BOAT/U.S. Magazine articles from November 2005

BOAT/U.S. Magazine archives from November 2005

Behind the buoy.
November 1, 2005... Amidst all of the devastation wrought by mother nature along the Gulf Coast in recent months, the image of one U.S. Coast Guard helicopter after another rescuing Hurricane Katrina survivors from raging waters or from rooftops remains with us to...

Katrina's wreckage still being tallied.(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... Hurricane Katrina wiped out an estimated 75% of the marinas along 150 miles of the Gulf Coast including 23 BoatU.S. Cooperating Marinas. At presstime, flights to survey damage from the air by several towing companies brought the grim...

Sen. Santorum slams Weather Service.(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA), author of a bill to limit the National Weather Service to providing only severe weather forecasts, said in early September that the National Weather Service warnings for Florida where Hurricane Katrina first made...

NOAA gets an A+ for hurricane predictions.(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... NOAA's National Hurricane Center got it 100% right in predicting the path and intensity of Hurricane Katrina according to a newly formed Senate panel on disaster prevention and prediction. "After reviewing the actions taken by the National...

California's pumpout problem.(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... The state that prides itself on being on the cutting edge of environmentalism has produced a dismaying report on the lack of pumpout facilities for boaters in local marinas. A recent report by the California Department of Boating and Waterways...

New Great Lakes weather buoy.(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... Great Lakes boaters can look forward to a new influx of weather and water data, updated every 10 minutes, thanks to a newly deployed research buoy in Grand Traverse Bay, MI. Managed by the University of Michigan's Marine Hydrodynamics Lab, the...

Shark finning ban expanded.(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission voted in June to impose a ban on the practice of "finning" sharks in fisheries of the eastern Pacific Ocean. The action mirrors an international ban for Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico waters passed last...

Yamaha drops model years.(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... In an effort to reduce what it calls an "inventory control situation" and an "unnecessary burden" for dealers, Yamaha Marine has announced that its outboard engines will no longer carry model year designations. "Historically, it was common...

Tougher fuel economy standards for SUVs?(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has proposed new fuel economy rules that will no longer penalize carmakers for producing larger, more useful vehicles for people that want to tow things like boats and campers. ...

Pride of Baltimore II dismasted.(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... Calling it the worst rigging failure in his career, Capt. Jan Miles watched helplessly as the wooden bow sprit, foremast and main mast of the replica clipper ship Pride of Baltimore II collapsed on Sept. 5 while participating in a tall ships...

Fish stocks still coming back.(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... The 2004 Report to Congress on the Status of U.S. Fisheries holds good news for "fishwich" lovers, bad news for shark fans and a mixed bag for sportfishermen. The report, issued in August by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric...

Loran gets a $100-million upgrade.(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... The 18 Loran transmitters in the continental U.S. have all now been upgraded to solid-state equipment with new time and frequency controls that utilize the same atomic clocks that the Global Positioning System operates on. The new equipment...

Boaters a potential security threat?(BoatU.S.reports)
November 1, 2005... Recreational boaters who have, to date, remained relatively free of federal scrutiny in the post 9/11 era may soon be the target of government watchdogs, according to a report by the Associated Press. Following an address to the U.S....

Standing guard on access.(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... I propose BoatU.S. create a column in BoatU.S. Magazine on the loss of public access to our waterways. As you are aware a number of cities (particularly in the South) have created ordinances which restrict anchoring. In some cases the cities...

The island I know.(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... Sitting on my desk is a story from the January 2005 issue of BoatU.S. Magazine--your feature on Anguilla. I keep meaning to write and let you know how much I enjoyed the story. I love Anguilla and you were able to capture the flavor of the...

Stormy weather.(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... Enclosed is a disappointing letter I received from my congressman in response to my letter regarding Sen. Santorum's proposal to eliminate free NOAA weather broadcasts. I am enclosing his note back to me, which essentially says nothing. I have...

Senatorial wind gusts.(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... Thanks for your editorial on an important issue as the piece of pork pie known as S. 786. As a resident of the San Francisco Bay area, an avid sailor and a member of BoatU.S. I am very concerned about keeping the essential tool of NOAA...

Road ends--just the beginning.(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... Your September "End of the Road In Michigan" article is outstanding! Thank you and BoatU.S. for publishing it. This is a very interesting issue that will no doubt affect the nation as a whole with time. It is my objective to introduce...

