Defining Long Range

[N4061]

As with most things in life definitions change over time and in the boating world we have seen our share changes. Just the term Trawler has evolved over time I curious what others think defines a "Long Range Cruising Boat" in range? Is it 500 or 5000 miles today? I'm sure this one will generate some interesting view points.

John

Helmsman 38E - Under construction

 

[dhays]

Since I don't do long range cruising, "long range" is anything longer than what do.

 

[Diesel Duck]

For me a "Long Range Cruising Boat" would be a vessel that could, at the very least, cross the smallest ocean without added bladders.

 

[caltexflanc]

I personally regard it as an irrelevant term. Tell me what the tankage and consumption is and I'll decide if the estimated range is adequate to my purpose.

 

[ksanders]

A boat can either cross a ocean or it cannot.

long range to me is a boat that can cross an ocean.

 

[BandB]

I personally regard it as an irrelevant term. Tell me what the tankage and consumption is and I'll decide if the estimated range is adequate to my purpose.

It is irrelevant, made so by the fact everyone interprets it differently. Tell me what the range is, not that it's long. And tell me how you calculated that range.

Now, what do I personally consider long? I'd say 1000 nm range at 90% probably. As I'd have "long" and then "ocean crossing". On ocean crossing capability there's a lot of misinterpretation too. Which ocean? What path? At what percentage?

I see one builder claim it's absolutely longest range at 100% while another gives it at 90% and chooses a speed that isn't it's lowest usage, so might say 3000 nm at 12 knots and that be based on 90%, but it has the ability to cover 4000 nm at 10 knots which gives it significant reserve and even 5000 nm at 8 knots.

Give me the full story.

 

[BandB]

Something else in calling a boat a long range cruising boat, I think it must mean the boat is capable of regularly cruising long distances, not a one time thing. A long range cruising boat to me has covered many thousands of miles or, if new, will be expected to do so. If it's been owned for 5 years and only covered 5,000 nm then I'm not going to be willing to call it a long range cruising boat even if 3,000 of that was crossing the Atlantic on it's delivery.

Passagemaker is just as poorly defined. In 2012, Power and Motoryacht defined the best Passagemaker's by size and gave Swift Trawler 34 the best between 29 and 39'. Well, Swift Trawler may be an good boat but it's range at 890 nm. Doesn't fit my definition.

 

[markpierce]

My boat has a 1000 miles or more range from its four fuel tanks holding a total of 316-gallons. Some might think that long, others not.

 

[menzies]

For me it is more about the burn rate and fuel capacity.

If you can cover x miles without the need to refuel it doesn't matter if the boat is capable of an ocean crossing. If it can, say, run down the islands for three or four months and back witout refuelling, to me that boat has a long range. If the boat runs an average of 20 miles a day, but doesn't need to refuel for a 100, 150, 200 days, to me that boat had long range. Some longer than others.

 

[CPseudonym]

Range only limited by the amount of food you can carry.

 

[pearlwindham]

A boat can either cross a ocean or it cannot.

Long range is a boat that can cross an ocean.

I concur.........long range has been referring to and including geometry of hull onboard fuel a certain type of sea you might find assuming you have no where to run to wtshtf.

 

[caltexflanc]

A boat can either cross a ocean or it cannot.

Which ocean? Any ocean? And from what point to where?

 

[ulysses]

In my opinion the term "long range" is not just limited to hull style and fuel consumption/storage. It would also address necessary electronics, food storage, water capacities/production refrigeration, ability to self sustain electrically (by whatever means) ease of engineering and making repairs, safety and lifesaving equipment like rafts, epirbs, and a host of other items and systems.

 

[ksanders]

Which ocean? Any ocean? And from what point to where?

ok to cross the pacific you need 2100 nm of range

the atlantic im not sure but i think 1300 nm but sgain im not sure.

If you cannot cross an ocean then your range does not much matter. All you need is enough fuel to get between ports.

 

[BandB]

ok to cross the pacific you need 2100 nm of range

the atlantic im not sure but i think 1300 nm but sgain im not sure.

If you cannot cross an ocean then your range does not much matter. All you need is enough fuel to get between ports.

1933 nm from Bermuda to the Azores. I would personally never try the Atlantic or Pacific if I didn't have 2500 nm range at some speed.

 

[MYTraveler]

My biggest dissatisfaction with my last boat was its range. It was a battlewagon sportfisher that carried 1,000 gallons of fuel. But I couldn't go "long" for fish without really worrying about and conserving fuel. With this boat, I have gone 1,200 nm on less than half of my fuel (and without making any effort to conserve fuel -- I now travel at about 8.5 knots by preference). My definition of long range is the range to go anywhere one might want without having any concerns about range (primarily fuel, but also water, provisions, communications, etc. necessary to get there safely).

Years ago (I was 18 at the time), I had a boat (my first saltwater boat) that couldn't make it to an offshore island and back (60 nm round trip) without refueling. After making that trip a bunch of times (each time painfully aware of having passed the point of no return, since ay that point I could not typically see my destination and did not have radar, let alone gps, etc. -- Al Gore hadn't yet invented any of that stuff), my aspirations grew to a more distant island. Eventually, after I got a boat with range to go there (80nm offshore!) and back, I believed (correctly, given my definition) that I had a long range boat. (Ironically, the same boat lost its long-range qualification as my desire to go to more distant shores grew.)

