gestures!!!

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Iota

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On Saturday I was the guest on a 55ft motor yacht. The owner of the motor yacht went through the Solent at under 10 knots going to the Beaulie and came back somewhat faster. At all times he was very considerate to the sailing fraternity. He did make some critical comments about some other motor boaters who were less than considerate. At no time did his wash either endanger or cause great discomfort to any one else on the water. The number of obscene gestures made to us by sailing yachts horrified me. There was one Southerly 115 who motored close to be particularly obscene and rude. I own and sail a 38ft sailing yacht and have owned sailing yachts since 1986. In mitigation there were a number of friendly waves exchanged between the sailing yachts and the motor yachts. Why do some people simply have to be so rude? Is this the behaviours of the motorway transferring to the Solent?

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You are right, there are many very considerate powerboat owners, we too have a friend with a 48ft Princess, very considerate, very thoughtfull.

However being a total 'Richard Cranium' does not stop you from owning a sail boat.






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Perhaps they were already pissed off by the behaviour of other Mobo's like the one at the top of Soton Water on Sat morning who was poodling around for 5 minutes and then suddenly decided when about 15 yards from me, whilst I was on top of the coachroof sorting out the main halyard prior to raising the main. He then opened full throttle and roared down Soton Water, the resulting commotion nearly caused me to fall off, the main halyard got wrapped round the radar reflector and I was not charitably disposed for the next couple of hours. I'm not usually bothered but believe me this dickhead really angered me!!

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I understand that but why make obscene gestures etc to an innocent party? May be I am simply too old fashioned.

Iota

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I don't, I don't even make obscene gestures to guilty parties .. I just shake my head in a bemused fashion .. normally I wave cheerfully though!

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In contrast I know a complete prat who has bought a 55ft, 20ton,32kt MoBo, he has had no experince whatsoever and was stopped for speeding in Chi harbour the other day doing,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,32kts!!!!! He was fined £300. Last night I watched him go out in his tender (which has a 40hp outboard) he got out the lock and must have been doing 50kts all the way to Dell Quay and he wasn't wearing a lifejacket.

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Jimi, apologies did not mean that you made gestures but rather I could not understand why anyone wound up by one bad bit of behaviour would then 'take it out' on another boat.

Ioata

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I wave at all on the water in a friendly manor, always have, but I do find that when there are a lot of craft on the water that I get less waves than when it is quite.

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Julie
 
I tried giving friendly waves for a while- " spread the love" and all that stuff. My amnesty came to an end after arriving in St Hellier. Huge MOBoS everywhere putting up 4ft wash as they came past less tahn a boat length away. I'm back to waving again now, but at a distance, I'm sure most people will think the worst and assume I'm gesticulating- after all a waving hand with all fingers up looks very similar to other insults. If you're going for an insult, make it an unambiguous one eg using both hands to signify knobhead, or pulling a moony.

<hr width=100% size=1>Life's too short- do it now./forums/images/icons/wink.gif
 
Tsk Tsk .. here you are on a raggie forum showing stinkie ignorance!

Manor s/b manner
quite s/b quiet
less s/b more
waves s/b vics

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Many motor-cruiser drivers just don't appreciate the delayed effect of their wash on sail boats.
It often takes 30 seconds for wash to hit. By which time they could be a quarter of a mile away.

Education and consideration are what's needed.

There are just too many sailors on the water who are in a rush. I'm sure most people would say they get on the water to relax.
So why charge around with a 'must get there first' and 'get out my way' attitude?

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Being the owner of a mobo in the past, and a raggie now, I rather fear that owners of the former are "damned if they do, and damned if they don't" - some raggies, it appears have an irrational aversion to motor boats regardless of their behaviour as a matter of principle, and nothing will get them to change their views.

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As an owner in the past of a 37' motor cruiser, I was very aware of what wash can supposedly do to a yacht, and took very great care to minimise any problems. Of course, no matter how much room is given, eventually the wash will hit.

Imagine my surprise therefore, having converted to a raggie (37'), how little any mobo wash concerns us. Admittedly we are not racing, but if you are aware of approaching wash, and notify the crew accordingly, it's no big deal. Of course, it is outrageous that any mobo will pass so close to a yacht that it is nearly knocked down, but it has never happened to us.

I can't help but feel the "problem" is over exaggerated by those who have an inbuilt aversion to anything without sails. And by the way, in the Solent/Southampton water area, the worst wash is created by commercial traffic - are we to complain about the turbulance caused by Red Jet ferries for example - does one of those passing really spoil your day? I don't think so. In my view it is mostly hype.

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Hi Peter - makes a change going on a stinkie. I really don't understand some people - I think that some have an inbuilt agression factor and are looking for a fight - in another life they would have been a larger lout or football hooligan.

Beulieu entrance is another thing though - several times when I used to keep my boat there I was creeping in on low springs - inches under the keel - when large a mobo goes buzzing past- and bang on the bottom we go! I soon got good at looking to see what was coming in!

Hope you have had a good year.

Chris

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To some extent I will agree with you, Mobos make wash, its a fact. Some people dont like Mobos, thats also fact. Most people and I say MOST can accept Mobo wash. I have no aversion to power boats, however:

Why do they charge through a quiet anchorage, or past moored boats, just because they can?

Why pass so close to a yacht at 25knts when there is loads of sea room?

Why not wait untill they have cleared the Bar beacon before gunning it? There are a lot of small sail boats and mobos around. A few more minutes can't make that much difference. The wash will have a lot less effect on a 37ft yacht than it will on a 20ft yacht/mobo.

There are a lot of VERY considerate Mobo owners out there, trouble is you only remember the ones who are not, they tend you give the whole ownership a bad name, that is wrong. Responsible mobo owners need to spread the word. Some of the 'bad behavior' may not be intentional, it could just be ignorance.

On the subject of gestures I will always wave 'thanks' to mobo skipper when appropriate. More yachties should.



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Nicho

I agree with you. MoBo wash is no big deal usually, and I can't quite understand all the fuss. The only time I really don't like it is when someone is on deck working at the mast or boom. As someone who sails but has also done a fair bit in MoBos over the years I try to explain this to MoBo owners and they generally express some surprise but total comprehension once it's explained why, so maybe it's just a case of better education?

Sadly, it seems some sailors regard all MoBos as a lower form of life and this is just plain ignorance. Bolx to them, I say!

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The time Mobo wash is particularly annoying is in light winds. If I'm struggling to keep the boat moving in an F1/2 and a MoBo passes too close then it can knock the wind out of the sails and leave them slatting, with the boom potentially banging about. It can then take 2 or 3 minutes to get the boat moving again. One of those every few minutes reduces a nice sail to a very frustrating experience.

It also has more effect on smaller boats and on more traditional designs with less form stability.

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