Joe Coons
This month, I present a kind of potpourri of items:
Some boaters are loners, others are more socially inclined when out on the water (or at the dock, for that matter). Recently, I went to an owners' rendezvous for my brand of boat (Tollycraft) and I realized how important socializing can be in reducing the cost of boat maintenance! Let me explain.
When you're at such a gathering, it's not hard to ask a fellow boater, "How did you match the gelcoat color so perfectly", or "Do you like your Harken roller furling?"
I don't think anyone asked the latter question at this particular meeting, but I asked the former when I saw an accessory that I know had been added to a fellow's boat. "Not a problem", he said. "Krylon's 'ivory' color in a rattle can works perfectly". (At least, I think he said "ivory".)
Well, I can tell you, Tolly owners go nuts trying to match the creamy hull color of their boats, and here was a guy with a cheap solution for painting metal and wood fittings!
And that's just an example. The moral of the story is simple: if you want to find out how to do something, ask a few fellow boaters!
That meeting was in Port Orchard, so Judy and I took a few days off in advance and cruised the south Sound, something we've never done before. A couple of highlights included Poulsbo, a great town for visiting, and good shopping, too. And we also visited Quartermaster Harbor on Vashon Island, and found a very pleasant, well protected harbor, and a nice welcome at the yacht club's reciprocal docks.
In fact, some of our best cruises have been pretty unstructured, and this was one of them. We lucked out at Poulsbo: we got there on July 3rd, and couldn't understand why the bay was so crowded, until 10:30, when we found out: they had a great fireworks display! It seems Poulsbo's is always the 3rd, so boaters can see the Seattle or Port Orchard fireworks on the fourth. You might think about the south Sound next year for the fourth, too.
Speaking of Quartermaster Harbor, on the night of the 4th of July some young teens in a fast boat about 22 feet long ran into, up, and over a moored inboard runabout that was tied to a buoy along the beach in front of the house of friends we were visiting. The kids' boat suffered only minor damage (they kept on going), but the runabout was totaled. There is a moral here: If you have youngsters using a watercraft, make sure they're safe users. Their lives could be at stake. And, in this case, think what would have happened if someone had been in the runabout! The Coast Guard came and saw the young ones on the fifth . . .
I think it's important to support people who support me, and that's why I belong to the Recreational Boating Association of Washington. RBAW, which used to be called "Interclub", represents us before the state and federal government, and they do a good job of it. It's cheap, $15 per year, and each year they've saved us much more than that by heading off legislation and taxes unfair to us "rich" boaters. Send your check to RBAW, 2033 6th Ave. Suite 804, Seattle, WA 98121-2526, or you can call them at (206) 441-6020. You'll get a newsletter to keep you informed, and your voice will be heard. And you can fly their flag, if you wish.
Have a great month's boating, and stay safe.
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