Fewer options for Detroit boaters.(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... Regarding your news item on Nexus and crossing the Canadian border. As a Detroit "River Rat" for over 25 years I have watched the losses of recreational boating pile up. No more Canada crossing, no more ski zone, islands off limits and Crystal...

Perpetuating the CO problem.(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... Regarding your story "Converters Cut CO" there is an important issue that was not mentioned. If the marine industry turns to the use of catalytic converters to solve the carbon monoxide problem it will allow the industry to perpetuate some poor...

Moonstruck.(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... Thanks for the informative article "Celestial Castings" in the September issue. I was taught to fish by moon phases by my grandfather. This last month I went yellow perch fishing in Lake Erie 10 times between the new moon and full moon and...

At the third star make a left ...(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... It is hard to believe that someone would use the Texaco charts for navigation given their scale and lack of depths and buoyage (September TechnoTalk). That does not take away the great utility of the Star Charts as planning aids. I still...

A sport hearse?(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... Although addressed in the excellent summary of trailer towing vehicle considerations in the September issue by Michael Vatalaro, three items need to be stressed for a safe towing vehicle. The first is that the tow vehicle's total weight should...

Top-notch service.(memberforum)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2005... I have been a boat owner for nearly 30 years and about 18 months ago I purchased a Pacific Mariner motor yacht built in Laconner, WA. You hear so many bad stories about boat manufacturers that I wanted to pass on a good story. My ownership...

Ask Cap'n Drew.
November 1, 2005... Dear Readers: As I'm sure most of you know, Bob Denver (a.k.a. Gilligan and Maynard G. Krebs) passed away in September of this year. As many of you long time readers are aware, I have frequently made reference to the show "Gilligan's...

Security saps state patrols.
November 1, 2005... A major push in the post 9/11 era to safeguard our waterways has left many state marine patrols undermanned, overworked and underfunded. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] According to John Fetterman, chairman of the National Association of State...

Now with enhanced audio performance and styling.
November 1, 2005... Think of them as a reprieve from the world around you. Whether it's the engine roar inside an airplane cabin, the bustle of the city or the distractions in the office, Bose QuietComfort[R] 2 headphones help them fade softly into the background...

Storm fury stymied.
November 1, 2005... Few things in life defy description as much as the power of a hurricane. Pictures of the aftermath only begin to offer a glimpse of the energy unleashed during the peak of a Category Four or Five storm. The devastation left in Katrina's wake...

The strait story: there are some places you can only get to know and truly appreciate from a boat and Jim Anderson has a lock on one. It's Cape Flattery, WA, the northwesternmost point of the continental U.S., and the ocean entrance of the strait of Juan de Fuca that surrounds it.
November 1, 2005... This remote corner of Washington's Olympic Peninsula is upholstered with deep forests of cedar, spruce and fir looking over rock cliffs, sea stacks and wave-carved caves to the open Pacific Ocean. But it's not too willing to show itself this...

Bounty of books.
November 1, 2005... A bountiful crop of new nautical books sprouted up this year that should feed any boater's desire to remain connected, however vicariously, to the sea during the winter. With topics as varied as ancient man right up to the Vietnam War, there...

Lost laker lamented: they still ring the bell at Detroit's Mariners Church every November 10, 29 times to mark one of the worst modern maritime disasters in the history of the Great Lakes.
November 1, 2005... Nearby, on Belle Isle in the Detroit River on that same date volunteers place 29 brass oil lamps with 29 names on plaques around a massive anchor at the Dossin Museum. And, on the 10th of November, 29 candles burn and 29 names are read at...

Will California terminate copper paint?
November 1, 2005... Things that catch on in California seem to spread to the rest of the country. Whether it is a new form of recreation like surfing in the '60s, rollerblading in the '90s, or a new regulation such as indoor smoking bans in restaurants, the West...

Big river rambling.
November 1, 2005... The Mississippi River is perhaps our most fabled waterway. It is steeped in fact and fiction, lore and legend. It has inspired writers and artists and at the same time, has provided a living and a way of life for no-nonsense rivermen. For...