At this point, my propensity to seasickness is my limiting factor, but I like to think that my current boat has not only the range, but the seaworthiness, to I cross any ocean, if I wanted to.

 

[Phil Fill]

I guess to cross an ocean or any place in the world. Range fuel is only one factor, other factors stability, water, food, heat and sanitation. The Eagle being a full displacement requires no stabilizing, holds 1200 gallons of diesel at 1200 to 1500 rpm which is 2 mpg, has 2 refrigerate and 2 freezers, a water maker that needs rebuilding, holds 400 gallons of water, a 5 kw cruise generater and plenty of storage for food. However the furthest we have been is 300 miles which is far enough.

True story.

When we first bought the boat the furthest long cruise for us was 30 miles Seattle to Everett. We sub rented on the commercial dock, which most cruised 24/7 to Alaska. Anyway I was so so glad to be tied to a dock, while thanking the commercial for helping docking. They enquired where we from I said Seattle. They burst out laughing, so long range is relative. 30 miles is still long for me.

 

[BandB]

I guess to cross an ocean or any place in the world. Range fuel is only one factor, other factors stability, water, food, heat and sanitation. The Eagle being a full displacement requires no stabilizing, holds 1200 gallons of diesel at 1200 to 1500 rpm which is 2 mpg, has 2 refrigerate and 2 freezers, a water maker that needs rebuilding, holds 400 gallons of water, a 5 kw cruise generater and plenty of storage for food. However the furthest we have been is 300 miles which is far enough.

True story.

When we first bought the boat the furthest long cruise for us was 30 miles Seattle to Everett. We sub rented on the commercial dock, which most cruised 24/7 to Alaska. Anyway I was so so glad to be tied to a dock, while thanking the commercial for helping docking. They enquired where we from I said Seattle. They burst out laughing, so long range is relative. 30 miles is still long for me.

Would you be comfortable crossing to Hawaii or going to Anchorage or just down the coast to San Diego? If not, why not? Your experience? Something about the boat? Or just something you wouldn't be comfortable doing in any recreational boat?

 

[BandB]

True story.

When we first bought the boat the furthest long cruise for us was 30 miles Seattle to Everett. We sub rented on the commercial dock, which most cruised 24/7 to Alaska. Anyway I was so so glad to be tied to a dock, while thanking the commercial for helping docking. They enquired where we from I said Seattle. They burst out laughing, so long range is relative. 30 miles is still long for me.

Wifey B: Ok, I giggled. But then it hit me, until the second half of 2012 the furthest we'd been on our own boat was Lake Norman in NC, so end to end not much further. We had gone down the TN and halfway down the TN Tom with people we knew and to us that was just beyond absolutly magnificent wild amazing. That became our dream. Then a funny thing happened on the way to the river and here we are. :lol:

 

[Bay Pelican]

Without any justification I have long used the US to Bermuda trip as a guideline for "long range" This is approximately 600 nm from either North Carolina or Martha's Vineyard.

 

[O C Diver]

Without any justification I have long used the US to Bermuda trip as a guideline for "long range" This is approximately 600 nm from either North Carolina or Martha's Vineyard.

While I'm not disagreeing, my boat could comfortably do that trip in less than 5 days if I wait for a good weather window. Really think the duration has to be long enough where bad weather for some portion is a reality.

Ted

 

[DavidM]

I would prefer the term blue water cruiser rather than long range cruiser. Almost any boat with enough fuel capacity can safely cruise 1,500 miles from Florida to Maine staying 50 miles offshore.


But it takes more than that to cross an ocean where the weather forecasts are no good after 4-5 days and you have to be able to take whatever mother nature throws at you. That means scantlings, redundant systems, ballast and most importantly- skipper smarts.


David

 

[stornoway7]

I guess if you want to use the words long range and passage maker in the same sentence than a range of 2500 nautical miles would be a sensible minimum given the longest common leg seems to be California to Hawaii which is about 2250 nm plus a 10% reserve gives 2500 miles.
Plus food and grog to last the distance.Ice would be nice as well.

 

[FF]

"Long range" is as useless as"Hi Fi" as a definition..

Either a boat has the structure/scantlings/build to go out in the ocean , and get caught out or it doesn't.

Weather it can put from Maine to the Bahamas on one tank and back hardly matters.

Ocean crossing boats are about 300%b more costly , and usually less comfortable inshore , so the owner needs to really want to go voyaging to bother.

Like most advertising verbiage , mostly in the mind of the viewer.

 

[ulysses]

I would define a long range and/or blue water cruiser as one that can instill in a competent and knowledgeable operator the confidence in making an ocean crossing.

 

[Drake]

View attachment 55398

Range only limited by the amount of food you can carry.

I REALLY want one of those,

 

[hmason]

Damn, I see a supermarket but no dinghy dock.

 

[hmason]

My picture posting is right side up. Is something wrong with the site??

 

[Pgitug]

I saw a yacht for sale that listed the boat speed and associated range.
At 7 knots the range was 2100 miles.
Is this a long range cruiser?
At 12 knots the range was 800 miles.
Is this a long range cruiser?
At 24 knots the range was 375 miles.
Gotta love V12 engine economy.

 

[Lost Horizons]

To me an LRC means a vessel that can go to any given distinction without reliance on third parties/infrastructure. If petroleum fuel one day is no longer available, all so called LRC power boats suddenly become rafts.