I must be getting too darned old.....

I just completed a top end rebuild on my Graymarine 327 a little fluff and buff on the varnish just ad pretty as it was when Lyman built it in 65. Continues to perform quite well, a pleasure to operate.

awesome

>Being an old boater also has its benefits. My 50+ years of boating has given me a LOT of experiences I can call upon to help me do things like handle emergencies when they come up, or back the boat into the slip when the wind is blowing 25kts from the worst possible direction. My years of experience has taught me not to panic but to take my time and do it right, whether that takes a couple of ‘missed approaches’ where you pull back out and reposition the boat to make that near perfect landing.<

Agreed, and well said. Last month I had to come in on just one engine during a strong blow, and on the first pass it just wasn't working for me, and I was out of maneuvers. What I did was pick out a small patch of water I could just hold onto by little adjustments, and then waited until the boat pointed toward an opening of some sort. I crabbed straight out out, collected control, then took a clean run in, better steering, knowing what I had to do. Surprised myself, that technique of stabilizing in a small space. Necessity is a mother.

Pucker factor 1-10?

bilge53 said:

Pucker factor 1-10?

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In the dark and the rain, as it was, steering only with starboard engine, it was a mother pucker.

The distain for old ways is an epidemic.

That said and observing people using things like back up cameras and chain counters when their use is hardly benificial or not at all takes time and energy away from tried and proven stuff that should be learned and done.

That said there are wonderful things like anchor alarms, small boat radar and excellent depth sounders. Cell phones are a great aid to safety and many of the new anchors are better than what our fathers used.

But I disrespect people using things that are new and considered cool just because they are or/and snubbing things that are not the latest development or fad because they aren't new. Thinking inside the box limits one's vision to the inside of the box.

One of our members mentioned using a drone to check the sea conditions nearby but not visable. My knee-jerk reaction was "that's rediculous". He should go out and see. But a certian amount of self control is or may be necessary to prevent getting further and further into nasty conditions to the point where it really is dangerous. It takes experience to know if it's safe to proceed or if conditions are too poor. Add the knowledge of what the wind and tide will be in an hour or when you're "out there" and you're closser to knowing if it's safe to proceed. I "stuck my nose out" many times in places like Cape Caution and Dixion Entrance and benefit from some of those experiences .. and waded into what should have been my end once or twice. It should have been obvious to me but I thought too much about what the present was and did'nt think enough about what likely would happen in an hour. So many variables.

But younger folks should remember that sea stories are "stories" that are anywhere from totally genuine and factual to complete BS. And they lean to the BS side .. just like fish stories. And for the same reason and more. As a result people go to Alaska laden w fear and brag about survival after the deed. But most all the time w nothing to brag about except conquering their own fears. If all knew what a walk in the park the inside passage really is (most of the time) it wouldn't be a wilderness anymore.

One wonderful thing about being old is knowing a thing or two about this and that. Wind is wind and water is water all over the world. Quartering stern seas off the so coast of Africa or in Western Alaska are more alike than different .. kinda like people around the world. So as we get older there are fewer things to fear and more is understood. Add a few good electronic insturments and other things and age can be golden.

Nomad Willy[/quote said:

So as we get older there are fewer things to fear and more is understood. Add a few good electronic instruments and other things and age can be golden.

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Well put, my friend.

Nomad Willy said:

The distain for old ways is an epidemic.
That said and observing people using things like back up cameras and chain counters when their use is hardly benificial or not at all takes time and energy away from tried and proven stuff that should be learned and done.

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Maybe not the best of examples Eric. While I share your sentiments in a general sense, the things you mentioned, like so many other developments, are often only recognised as useful once used. I happen to feel my chain counter is one of the most useful items I have added to my boat, and if reversing cameras in vehicles with poor rear visibility were only for show, why are nearly every car manufacturer adding them as standard. If you had ever tried to back up in a tri-cabin boat, you might also think differently. Would you buy a car now with manual wind-up windows, is another example.

However, there is truth in what you say, as the basics should never be overlooked. That applies in all walks of life, not just boating. As evidenced by a recent tragedy we have just had in North Queensland, with a woman taken by a croc while swimming, but she was in an area where they are known to be - signs up everywhere - and it was 10 pm at night. Sensible basics don't change. Tragic, but totally preventable. You do not swim in croc infested waters, especially at night. Period.

Way back when... now I'm talking here of the 17 and 18 hundreds, into and including mid 1900's... "mechanical and materiel technology" improvements were really getting under way. That time of humanity's life gained the moniker of Industrial Revolution.

Early 1900's suddenly Henry Ford created the production line... well, then... humans were off and running to see how fast we could build things... any things.

As societies improved living conditions in general there became more things to build and use as well as many more people alive to build em and use em.

Enter into 1990's. Oh boy... err girl... which ever title fits. Suddenly we'd passed the transistor age and entered into the chip age.

Then, low and behold, within 10 years we'd quickly entered into the super communications age.

Now we are entering into the molecular transferal and living tissue creation/development age. What astounding breakthroughs this run will give us.

Alan Greenspan coined a most apropos term for what humans do with all our devised items and ages passed through; i.e., "Creative Destruction"... self explanatory.

Soooo.... in regard to changes in boats... grin and bear it baby!! Cause... the Mayflower was state of the art when Columbus sailed the oceans blue. In 1977 the Tollycraft we own today was state of the art (she's still a really cool self contained play-toy motor boat). Today the boat in OP of this thread could be called state of the art for pleasure cruisers 2016.