Yacht heaven: we knew we were well on our way toward decompression shortly after landing at Beef Island Airport in Tortola, British Virgin Islands. As we were ferried to Virgin Gorda's Bitter End Yacht Club, a 50-something from the States told us about how he had retired to the islands, built a 10,000 square-foot house and was now very happy "doing nothing.".
November 1, 2005... A week spent at the Bitter End Yacht Club (BEYC) was filled with such encounters. Bill, our next "boomer," was met the following morning during breakfast. He had pulled in the night before aboard a black-hulled sportfisherman, a 48-foot Ocean,...

Charts go PC.
November 1, 2005... As digital technology moves forward at an ever-increasing speed, a bewildering array of chart products are out in the consumer marketplace, with more coming. Now, in a major development, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration...

Crossing over: I have a confession to make. I recently sold my sailboat and bought a powerboat.
November 1, 2005... A decade ago just out of college and nearly broke, I knew that I wanted a boat, but it had to be affordable. That meant I didn't have a lot of money for gas and engine repairs, so buying an old sailboat over an old motorboat was as much an...

What's the answer to better boat design?(CONSUMER PROTECTION BUREAU)
November 1, 2005... Boat owners are sometimes puzzled by the logic of how their boats are designed and built. If men are from Mars and women from Venus, to borrow the popular self-help concept, some wonder just what planet certain boatbuilders are from. A...

Testing crew overboard maneuvers.(Number 41)
November 1, 2005... More than 100 seasoned sailors and powerboaters, from international racers to high-level instructors, converged this summer in the shadow of the Golden Gate Bridge to test crew overboard maneuvers and products. For four days on San Francisco...

Cure for the wintertime blues.(MEMBERSHIP)
November 1, 2005... Waterways will soon be frozen over and cabin fever will set in. Have you thought about where you'll get your boating fix over winter? Why not make your own customized boating home page at the members-only site, my.BoatUS.com? Enjoyed...

The perfect boating gift for under $15.(MEMBERSHIP)
November 1, 2005... If you want to give your boating buddies a holiday gift they will use all year long, we've got just the thing: a BoatU.S. gift membership for the special annual membership rate of $14. This practical and affordable present will keep your...

$2,500 Theft Reward Program nabs thief.(MEMBERSHIP)
November 1, 2005... As harbor manager for the Salt Spring Harbour Authority in British Columbia, Canada, Bart Terwiel has a lot to think about. Terwiel manages eight public docks around Salt Spring Island with 350 permanent slip holders and over 5,000 transients a...

Still time to order holiday cards.(MEMBERSHIP)
November 1, 2005... Picking the right holiday card is easy with this year's line of nautically themed greetings available from the BoatU.S. Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water. By going to BoatUS.com and clicking on the "Holiday Cards" box, you'll find a...

Better towing VHF coverage in the Pacific.(MEMBERSHIP)
November 1, 2005... Boaters cruising from Southern California as far as northern Mexico will now benefit from 24-hour radio dispatch capabilities. Vessel Assist-BoatU.S. has moved its San Diego VHF radio antenna tower to a new, higher location--250 feet above sea...

BoatU.S. Cooperating Marina.(MEMBERSHIP)
November 1, 2005... Fuel prices getting you down? Humbug Marina in Gibraltar, MI, a BoatU.S. Cooperating Marina, offers BoatU.S. members some relief with a 10 cents per-gallon fuel discount. To find a BoatU.S. Cooperating Marina near you that offers discounts on...

Full speed astern!(tangled line)
November 1, 2005... What does a commercial fisherman do when he's 80 miles offshore and his boat's transmission will only engage in reverse? Head home, stem-to, of course. That's what Coos Bay, OR, tuna troller Jim Peterson did, according to an Associated...

Misplaced wallet netted.(tangled line)
November 1, 2005... Some sailors have all the luck. When James Lubeck dropped his wallet overboard into the harbor at Marblehead, MA, while tying up his sailboat, he thought he'd never see it again. Miraculously, according to an Associated Press report, a...

Sweatin' with the hippos.(tangled line)
November 1, 2005... If you happen to run out of sunscreen while boating in southern Africa, no sweat. Just rub up against the nearest hippopotamus. According to an article in Nature magazine, Japanese researchers have discovered the oily, reddish sweat-like...

Bone Yard Boats gets new owner.(tangled line)
November 1, 2005... Bone Yard Boats, the one-of-a-kind service for true antique boat junkies, has been taken over by a new skipper. Bone Yard Boats matches abandoned boats with prospective new owners, sort of an old wreck's adoption agency. It's been credited with...

