Why Med boating is rubbish (long boring rant)

  • Thread starter Thread starter Deleted User YDKXO
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Certainly can't agree that stern to mooring is as safe as alongside mooring. If it was, why do most marinas in the windy Golf de Lion have pontoon moorings? At least with a pontoon mooring, you are in control of what you attach your boat to and can check the integrity of cleats on the pontoon. With a stern to mooring, you have to entirely trust that the marina has maintained the bow lines and the chains to which they are attached. The second risky aspect of stern to moorings is that you have to trust that your neighbours have tied up their boats as tight as possible otherwise in a blow your boat could end up supporting a number of others. I've never experienced burst fenders and damaged rubbing strake until I started boating in the Med
 
I already have a collection of thick ears, but this time, please could I have one which will provide some shade from the mediterranean sun? /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif
 
Tend to agree with you, but if you live in the meddy it,s a different kettle of fish. But packed marinas and expensive yes!
But I wont come back to UK, it wasnt just the weather I left for, try the politics, prices, police state, crime, general UK malaise, etc, etc.
 
Never had any problem with stern-to mooring anywhere I've been. The odd neighbour's boat might be a bit loose, but never a number, and that's a lot better than being rafted up. Basically, there's nowhere for the boat to go. I have had problems on pontoons when someone elses's boat came loose and did have somewhere to go! Having said that, I think, overall, I prefer pontoons from a convenience point of view, but that's nothing to do with security.

As a double check on my memory, I've just looked at satellite piccies of lots of Golfe du Lion marinas and I haven't found one with pontoons. On rare occasions when I've taken shelter from a F10 Mistral in a large marina with stern-to mooring, I did not see any problems anywhere in the marina. I suspect that those conditions in a UK pontoon marina would have resulted in some damage.

I ditched guardiennage because I found it an expensive waste. Neighbours (of different nationalities) kept an eye on each other's boats and we would email photos to each other. Again, never had a problem. Maybe I'm lucky.

I found Med boating a very pleasurable experience, but, as I said previously, I have the time.
 
Port Napoleon has pontoon moorings, San Carles will have pontoon moorings and Port Camargue has a combination of pontoon and box moorings. I have'nt checked whether there are more but all 3 marinas will suffer Golf De Lion mistral winds. In fact the people at Port Napoleon are very proud of the fact that they have pontoons rather than traditional stern to moorings which they say are safer in mistral winds
My boat was damaged in Palma last year during a mistral because at the time it was located at the end of a line of boats against a quay. My boat acted as a fender for the whole line of boats during a mistral, 2 fenders burst and the hull was scraping against a concrete quay. Luckily my guardiennage woman-what-does checked the boat, alerted the marina who re-tied all the boats. I had another instance in La Napoule 3 years ago when my boat was blown backwards by a mistral wind and the bathing platform started clunking against the quay. I never did get to the bottom of why this happened but other boaters in the line reported similar occurences which tended to suggest that the main securing chain on the sea bed moved. I never experienced anything like these 2 incidents in 12 yrs of pontoon mooring in the Solent
We're going to have to agree to disagree on this issue
 
chill, man!

So your gelcoat got scratched? Chill mike! It's just a plastic boat ffs. A scratch is perhaps number 10,001 on the list of things that matter in life. Quite close to scratching the bumper when parking the car. Just call the lady wot does, get a gelcoat fixer to fix it... :-)
 
Re: chill, man!

Bad timing, jfm. SWMBO took delivery of a new Beemer convertible 4 weeks ago which is already back in the garage today for body repairs so I'm really not in the mood for chilling out about gelcoat damage /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif Anyway, I don't mind paying for gelcoat damage caused by my own incompetence but I do object to paying for repairing gelcoat damage that's caused by some other tosser who's too lazy to tie his boat up properly, especially at SoF labour rates
 
Re: chill, man!

Ooops, driving in sensible shoes (no heels) can have advantages, e.g. being able to find the brake pedal when it matters.

dv.
 
Re: chill, man!

Au contraire mike, my timing is perfect. The very best thing to do with a brand new car is scratch it. You worry about it too much when it is a bodyshop virgin, whereas after the first time it's all cool. I did this with the M5 - ensured it needed a new osr door within its first 6 weeks or so of life :-)

IMG_2249.sized.jpg
 
I do agree with you that the weather is not always as per the brochure. Which gives me an excuse to post this Ferretti pic i took off Cap D'Antibes last summer (that's Golfe Juan in the background)

heavy_sea_antibes_001.sized.jpg
 
Re: chill, man!

Aaargh, I shot our dog when he lifted his leg near a wheel of my new car recently, I think I'd book myself into a euthanasia clinic if I did that to it
 
Fantastic Pic, but I doubt that it will make the Ferreti Brochure. Yep the med can be just as horrible in the summer as the winter...the difference is that it is still 35 degrees and the water dries fast...

/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif
 
Re: chill, man!

Shot the dog? Euthanasia? Mike, you're not listening! It's only a friggin door! Secretary drives it to dealer, drives back in loan car, collects it a week later, and you can't tell the difference, except handily they've clean the car. It's the same with boat gelcoat. All these boys toys are just lumps of tin or plastic and it doesn't matter a damn if they get busted, cos there are lots of happy folk who are very skilled and run good businesses fixing them. Seriously, chill, dont worry about any of this stuff! :-)

(BTW, the car door wasn't my fault. Bloke reversed into it in Tesco car park)
 
Re: ah but

No, by coincidence i had camera in car and I used it to get a pic of the juxtaposed ford escort perpetrator, becuase i suspected (correctly) that the driver was going to pull away and park somewhere else and possibly say "Nuffin to do wiv me guv". After all the kerfuffle I just snapped a few pics anyway for the hell of it.
 
Re: ah but

Sorry but I've got to join in!

24 degrees in Antibes today .. and at least a Force 0.5 ...

Cost of living 2/3 of UK .. 1/2 of London ... JFM and I should have bought Fat Greek Airlines ...

So what do we do with you Deleted User? .. bring you back here kicking and screaming ??? ..even Hadyn is thinking of sunny climes but possibly as they haven't heard 'exploding bog' stories.
 
Re: chill, man!

Re car damage
Sorry but i'm with mike on this one, just the slightest stone chip is enough to get me sulking like a baby. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif And as for gelcoat, dont get me started /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
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