understanding is that they give off ethylene, which causes other fruit and veg to ripen quickly then spoil. In the old days this was a serious issue.

Fruit ripening gas - ethylene

[Barney21]

Now here is a suggestion ,you know Henry Fords quote" The harder I work the luckier I get" The converse works too.
Bananas are best as with all fruit off the plant ,commercially they are all gassed to make them ripen at once and they taste like egg cartons compared to fresh ones.
They are a very good supply of Potassium. A bit hard to digest for some people, but in moderation as with all food very good food source ,if fresh in season. Try one . You wont eat a super market one again. Oh by the way a few brown marks on the skin mean they are getting ripe, not going bad . The ones that look perfect are crap.

[HopCar]

If you read the Snope's report on this you'll see they mention Fruit of the Loom underwear as being banned on some boats. The are puzzled as there are no bananas on the label.


There is a story as to why there is no banana on the Fruit of the Loom label.


It seems that a group of executives from Fruit of the Loom went fishing with Bouncer Smith out of Miami Beach. Bouncer is a firm believer in No Bananas.
The executives were not having any luck. Bouncer searched the boat for bananas and found none. One of the executives joked that there was a banana on the label of their underwear. Bouncer made them all throw their underwear overboard. They immediately started catching fish. When they got back to work, they had the banana removed from the Fruit of the Loom label.


Now remember I said this was a story. I don't know if it is true, but I know Bouncer and I believe he would force people to throw away banana underwear.


If you want to charter a fishing trip out of Miami, I highly recommend Bouncer.

[wolfesmy]

Bananas hanging in a boat can become "self peeling" as we discovered on a crossing. All that was left hanging were the peels and the fruit flew across the boat.. Labour saving but not necessarily neat.

[Serene86]

When I worked on schooners bananas were considered bad luck by sailors for a few reasons:
1. Bananas ripen quickly so required fast vessels to transport them. Skipjack schooners were used but tended to capsize and sink when overloaded with bananas.
2. Hands of bananas would occasionally harbor tarantulas which would invariably wind up biting a hapless crew member.

[takeabow40]

bananas and women your choice if you can sail without both your a better man than me lol

[first wind]

Originally Posted by Kentb

My staple Breakfast usually consists of a banana, cereal and whatever other fruit is available for not too much money and reasonably fresh.
I know of people who believe bananas are bad luck on boats. I know of one sailor who comes unglued just in the presence of bananas even when far from the water.
I like my simple breakfast routine, but have to give pause to ask...
#1. Why are bananas so cursed?
#2. How many other sailors out there are quite willing to risk the "bad luck" for the sake of good nutrition?
#3. What is the best way to store bananas on board?

i think bananas must be good luck on boats. you never hear of banana boat shipwrecks.

[first wind]

Originally Posted by Jason Flare

Can't answer all your questions but we are well aware of the banana curse.

With that said I didn't believe it since the banana crop is shipped all over the high seas.

We always carry bananas.

We store them in ,"green bags." Our particular brand probably came from Walmart and are called Debbie Meyer Green Bags.

We probably have plenty of bad luck but I usually attribute it to my poor planning and preparation. Not the bananas.

it's the green bags. they are like tinfoil hats. they keep out the banana curse. now...you definitely don't want to keep them in white bags.

[Delancey]

Originally Posted by first wind

i think bananas must be good luck on boats. you never hear of banana boat shipwrecks.

not so sure about that

[Alan Mighty]

Originally Posted by HopCar

If you read the Snope's report on this you'll see they mention Fruit of the Loom underwear as being banned on some boats. The are puzzled as there are no bananas on the label.

Sure seems just an empty story. See: The Fruit Story

[first wind]

Originally Posted by Cadence

mesh hammock for fruit.

but only for fruit. any other type of banana hammock would be rather pointless made of mesh.

[first wind]

Originally Posted by Barney21

Now here is a suggestion ,you know Henry Fords quote" The harder I work the luckier I get" The converse works too.

by converse, do you mean, " the luckier i work the harder i get?"