phantom18
Active Member
With crew it was ok as she never drank but now i'll be single handed what is the score? I'm talking about a few afternoon beers or evening meal.
Boating & a few beers.
- Thread starter phantom18
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laika
Well-Known Member
The answer is Clausthaler or similar. Most people seem to share my opinion of how vile 0%-0.1% alcohol beer is (ie, Kaliber, Becks Blue) . German "Alcohol free" beer which actually contains up to 0.5% alcohol is an entirely different kettle of fish and can taste not only like beer, but like decent beer. Until very recently you used to be able to get Clausthaler at some Waitroses (The one in Southsea stocked it but not the one in Gosport) and about twice a year at Aldi, as well as from Ocado and specialist beer suppliers. Waitrose may have recently stopped selling it though. I coerce someone into lending me a car and stock up the boat every so often.
Not really an answer if your preferred tipple is proper beer, but then proper beer properly comes from a barrel and is best enjoyed with the boat securely tied up for the night a short stroll away...
Not really an answer if your preferred tipple is proper beer, but then proper beer properly comes from a barrel and is best enjoyed with the boat securely tied up for the night a short stroll away...
Bosun Higgs
N/A
Don't. Had an experience once after just a couple of lunchtime pints that showed me how easy it is for even a small quantity of booze both to affect your judgement and also your balance. The details are boring but now I never drink unless tied up to a mooring or pontoon and therefore absolutely sure I wont need to move the boat..
Lakesailor
Well-Known Member
you should be OK with an evening meal. Most meals are non-alcoholic.
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Rigger Mortice
N/A
I agree. I don't think that booze and boats go together very well.
I'm not saying that we should be "sniffy" about the odd drink but it's sensible to be, well...sensible about it.
johnalison
Well-Known Member
Our boat is usually "dry" when on the move, but we're not over-zealous about it and if we are drifting along in sheltered water I might have a small Tesco's lager with my lunch. Most fatalities I have heard of have been around the shore or tender.
duncanmack
Well-Known Member
onesea
Well-Known Member
Must admit still maintain healthy stocks onboard, pre-fare small "stubby" bottles when sailing as you do not drink (or spill) to much at once...
Once moored/ secured for the night bar tends to open with a bit more vigour. I have to agree dinghy transfers are probably the dodgy part of it.
Like everything you just have to be sensible, keep within your normal limits.
samwise
Well-Known Member
+1
Those little 33cl beers are ideal for washing down lunch, but it is worth noting that some of them have quite high alcohol ratings (4.5 plus) so don't be tempted to a second!
If it is really hot, we lay off the alcohol completely when on the move. In those situations (rare I know in a UK summer) it is very easy to become drowsy and lose concentration. As usual with these things, it's really down to simple commonsense.
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Woodlouse
Well-Known Member
You shouldn't drink beer whilst at sea.
A stiff gin is far better.
A stiff gin is far better.
johnalison
Well-Known Member
Mentioning no names, I have sailed in company with a 45 footer that always breaks open the Pimms at midday. Several cases are needed on board for a three month cruise.
Greenheart
Well-Known Member
I'm surprised - even a little disappointed. I'd hoped everyone would be breezily reassuring Phantom18 that he's unduly concerned.
Dinghying and Jeanneau day-sailing in the Solent in recent years, I and one or two friends would routinely find the bottom of a 1/2 bottle of rum during lunch at sea, and we always felt very hard done-by, when there was no other drink on board.
We didn't mop it up in crowded waters, or negotiating tough entrances. And definitely not after dark or in fog, when there's already more than enough to cloud perception and judgement. But, we never once came even close to any doubtful or worrying situation.
Onesea's point bears repeating - it's vital to know your own safe limits.
Is the question here, actually rather a different one? Aren't we thinking mainly of what the law and law enforcers very warily recommend, and the avoidance of potential culpability, rather than what will actually, significantly affect our ability while sailing?
Offshore, I don't believe booze at a yacht's wheel justifies remotely the same verboten status of booze in the car. That said, I haven't touched one drop this year for medical reasons, so my own competence needn't be called into question!
Dinghying and Jeanneau day-sailing in the Solent in recent years, I and one or two friends would routinely find the bottom of a 1/2 bottle of rum during lunch at sea, and we always felt very hard done-by, when there was no other drink on board.
We didn't mop it up in crowded waters, or negotiating tough entrances. And definitely not after dark or in fog, when there's already more than enough to cloud perception and judgement. But, we never once came even close to any doubtful or worrying situation.
Onesea's point bears repeating - it's vital to know your own safe limits.
