Don't like difficult-to-read boat name fonts

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O C Diver said:
Illegible names annoy me; dinghies on the swim platform blocking the name are worse; sailboats with the name on the side at the stern seem pointless. Can't offer you a slow pass if I can't read your name till I'm passing you.

Ted
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Honestly, you shouldn't have to "offer" a slow pass. It would just be courteous to do it if it wasn't horribly inconvenient for you. I am so slow I don't make a wake, but I do appreciate those who do make one slowing down to make my trip more comfortable for all aboard.

I also appreciate the fast boats making their pass close to me so their wake doesn't have time to spread out and the duration is very short rather than rocking my world:thumb:
 
Doug,
Ithink the “pass” business is an east coast thing on the ICW. There in close quarters along “the ditch” and they pass right alongside (almost) and to stbd there’s bridge abutments, nav aids, shallow water and the beach. So you’ve got no place to go in/on a rolly hulled Willard and if some guy on a 46’ SD whatever wants to pass there’s not much you can do ... and they all know it.

If the Willard type boats would slow down to 2 or 3 knots for a few moments the bigger boat could slide by. I’ve tried that but they just plow on by at 10 knots never suspecting you’d slow down. We have some narrow waterways like the Swinomish Channel that we frequent out of necessity as we moor about mid channel. And there’s others but nothing like the endless channel on the east coast. I’ve never seen it so my scope on it is what I’ve picked up on TF.

When others have you at a disadvantage and there’s nothing you can do other than shooting at them and of course you’ll never encounter them again there’s just nothing you can do. Almost. One thing I do at times is to go to full port rudder as he goes by so I just miss his stern as he goes by us so we take the wake more or less head on. My big 45 degree rudder is very responsive. Of course I don’t come so close I could hit him but I’ve fliped the piss off the other way on occasion. I imagine it’s kinda shocking to see another boat broadside right off your stern. Most never even see me do it. If you ever do this check to see if he’s pulling a dink first and for other traffic.
 
"if some guy on a 46’ SD whatever wants to pass there’s not much you can do ... and they all know it."

If the passing marine motorist knows how to give a wakeles pass there is no reason for the boat being passed to slow at all.

Sadly in 5 decades I have been passed with skill less than 5 times.

Just as docking takes practice , passing a slow boat well takes practice , but it seems a technique seldom demonstrated or learned.
 
FF said:
"if some guy on a 46’ SD whatever wants to pass there’s not much you can do ... and they all know it."

If the passing marine motorist knows how to give a wakeles pass there is no reason for the boat being passed to slow at all.

Sadly in 5 decades I have been passed with skill less than 5 times.

Just as docking takes practice , passing a slow boat well takes practice , but it seems a technique seldom demonstrated or learned.
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Totally agree...at lesst for 90 percent of the time.

The "typical" ICW pass that is often described in literature and forums i what I call the basic pass.

I rarely slow down past my 6.3 knots and tell the passer exactly what I expect depending on what opportunities exist at the time. I often get a "great!, that was different, thanks".

Even most "experienced" boaters dont really get what is involved with 2 boats passing, the distances, size of wakes, etc..... or don't really care.
 
When you offer a slow pass on the ICW, or a slough in the California Delta for that matter, the requested routine is for the boat being passed to slow down or take way off completely for a moment so the passing boat can go by at low/no wake speed. Just a couple of knots can make a huge difference. We finally resorted to using the loud hailer to message unresponsive potential pass-ees the vast majority being sail boats and seemingly all too often during snow bird season out here, with a Maple Leaf ensign.

I once dreamed of buying a few cases of cheap hand held VHFs and tossing them into cockpits like the Johnny Appleseed of the ICW.
 
Seems sailboats are notorious for having difficult to read/missing/covered boat names.

As a trawler that put's out a pretty good wake, I like to call them ahead and offer a slow pass. Problem is most times you can't find a name until you are pretty much alongside of them.

I try the 'sailboat near green marker ##' or 'sailing vessel with blue hull' but more times than not, I don't get a reply.

I've recently tried a newer tactic when they don't respond by calling 'Sailing vessel ahead of the trawler that's about to wake them' and it's fun to watch heads swivel to look.:D

Unfortunately, it seems that sailboaters don't have the same sense of humor that us Trawler folks have and I usually get a snide comment. :ermm:
 
FF said:
If the passing marine motorist knows how to give a wakeles pass there is no reason for the boat being passed to slow at all.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure I know what a "wakeless pass" is.

