Some seriously good news...

There be bigots assholes in Dent County Missouri, just some welfare for rich folks, and I'm not quite sure the military and I share the same definition of the word humane...

I've never been a big fan of carrying around a lot of pyrotechnics as things designed to explode/burn on a boat just make me nervous. A feeling underlined over the years by a too large number of incidents where flares became part of the problem rather than the solution.

Truth be told, flares scare me.

Then there's the ongoing need to replace your flares every couple of years... Yeah, I know flares have a three year lifespan but, try as I may, whenever I find myself needing to buy flares I only seem to be able to find flares with eighteen months or so validity.

Have I mentioned that flares are silly expensive?

So, in the "it's about frelling time" department...

... Finally an electric flare that is USCG approved (and yes I know it looks like a man-overboard light).

The good news is from here on this is the only night signal you need to carry and combined with a distress flag as your day signal (which comes with the Sirius flare) it's all you need to be 100% street legal with the USCG and other powers that be.

But wait... It gets better!

The Sirius electric flare is not "dated" with an expiry date which means the only thing you need to replace is the c-cell batteries when needful. That said, if you lose or screw it up you can order a replacement and get it shipped to you by the US Mail or something similar.

Of course I saved the best for last... It only costs $99!

Doing the happy dance...

Listening to Chuck Johnson

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Some common sense amidst the consumerism...

A couple of very good points, a bit of truth in advertising, and in the "if you want a drill, drill em" department...

Deb and TJ (who have the most excellent "The Retirement Project" blog ) sent me a copy of their new book "How Not to Buy a Cruising Boat" which, as it happens, is also now available as a KINDLE book.

Now, as a general rule, I'm not a big fan of what passes for "How-To" books of the sailing/cruising variety these days. The problem is they're either just rehashed clones of books that are already on my book shelf or a concoction of recipes of how to throw money at stuff and buy needless shit. So, I'll be honest and admit I wasn't exactly excited by the prospect of reading HNTBACB if it was the same old same.

So, here's the short form good news... It's a good book and if you are currently thinking about buying a sailboat to go cruising it's a must read.

The reason it's good is that they did all of the right stuff we're told is needful and still had problems. Which is not to say they did not make some mistakes along the way as well but they had the good sense to learn from them. A surprisingly rare trait in writers dispensing advice of a nautical nature.

Take their issues/problems with some marine tradesmen...

They don't like surveyors. Point of fact; this state of affairs is contrary to most everyone's advice on how to buy a boat. The current accepted carved in granite mindset is that whenever buying a boat you MUST GET A SURVEY! As it happens, I know quite a few surveyors but, then again, I have been known to travel in rather unsavory circles from time to time so hardly surprising. Fact of the matter is that all but one of the surveyors I know are either crooks, incompetent, or a mix of the two... Would I have a beer with them? Sure (though I'd keep my hand on my wallet while I'm doing it). Would I trust them to survey my own boat or a friends? Hell no! Well, actually, if I needed a survey that said my boat was in great shape and worth a shitload of money so I could defraud an insurance company I might (I hear the current going rate for this sort of service is 15% of the take).

Their input on other marine "experts" is also very good.

I have one niggle with the book (which had me throwing my virtual book against the virtual bulkhead several times) which is that some standard false comparisons that everbody uses crept in (the worst being their table comparing dinghies). I also took some issue with their measurement of needed HP for a given boat. That said, they are minor issues.

All in all, it is a very good additon to my book shelf and one I'll be recommending to folks right along with Fatty Goodlanders "Buy, Outfit, & Sail" and Geoff Pack's "Blue Water Countdown".

Listening to some bottom line stuff

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Here's a project of interest...

John Scalzi making some needful points, a sky pilot getting it right, and Badtux pointing out the obvious...

A long time ago I read the book "Sailing the Farm" by Ken Neumeyer and while there is a lot of good ideas, some excellent information on seaweed and other content of a useful sort, it suffered greatly from the fact that a lot of the projects/ideas were just not practical aboard a boat or, in their current form of evolution, simply did not work. Which is not to say he was not on the right track or his theories were wrong but it was simply not quite ready for prime time.

Tragically, as fate would have it, Ken Neumeyer was never able to write a sequel to "Sailing the Farm" but I'm sure that if he had it would have contained a boat sized, scaled down, and demountable version of something like this solar dehydrator from Mother Earth News.

Actually, maybe it's time to look at "Sailing the Farm" again and see how we can apply current tech and materials...

Listening to The Platters (2015 version)

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An improved winch...

An interesting read that involves a speedboat, some very scary reading, and have you ever wondered about the average IQ of some folks into guns...

On "So It Goes" we have some Barlow winches (a pair of 24's and 26's) which are as old as the boat... Considering that they are at least 46-years old, still working finestkind, and looking like they're up for another 46 years, I don't actually pay much attention to the state-of-the-art of new winches. That said, these winches from Pontus are really interesting.



Watching/listening to Mariachi El Bronx

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Of course, you have to see it in boat terms...