No cat in the cannon.(tangled line)
November 1, 2005... Conservators at The Mariners' Museum in Newport News, VA, and scientists from NOAA working on artifacts from the Civil War ironclad ship Monitor blew a 142-year-old myth out of water in August when, after weeks of restoration, they failed to...

Gipsy Moth IV sails again.(tangled line)
November 1, 2005... The 53-foot wooden ketch Gipsy Moth IV that captivated world attention when skipper Francis Chichester set an around-the-world solo record in 1966-67 has just enjoyed a $550,000 restoration. She was scheduled to set sail Sept. 25 on a second...

Boat trailer backup.(hottips and news you can use)
November 1, 2005... Trailer boaters know that there's not much you can do when Mr. Murphy decides to pay a visit. For example, having a spare tire and set of fresh bearings won't do you a bit of good if you've already cooked the spindle into a molten, scored mess....

Motor bracket blues.(hottips and news you can use)
November 1, 2005... I once had a small sailboat with a heavy four-stroke kicker. Lowering or raising the engine was awkward at best, and I often feared that in an emergency situation it would be difficult for my crew to lower the engine. Things just got a...

Fishing for the Titanic.(hottips and news you can use)
November 1, 2005... Dr. Robert Ballard had it during his exploration of the Titanic. Commercial, research and salvers also have it. Now recreational fisherman can have it too. The "it" is side-scanning sonar technology that Humminbird has developed with its...

New trim tabs.(hottips and news you can use)
November 1, 2005... Volvo has developed trim tab technology based on a system adapted from high-speed ferries and hydrofoils unlike any other trim system you have seen. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Designed for vessels up to 50-feet in length and speeds up to...

28.(BOAT BITS)
November 1, 2005... 28: Average number of boats on waiting list for a slip rental in 2002 (for marinas reporting having a list). Source: Boating Industry Annual Marina Survey 2003

46.(BOAT BITS)
November 1, 2005... 46: Average number of boats on waiting list for slip rental in 2004 (for marinas reporting having a list). Source: Boating Industry Annual Marina Survey 2004

Consumer alert.
November 1, 2005... Federal laws require marine manufacturers to issue defect recall notices when boats or related equipment contain "defects which create a substantial risk of personal injury" or when they do not comply with boat manufacturing regulations. ...

Techno talk.
November 1, 2005... This column usually concerns itself with relatively complex marine electronic devices like radar, radios, chart plotters and autopilots rather than some of the more prosaic products usually found on boats. But, one apparently simple device, the...

Hatteras double-cabin MY 38.(2ndtimearound)
November 1, 2005... The headquarters of Hatteras Yachts is located in New Bern, NC, 90 miles inland, as the crow flies, from the cape of the same name that is notorious for its treacherous seas and numerous shipwrecks. I am sure it was not coincidental that...

Nonsuch 30.(2ndtimearound)
November 1, 2005... I recall years ago trying to make a decision about purchasing either a Laser or a Force 5. In the end, I bought a Force 5 simply because it had more strings to pull. Okay, I admit to being a bit of a control freak. I've since learned that...

Three tips for winter.(DAMAGE AVOIDANCE)
November 1, 2005... A Tale Of Two Battery Chargers At first glance, differences between a portable automobile battery charger and a marine battery charger aren't readily apparent. Both have wires that attach to the battery terminals. Both make a reassuring...

Great holiday ideas for the boater on your list.(Advertorial)(Advertisement)
November 1, 2005... The holidays will soon be upon us and trying to decide what gifts to give friends and loved ones can feel overwhelming at times. It can be especially difficult if you're trying to find something special and unique for the boater or outdoor...

Aweigh with words.
November 1, 2005... In the Navy--Fighters for supremacy at sea. ACROSS 1. They overact 5. "____ the torpedoes!" 9. Finn on the Mississippi, and others 14. Forget to put in 15. Puzzle solver's favorite cookie? 16. With more "time on...

Behind the boat.
November 1, 2005... Last fall when I sat down and wrote of the four devastating hurricanes that struck Florida, I had hoped it would be some time before our attentions were turned again to the wrath of Mother Nature. Unfortunately, the massive destruction to the...

Where our flags fly.
November 1, 2005... Send us a photo of your boat, preferably flying the BoatU.S. flag, and we'll publish it here, and online at BoatUS.com. Please include the name, make, size and home port, as well as your member number. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...