I know that staying on a plane leaves less of a wake, although my current boat doesn't plane. I know that going below hull speed leaves little wake, but if the boat I'm passing is going that same speed, the pass will never happen.

I know that what many small boats in "no wake" zones do, which is dropping the throttle just enough to come off plane and dig the stern in, throws up a much larger wake. But we are talking about a slow boat passing a slower boat here.

That pretty much leaves passing in a wide arc, so that the bulk of the wake is directed away from the passed vessel.

Is there another technique I'm not familiar with?
 
O C Diver said:
Illegible names annoy me; dinghies on the swim platform blocking the name are worse; sailboats with the name on the side at the stern seem pointless. Can't offer you a slow pass if I can't read your name till I'm passing you.

Ted
Click to expand...

I agree on all points. Also named that are difficult to understand or pronounce.

Sometimes bridge operators ask for the name of the vessel and home port. It doesn't make sense to have a name that you have to spell out each time you say it.
 
KSF said:
Seems sailboats are notorious for having difficult to read/missing/covered boat names.

As a trawler that put's out a pretty good wake, I like to call them ahead and offer a slow pass. Problem is most times you can't find a name until you are pretty much alongside of them.

I try the 'sailboat near green marker ##' or 'sailing vessel with blue hull' but more times than not, I don't get a reply.

I've recently tried a newer tactic when they don't respond by calling 'Sailing vessel ahead of the trawler that's about to wake them' and it's fun to watch heads swivel to look.:D

Unfortunately, it seems that sailboaters don't have the same sense of humor that us Trawler folks have and I usually get a snide comment. :ermm:
Click to expand...

I have resorted to the horn when I get no response on the radio. At least they will look even if they don't understand the horn signal. Sometimes they respond with a hand signal.
 
The real problem is when faster boats slow down too soon. Then get antsy and throttle up at the worst point.... just ahead and still off to the side of the slower boat. Thats where the slower boat will be, just as throttle up was started and now get the biggest wake of all.

Keep speed on, quickly reduce power snd glide by and quickly cut in front so the slower boat is now inside the faster boats wake.

Works best with large faster boats and less than 8 knot slower boats. So it isnt universal, but the vast majority of larger power boaters in my opinion still time all passes poorly.
 
CaptTom said:
I'm not sure I know what a "wakeless pass" is.

I know that staying on a plane leaves less of a wake, although my current boat doesn't plane. I know that going below hull speed leaves little wake, but if the boat I'm passing is going that same speed, the pass will never happen.

I know that what many small boats in "no wake" zones do, which is dropping the throttle just enough to come off plane and dig the stern in, throws up a much larger wake. But we are talking about a slow boat passing a slower boat here.

That pretty much leaves passing in a wide arc, so that the bulk of the wake is directed away from the passed vessel.

Is there another technique I'm not familiar with?
Click to expand...

See my post. The key is for the boat being passed to slow down or take way off so that the passer can get by at minimum wake.
 
KSF said:
Seems sailboats are notorious for having difficult to read/missing/covered boat names.

As a trawler that put's out a pretty good wake, I like to call them ahead and offer a slow pass. Problem is most times you can't find a name until you are pretty much alongside of them.

I try the 'sailboat near green marker ##' or 'sailing vessel with blue hull' but more times than not, I don't get a reply.

I've recently tried a newer tactic when they don't respond by calling 'Sailing vessel ahead of the trawler that's about to wake them' and it's fun to watch heads swivel to look.:D

Unfortunately, it seems that sailboaters don't have the same sense of humor that us Trawler folks have and I usually get a snide comment. :ermm:
Click to expand...

The other means I used before finally resorting to the loud hailer was horn signals, but about 5% of boats know what they mean or respond to them.

Whenever I got a nasty look from a non-responder because we rocked them a little, I'd hold the VHF microphone up, point to it and wave it at them. Yeah a lot but certainly not all of those sailboaters are humorless from sitting out in a cold cockpit with a lousy view all day.
 
Insequent said:
Perhaps its different rules for Documented boats... I find it weird that it appears the USCG will accept anything, even a place nowhere near water, as home port.
Click to expand...

Not a case of "will accept." USCG requires home port to be the documted residence of the owner, which is why my 43-foot trawler appears to be from a minor seasonal tributary of the upper Rogue River.:socool:
 
KSF said:
As a trawler that put's out a pretty good wake, I like to call them ahead and offer a slow pass. Problem is most times you can't find a name until you are pretty much alongside of them.
Click to expand...

Sailboats appreciate it--will often even smile and wave--if you always pass on their LEE side and always cross behind them...except when impossible, in which case you might consider just hanging back till you can.