On the demise of the bookstore, something from the interesting/worrisome file, and an interesting look at health care in the US of A...

A print ad that speaks volumes.

Listening to Joseph

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Because we need more people asking why/how...

Why you might want to avoid having a stroke in Virginia, some interesting thoughts regarding Fox news, a man making a whole lot of sense, and an important message to businesses running Memorial Day sales...

One blog with an inquisitive nature I follow regularly had a very interesting post today and you really should read it. While you're over there you might want to pour yourself a cup of coffee and check out some of the other posts as there is a lot of good stuff to read.

You're still here?

Listening to Adrian Duff & the Mayo Brothers

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A book you need...

Some needful reading, Bernie makes a good point, and in the "greedy bastards" department..

Go buy it from your local bookstore.

Nuff said...

Listening to the Ballroom Thieves

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In aid of less tyro glasswork...

Nope no global warming/climate change anywhere on the third rock, about that state sanctioned murder thang, and yet another reason I don't read Facebook...

Fiberglass Hawaii has an excellent glassing tutorial and profile of Jack Reeves that is well worth watching. Here's part 1...



There's more on their Composite Corner blog and whether you're glassing a surfboard, dinghy, or a full on cruising boat the skills are pretty much the same...

Listening to some Tears for Fears covers

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Some stuff to think about...

A question I keep asking myself, don't you love it when right wingers do their math, and in the "Better Conditions = Happier Workers = Higher Profits" department ( FYI: If you wear clothing with sailing company logos chances are it was sewn in a sweat shop)...



Listening to Fran�oise Hardy

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Because we're all handy folks on boats...

Some thoughts on the concept of "home", a quick take on threat assessment, and a needful read on the subject of denial...

Here's Tom Cunliffe making some sense.



Listening to The Bohannons

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Catch it if you can...

Something needful to know about your medical insurance premiums, a really good post from Ian Welsh, and a tidbit from the "what bias" department...



The Ocean Film Tour is currently barnstorming Europe and you should catch it if you can.

Nuff said.

Listening to the soundtack for Ferris Bueller's Day Off

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sheet to tiller self-steering...

Someone we should be paying attention to, an interesting read, and a little bit of history that explains a lot...

A guy making a lot of sense.



Listening to Jake McMullen

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Just a quick note...

To remind everyone that there's still time to help support a grand voyage!

Seriously, who can't use a really cool t-shirt?

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ESP moving right along...

Today's installment in the "the beatings will continue as soon as I've turned off my dashcam" files, worth reading, and some lost Ken Russell photography...

Some more from the Eco Sailing Project.



Listening to Jethro Tull

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Speaking of small boats and a good cause...

So, a guy I happen to know recently designed and built a boat. Fact is, it also happens to be a pretty cool sailboat of the scow variety but I don't think I'd be overstating the case to say it is, shall we say, somewhat petite.

So, here's a question... If you had just designed and built a pretty cool boat (that also happens to be kinda small) what would you do with it?

Since I happen to know folks who read Boat Bits on a regular basis are big fans of significnt voyages I'm sure a lot of you would do the first thing that came to my mind...

Go cross a couple of oceans!

What can I say but great minds think alike... Right?

The thing is, doing this sort of trip in a boat less than fifteen feet requires a certain amount of resources and, lucky us, we all need a super cool t-shirt or sticker to impress folks when beer can racing or hanging out at the weekly potluck...

For what it's worth, I know I'll be wearing some of these t-shirts myself (not that I'm trying to impress anyone or anything) because I always need a few new t-shirts and if I can support a good cause in the process, it's kind of a slam dunk...

For those interested in learning more about Yann's project and how to help support it all you have to do is visit his project site.

Just as an added incentive... Get a t-shirt or sticker from Yann and take a picture of yourself wearing it or where you put the sticker and send it to Boat Bits so we can make you infamous and, as you all know, everyone needs a day of infamy.

So it goes...

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Something new from the Eco Sailing Project guys,,,

Hitting the nail squarely on the head, current trends in parenting, and a video you really should watch...



Listening to Tim Barry

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Something that should be on your must watch list...

A bit of worthwhile reading, something that bears repeating, and since fear is good for profits why not pump it up to make a buck...


Red Dot on the Ocean - Trailer from TheSailingChannel.TV on Vimeo.

Listening to Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas

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What we're watching...

A bit of needful perspective, some good news on the Ebola front, and John Oliver has a solution to a problem...



You can find more here.

Listening to Jo Jo Gunne

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Some seriously good thinking in action...

Not the most uplifting read to start your day, how doing the right thing can pay off in a big way, and in the "this video will destroy your faith in humanity" department...

Colligo has a great idea...



More info at Colligo.

Listening to Ray Wylie Hubbard

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A pretty good idea...

You might need a strong drink after reading this, now this, on the other hand, should scare some politicians shitless, and over here, some sense being made...

Here's a good idea and Kickstarter campaign that you might want to support...



Nuff said.

Listening to the Texas Tornados

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