colhel
Well-Known Member
Now BruceK has kicked things off, and managed to set the bar rather high in the process, I feel it's my duty to lower it again 
This "cruise" took place on August the 18th 2018 but started around May/June of the same year when Helen and I started looking seriously at motor boats having previously been sailing boat people. How we used our previous boats gave us a good idea of what we wanted from our next one.
This would have been our 2nd year as berth holders at East Cowes, attracted by the buzz of the sailing atmosphere and the Island itself and what it had to offer. Mainly our weekends would consist of us leaving home on the motorbike after work on Friday to catch the Ferry from Southampton and arriving at East Cowes at 21.30 or 22.00, depending on work commitments and returning to the mainland on Sunday afternoon, it would often be the case the boat wouldn't move for a few weeks preferring days out on the Island or just lazing about around the marina with friends or a dinghy ride across to Cowes.
The Poole Boatshow in May of that year saw us looking around various, what I would call Merry Fisher style of boats, with an idea to buy new or at maybe a year or 2 old, but to stay within our budget we'd have to compromise on accommodation, which is an important factor for us.
One Saturday I took off on my own to tour the yards around the Hamble to see what was available and managed to get a good look around various possibilities, 2 caught my eye in particular, an Antares 8.8 and a Nimbus 280c up for sale in Deacons. By the time I got to Hamble Point it was a bit late and all the brokerages were closed but I did spot one boat up for sale but had no idea what it was, apart from being a Nimbus it was a model completely unfamiliar with me and couldn't see any details in the brokers window so had no idea if it would be within budget or whether the layout would suit. when I got home I looked it up the internet and found it was a Nimbus 3003, and the asking price was 35k, it had an aft cabin with double bed, internal helm, single diesel and well equipped for weekends on board. The electronics were very basic but this wasn't a concern.
The next day, I called the broker to arrange a viewing, both Helen and I realised we may have stumbled on the one best suite to our needs so far. Unfortunately the previous owner had died so presentation wasn't up to much but we could still see the potential, so we made an offer.
This "cruise" took place on August the 18th 2018 but started around May/June of the same year when Helen and I started looking seriously at motor boats having previously been sailing boat people. How we used our previous boats gave us a good idea of what we wanted from our next one.
This would have been our 2nd year as berth holders at East Cowes, attracted by the buzz of the sailing atmosphere and the Island itself and what it had to offer. Mainly our weekends would consist of us leaving home on the motorbike after work on Friday to catch the Ferry from Southampton and arriving at East Cowes at 21.30 or 22.00, depending on work commitments and returning to the mainland on Sunday afternoon, it would often be the case the boat wouldn't move for a few weeks preferring days out on the Island or just lazing about around the marina with friends or a dinghy ride across to Cowes.
The Poole Boatshow in May of that year saw us looking around various, what I would call Merry Fisher style of boats, with an idea to buy new or at maybe a year or 2 old, but to stay within our budget we'd have to compromise on accommodation, which is an important factor for us.
One Saturday I took off on my own to tour the yards around the Hamble to see what was available and managed to get a good look around various possibilities, 2 caught my eye in particular, an Antares 8.8 and a Nimbus 280c up for sale in Deacons. By the time I got to Hamble Point it was a bit late and all the brokerages were closed but I did spot one boat up for sale but had no idea what it was, apart from being a Nimbus it was a model completely unfamiliar with me and couldn't see any details in the brokers window so had no idea if it would be within budget or whether the layout would suit. when I got home I looked it up the internet and found it was a Nimbus 3003, and the asking price was 35k, it had an aft cabin with double bed, internal helm, single diesel and well equipped for weekends on board. The electronics were very basic but this wasn't a concern.
The next day, I called the broker to arrange a viewing, both Helen and I realised we may have stumbled on the one best suite to our needs so far. Unfortunately the previous owner had died so presentation wasn't up to much but we could still see the potential, so we made an offer.
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