Passing to leeward isn't as important when they're motoring with their sails furled, but when they're under sail, even an express cruiser passing on the windward side at hull speed can cause enough air disturbance to literally "take the wind out of their sails." Whether they're under sail or motoring, crossing behind 'em just gives 'em a little "hill to slide down," which is lot easier than having bounce through your wake.
 
AlaskaProf said:
Not a case of "will accept." USCG requires home port to be the documted residence of the owner, which is why my 43-foot trawler appears to be from a minor seasonal tributary of the upper Rogue River.:socool:
Click to expand...

My understanding is that the "hailing port" can be your residence or the home port of the boat.
 
AlaskaProf said:
Not a case of "will accept." USCG requires home port to be the documented residence of the owner, which is why my 43-foot trawler appears to be from a minor seasonal tributary of the upper Rogue River.:socool:
Click to expand...

We bought our boat in Somerset, Massachusetts and motored it to the upper Hudson before dismantling and shipping to South Dakota. We had already changed the hailing port to "Yankton, SD" before we left and so from Newport all the way to Albany I was always amused when anyone thought our hailing port must be a waterfront neighborhood of San Diego. One person even asked if we had taken it through the Panama Canal. I wish. Someday maybe...
 
§ 67.119 Hailing port designation.
​
​
​
(a) Upon application for any Certificate
of Documentation in accordance
with subpart K of this part, the owner
of a vessel must designate a hailing
port to be marked upon the vessel.
(b) The hailing port must be a place
in the United States included in the
U.S. Department of Commerce’s Federal
Information Processing Standards
Publication 55DC.
(c) The hailing port must include the
State, territory, or possession in which​

it is located.

67.113 Managing owner designation;
address; requirement to report
change of address.
The owner of each vessel must designate
a managing owner on the Application
for Initial Issue, Exchange, or
Replacement of Certificate of Documentation;
or Redocumentation (CG–
1258).
(a) The managing owner of a vessel
owned by one person is the owner of
the vessel.
(b) The managing owner of a vessel
owned by more than one person must
be one of the owners. The person designated
as managing owner must have
an address in the United States except
where no owner of the vessel has an address
in the United States.
(c) The managing owner of a vessel
owned in a trust arrangement must be
one of the trustees.
(d) The address of the managing
owner must be as follows:
(1) For an individual, any residence
of the managing owner.
(2) For a partnership, its address:
(i) In the State under whose laws it is
organized; or
(ii) Of its principal place of business.
(3) For a corporation, its address:
(i) For service of process within the
State of incorporation; or
(ii) Of its principal place of business.
(e) Whenever the address of the managing
owner changes, the managing
owner shall notify the Director, National
Vessel Documentation Center
within 10 days.​




 
AlaskaProf said:
Not a case of "will accept." USCG requires home port to be the documted residence of the owner, which is why my 43-foot trawler appears to be from a minor seasonal tributary of the upper Rogue River.:socool:
Click to expand...

Actually, the term "home port" is no longer part of CG requirements. It once was the location of the regional USCG vessel documentation, which is now all consolidated.

As to "Hailing Port" which is what goes on the documentation and the stern, the only requirements are they be an officially listed place within the US or it's territories, city and state. Hailing port simply means the port name to be called out. There are no rules that require it to be where the boat is kept or where you leave or anything else of that nature although most people do put it as the boat's normal home. It's really just a means of identifying which of the many boats with the same name, yours is.
 
I got a kick out of the custom 49' American tug that was for sale last year. My wife and I had the pleasure of getting a tour and sharing a glass of wine with the owners in Belhaven NC last spring.

"No Zip Code"

Nowhere, Oklahoma (complete with postal bar code on the transom)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowhere,_Oklahoma

Stunning boat, cool name/port, and yes, they were from Oklahoma.
 
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I chuckle at the constant mention of sailboats that never use their vhf on this forum. If you read cruisers forum or another sailing forum, they all complain about the sports fishing boats that don't have their vhf's turned on.

I may have to check out a sports fishing forum to read about the trawlers who don't turn on their vhf.
 
AusCan said:
I chuckle at the constant mention of sailboats that never use their vhf on this forum. If you read cruisers forum or another sailing forum, they all complain about the sports fishing boats that don't have their vhf's turned on.

I may have to check out a sports fishing forum to read about the trawlers who don't turn on their vhf.
Click to expand...

I doubt it is the bigger cabin types, maybe the smaller outboard versions that couldnt hear an hydrogen bomb with their screaming outboards.
 