Is the question here, actually rather a different one? Aren't we thinking mainly of what the law and law enforcers very warily recommend, and the avoidance of potential culpability, rather than what will actually, significantly affect our ability while sailing?
Offshore, I don't believe booze at a yacht's wheel justifies remotely the same verboten status of booze in the car. That said, I haven't touched one drop this year for medical reasons, so my own competence needn't be called into question!
Boathook
Well-Known Member
A 1/2 pint at lunchtime whilst sailing is very nice. The same also with a G&T(not 1/2 pint!) in the evening even on a long voyage. This does depend on weather forecast and actual.
Rigger Mortice
N/A
Onesea's point bears repeating - it's vital to know your own safe limits.
Is the question here, actually rather a different one? Aren't we thinking mainly of what the law and law enforcers very warily recommend, and the avoidance of potential culpability, rather than what will actually, significantly affect our ability while sailing?
Offshore, I don't believe booze at a yacht's wheel justifies remotely the same verboten status of booze in the car. That said, I haven't touched one drop this year for medical reasons, so my own competence needn't be called into question!
My only problem with that is that our graveyards have thousands of gravestones as a result of drivers who "knew their own safe limit".
I certainly don't want to see legislation and I don't want to get high and mighty about it but I have seen too many near misses on the water which were fuelled, in part at least, with booze.
I don't really know what the answer is. I'm not even sure that there is much of a problem.
MudShipper
Well-Known Member
Moderation in all things!
I'm not teetotal, nor an alchoholic, I sit somewhere in between. I enjoy good beer, especially in good company. At other times, it very much depends on where, when and who with. There is a certain sense of deep contentment that comes with a nice chilled wine on a summers day (yes even with our weather here) to compliment lunch when at anchor, but never so much that awareness is clouded and judgment impaired.
As others have said, know your limits, stay within your comfort zone and live to enjoy another day!
I'm not teetotal, nor an alchoholic, I sit somewhere in between. I enjoy good beer, especially in good company. At other times, it very much depends on where, when and who with. There is a certain sense of deep contentment that comes with a nice chilled wine on a summers day (yes even with our weather here) to compliment lunch when at anchor, but never so much that awareness is clouded and judgment impaired.
As others have said, know your limits, stay within your comfort zone and live to enjoy another day!
Lodesman77
Well-Known Member
+1
As sailing is all about your own judgement/responsibility it must be down to the individual. Nothing against an occasional beer on passage in principle, but in fact I don't seem to think about it until the anchor is down...
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Bosun Higgs
N/A
Absolutely right.
In any case, why take any risk when there are alternatives to booze which are just as pleasant to drink. The only reason for drinking alcoholic drinks is the effect that alcohol has on you so by definition your capabilities are altered by drinking booze.
Mike Noc
New Member
Searush
Well-Known Member
It's all down to you. If you don't feel safe, don't do it. I enjoy an odd beer or stout, but am far more likely to have a wine, scotch, G&T or Austins (Pimms copy).
I never drink enough to feel woozy, even at home or in the pub. Drink very slowly & savour the flavours, switch to soft drinks if you feel like having several! No problems on the move provided everything is fully under control, a glass of Scotch as we potter down the Straits at the end of a good passage is a lovely treat.
I think what I would worry about is someone drinking for Dutch courage or constantly refilling a glass. Boats move slowly & the waters are generally far less congested or cluttered than any town centre. Perhaps a lot depends on the speed & size of your boat, a small slow one cannot do a great deal of damage, but a big slow one or a smal fast one can be lethal.
Would you think twice about using a H/H VHF to call the Marina while helming? I doubt it, but it is illegal to use a phone while driving - the speeds & risk are far higher in a car.
I never drink enough to feel woozy, even at home or in the pub. Drink very slowly & savour the flavours, switch to soft drinks if you feel like having several! No problems on the move provided everything is fully under control, a glass of Scotch as we potter down the Straits at the end of a good passage is a lovely treat.
I think what I would worry about is someone drinking for Dutch courage or constantly refilling a glass. Boats move slowly & the waters are generally far less congested or cluttered than any town centre. Perhaps a lot depends on the speed & size of your boat, a small slow one cannot do a great deal of damage, but a big slow one or a smal fast one can be lethal.
Would you think twice about using a H/H VHF to call the Marina while helming? I doubt it, but it is illegal to use a phone while driving - the speeds & risk are far higher in a car.
Greenheart
Well-Known Member
Mentioning that booze and yachts aren't often the inevitably grim combination that booze and cars are, I was definitely thinking about sailing. Given the pace (and lack of crew involvement) which I/C engines permit aboard motorboats, booze must spell greater danger.
