bulktraffic
New Member
Hi folks,
I've been devouring all the information on the forums and thought it was high time I said hello!
My better half and I are soon to take the plunge and buy a motor boat - likely something old, 20 - 30' and <£20k to give you an idea. We have some experience handling 70' canal barges before but no boat experience apart from that.
We're planning to moor our boat on the Thames for the first year or so to acquaint ourselves with it and boating life in general but would anticipate relocating somewhere coastal in 2-3 years time.
We feel the need to get some proper training under our belt so we don't have a total nightmare the first time we undock and I was considering wrapping it up into a nice sailing holiday - e.g. I've found a company in the Med that gives you a yacht, experienced skipper doing the training, some sunshine and ends with the Competent Crew certification for a reasonable price.
Does that sound a sensible place for us to start and is it a qualification worth getting? I'm quite interested in getting some hands-on experience with a sailing yacht - am I right in thinking that as the Competent Crew course deals with more of the basics (knots, safety, basic handling etc) that I'll still be able to apply what I learn to our motor boat? Of course when it comes to heading to sea we'll look at doing some more studying but that seems a long way off for now.
Thanks in advance!
Colin
I've been devouring all the information on the forums and thought it was high time I said hello!
My better half and I are soon to take the plunge and buy a motor boat - likely something old, 20 - 30' and <£20k to give you an idea. We have some experience handling 70' canal barges before but no boat experience apart from that.
We're planning to moor our boat on the Thames for the first year or so to acquaint ourselves with it and boating life in general but would anticipate relocating somewhere coastal in 2-3 years time.
We feel the need to get some proper training under our belt so we don't have a total nightmare the first time we undock and I was considering wrapping it up into a nice sailing holiday - e.g. I've found a company in the Med that gives you a yacht, experienced skipper doing the training, some sunshine and ends with the Competent Crew certification for a reasonable price.
Does that sound a sensible place for us to start and is it a qualification worth getting? I'm quite interested in getting some hands-on experience with a sailing yacht - am I right in thinking that as the Competent Crew course deals with more of the basics (knots, safety, basic handling etc) that I'll still be able to apply what I learn to our motor boat? Of course when it comes to heading to sea we'll look at doing some more studying but that seems a long way off for now.
Thanks in advance!
Colin