BandB said:
Actually, the term "home port" is no longer part of CG requirements. It once was the location of the regional USCG vessel documentation, which is now all consolidated.

As to "Hailing Port" which is what goes on the documentation and the stern, the only requirements are they be an officially listed place within the US or it's territories, city and state. Hailing port simply means the port name to be called out. There are no rules that require it to be where the boat is kept or where you leave or anything else of that nature although most people do put it as the boat's normal home. It's really just a means of identifying which of the many boats with the same name, yours is.
Click to expand...

Interesting,
Hailing port and home port are official entities?
I’ve always thought they were one and the same .. and unofficial.
And I’ve always considered either one to mean where the boat was moored. Where it comes “home” to tie up.
And I’ve put down people that put where they lived on the stern as the home port. I could put Concrete on the stern of Willy but there isn’t enought water within 40miles of Concrete to float the boat. I see home ports on the stern of boats that say Spokane, or Yakima below the boat name. I think it’s ridiculous but I know many here do that.
 
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AusCan said:
I chuckle at the constant mention of sailboats that never use their vhf on this forum. If you read cruisers forum or another sailing forum, they all complain about the sports fishing boats that don't have their vhf's turned on.

I may have to check out a sports fishing forum to read about the trawlers who don't turn on their vhf.
Click to expand...

Wifey B: Yep. Always the other guy who is the problem, isn't it? Wonder if they've ever thought about the possibility the SF's do have theirs on, just don't want to hear their whining and complaining? :eek:

Like hubby's father wouldn't get a hearing aid although he clearly needed one. His reason: "I already hear more than I care to." :)

Amazing to me what a wonderful tool VHF is when you find people who actually utilize it. :rolleyes:
 
Larry M said:
§ 67.119 Hailing ...
Click to expand...

I'm not a lawyer, though I did sleep with one last night... but this is my first documented vessel and the application seemed to at least imply that the owner's residence is required.

I'd probably have done it that way anyhow, as that is more likely to be a stable address than the city of moorage.
 
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AlaskaProf said:
I'm not a lawyer, though I did sleep with one last night... but this is my first documented vessel and the application seemed to at least imply that the owner's residence is required.

I probably have done it that way anyhow, as that is more likely to be a stable address than the city of moorage.
Click to expand...

Yes, but this has nothing to do with the Hailing Port. For the owner, a physical address of the managing owner is required. In most cases that would be a home, but some don't have a land home. Normally, they'll use the same address they do on their driver's license. If their locality accepts a marina as the physical address then that's ok. The reason is so legal paperwork could be served if necessary.
 
Nomad Willy said:
Interesting...I could put Concrete on the stern of Willy but there isn’t enought water within 40miles of Concrete to float the boat.
Click to expand...

Well, the irrigation ditch behind my house has about four feet, but only from May thru October...:lol:...but Ashland, Oregon remains my hailing port, mostly because I don't want to buy new decals.
 
For Federal in US; the only requirements for the name are that it:
1. Be composed of letters of the Latin alphabet or Arabic or Roman numerals and may not exceed 33 characters.
2. Cannot use a word normally used to request assistance
3. Must not be less than four (4) inches in height (all characters)
...and no restriction as to font style or color.

We know because we had to go through this process within the last year as the PO had already removed their boat name.
Lots of new owners buy a boat somewhere far from where they live and what's more: if they're new owners they may not yet have a permanent place picked to park it.
In this case a buying broker can help set the hailing port and if on the east coast, will often recommend a lower or non-tax state (why not if you don't yet know where you will keep her?). This is also common for great loopers who essentially keep moving from state to state.
It is true the hailing port doesn't have to have anything to do with where you live.
As for name, agree it makes sense to think how it will sound on the radio, perhaps limit the number of syllables, think about reciting it in phonetics (alpha, bravo, charlie, etc).
One other thing we considered; commonality. For example you look up say, "Nautilus" on a USCG search and I see 62 of them. no offense to that name in particular (it's actually pretty cool) but obviously you have to get creative if you want something others haven't used much......
 
Hamrow said:
In this case a buying broker can help set the hailing port and if on the east coast, will often recommend a lower or non-tax state (why not if you don't yet know where you will keep her?). This is also common for great loopers who essentially keep moving from state to state.
It is true the hailing port doesn't have to have anything to do with where you live.
Click to expand...

I know brokers push for Hailing Ports in low tax states, but by law, the hailing port has absolutely nothing to do with where or how the boat is taxed.
 
IMG_2016.jpg
This is the only boat we’ve ever named and I picked the font from a choice of dozens.
 
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