Fergus
Well-Known Member
No radio checks in France on VHF - in fact very little radio traffic at all compared to southern uk - can't believe it's because of lower numbers sailing..
Following on from foreign sailors being different..
- Thread starter Fergus
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VO5
Well-Known Member
It could be a culture thing one supposes, since all the wordles used are Britannic and not Gaullic ? Then nattering using these wordles might come naturally on one side of the channel but an effort on the other side...perhaps...
Poignard
Well-Known Member
I was in Cherbourg last month and I was hearing Solent C/G responding to numerous requests for 'Radio check please'!
Maybe foreigners have reliable radios that don't need checking every time they leave the marina.
Twister_Ken
Well-Known Member
Also, next time you're in a French port, check how many yachts have radar up the mast. Very few, and good odds they're flying the Red Duster.
haydude
Well-Known Member
It could be a culture thing one supposes, since all the wordles used are Britannic and not Gaullic ? Then nattering using these wordles might come naturally on one side of the channel but an effort on the other side...perhaps...
You mean like, m'aidez="help me" (mayday), securite'="safety" (securitay), panne="broken down" (pan), that in english are all phonetic spellings (not making any sense, in english) of french phrases?
I do not know about specific French legislation, but I know that there are hefty fines in Italy for abusing the VHF channels with un-necessary chatter (the definition of un-necessary is up to the coast-guard), perhaps France is similar. In Spain I heard the VHF being used like a mobile phone, even talking about football and cheers when one of the teams scored where normal.
In the UK I hear normally lots of chatter on channel 17 between Newhaven and Brighton marina, although this is always the same fisherman talking to a mate of his and having conversations lasting for as long as I remain in range when I pass-by. I believe this case to be more an exception as I cannot recall of any other.
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Poignard
Well-Known Member
Liferafts too! Are we becoming a nation of scaredy-cats?
reginaldon
Well-Known Member
'Ilf 'n sifety has penetrated the psyche.
SailBobSquarePants
Well-Known Member
Yes.
Well, that and the price for many of the toys such as radar has come way down, as has it's power consumption, rendering it available to more people than previously.
VO5
Well-Known Member
No, I mean the great bulk of the language used in VHF traffic is English.
Therefore to a non fluent Enlish speaker to engage freely in VHF chatter may seem daunting.
In Spain the use, or rather the misuse of VHF is a disgrace. I have heard endless exchanges between groups of Spanish fishermen calling each other names and arguing about football, on Channel 16, cluttering up the channel with their nonsense. Awful.