Gaining years on me is fun. I get to watch all the good and bad and stupid and silly and great things that occur. Of course every once in a while there's a big hiccup... like Donald Trump... but, even that's fun to watch, in a macabre sort of way. He too will eventually pass by.

Smile good boater people!! - You're on a show called "Candid Lifestyle!!!

Who Knows What Tomorrow May Bring:

PoPeterB,
Poor examples? Perhaps but the actual examples matter little. Boats most likely aren't the best example but most all areas of culture and toys get into the act .... everything that people do and have is game.

Chain length counters work but mostly for those that won't go out on the bow and get fully involved in the process. One can do it from the helm (or even the stern) but the counter is an alternative to markers whether electrical tape or commercial ties and if you're on the bow observing the elements of anchoring through observation counters aren't nessessary .. or even desirable?

The back up camera is more useful especially on larger boats. It would be stupid on my 30' sedan. Now it would actually be just a useless fad.

But it's all progress if it's actually useful. Useful enough to warrent the cost in your favorite dollar. Automatic transmissions in cars? Buyers made the choice and paied for them. Not a fad ... good device. Roll up w the crank windows? Again people paid for electric windows and that established the value of them. You could say those things were better for the general population and proved they wer'nt a fad. But when you were the only one on the block with (whatever) it was a fad. For me I prefer stick shift cars but not hand crank windows .. the safety feature of the latter put aside. But they were fads when first introduced. And the people that had them were mostly trendy vouge types that gravitated to the latest do-dad whether it was tail fin cars or cruiser bad ass motorcycles. The latter a long lived fad.

One thing I will admit to is that the fad now is the proving ground for the good modern device or other that evolves down the road. A necessary stage of evolution.

Play toy drones have already evolved into the latest tools for real estate presentations, law enforcement and news reporting. Many other uses have already or will come to pass. I personally think they should be limited to government and commercial use. Not a toy. Too much danger to aviation. If I had an ultralight now I'd sell it because of the drones.

But as we get older most of us can see the value of a fad like thing or see that the value is not worth the money (human effort) and avoid the waste (human effort). Young people are far far more impulsive and tend to waste their time and money on fads that will never be anything else. A truly vogue person will be dripping w fads. In their house, part of their clothes, on their boats and cars and many other places.

Are other people just slow or more intellegent and objective? Or are the vouge people smart enough to see the value instantly and "go for it" ending this post (haha) w a fad of speech. Language is very suceptable to fads. Heard young people lately .. Like real lately.

Art good post.
Peter the back up cameras in cars are in the fad stage. My Honda has one and I use it. But I use my rearview mirrors much more. Some of that is habbit though. Aft visability in newer cars is terrible and that partly brought about the camras. My little 87 Nissan has great aft visability. In the 50's w the lower seat backs and no head restraints you used to get your arm around the girl by backing up as throwing your arm over the seat was standard practice. And the back end of cars were low. If back up cameras are just a fad in 10 years they will be gone.

Resistance to change limits improvement. Advancements are a part of life, today, yesterday, and tomorrow. Throughout history. And throughout history there have always been those opposed to any change.

BandB,
Change is often good and necessary for improvement but fads are of no use other than for those who like them to revel in them and feel superior.
I'm only resistant to the silly stuff .. not change. Change is always good .. if it's positive.

Nomad Willy said:

BandB,
Change is often good and necessary for improvement but fads are of no use other than for those who like them to revel in them and feel superior.
I'm only resistant to the silly stuff .. not change. Change is always good .. if it's positive.

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But what you call silly, someone else may make excellent use of. You don't get to define "silly" for the world. You termed back up cameras silly. I term them to be an excellent tool for some people on both cars and boats.

I know a lot of "fads" that have become standard items for decades. You seem to feel that people who select to try new technology feel superior and look down on you in some way. Actually I don't see that. However, I see your attitude toward them. Why not just live and let live, accept the differences in people and in boaters.

I've seen things that I thought served no purpose, but then I tried them and with some my feelings were confirmed, while with others, I was shocked and never again would be without it. When cell phones first emerged, it seemed to many like nothing but an ego boost. Sort of the upgrade for car phones. Some thought it would just be a toy for the few. That few was running up $500 and $600 a month bills. Today, everyone has one and costs are as low as $20 a month.

I try to remain open minded to all ways of doing things. Old, new, low tech, high tech.

Oh, and for the record, I'd rather have a chain counter any day, than to have to mark chain intervals.

There are and have been many fads that are indeed silly. Young people saying "like" almost constantly and fins on rear car fenders. Time will only tell if it's a step fwd or a silly fad. And it all runs together in the middle. I was one of the first to use synthetic oil on my ultralight AC and I have used extensively an anchor (XYZ) that is more "far out" than perhaps anybody else's on this forum. I try to think for myself mostly.

Part of the original comment that I made could be broken down very simply; learn the how and why of whatever you are doing. Understand whatever the process is and how it works before you bypass the grass roots of the skill and become dependent on something that may always be available. Magenta lines lie. Depth sounders do not read water color. GPS units go dark. Summer thunderstorms build from nothing very quickly. Develop a skill set and then enhance it with whatever the "fad" or new technology presents.

Tried n' true horse riders thought horseless carriage [automobiles] silly and a fad. Orville and Wilber were thought silly by many.

Silly thing is... some times silly becomes serious as all get out.

Another way to look at it. Serious can become Serious as Silly becomes even more Silly!

Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide overloaded PPM will become base product in next Century plus phase of liquid hydrocarbon diesel, gasoline, and jet fuels... not just Whistling Dixie bout that... and that tain't silly ~

Wish I was in charge of what is important in the world and not.....