[Rhodes22-list] The Rhodes 22 As An "Offshore" Cruising Boat
Bill Effros
rhodes22-list@rhodes22.org
Sun, 8 Sep 2002 08:34:24 -0400
This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
------=_NextPart_000_0037_01C25712.89462A60
Content-Type: text/plain;
charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
Rik,
I've told this story before, I'm not sure you were on the list:
A guy I went to college with sailed a 9 foot something boat across the =
Atlantic, setting the record for small boats at that time. He then =
towed his boat to San Diego and set out to claim the Pacific title as =
well. He was never heard from again.
Bill Effros
----- Original Message -----=20
From: Rik Sandberg=20
To: rhodes22-list@rhodes22.org=20
Sent: Friday, September 06, 2002 12:36 PM
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] The Rhodes 22 As An "Offshore" Cruising =
Boat
Roger, and all
That was very, very well said. I am with you 100% on this, both in the =
"knowing and having confidence in what you are doing" and the =
"responsibility for your own actions" parts. I too am getting extremely =
frustrated with all the "safety" police who would treat us all at the =
level of the most ignorant, no matter how skilled or knowledgeable we =
may be in a particular area. This is not only restrictive, but =
expensive, as people try to develop fancier and fancier equipment =
designed to save us in the event of our own foolishness.
Truth be known, I am looking forward to the opportunity to take our R 22 =
across the stream to the Bahamas some day. I have read too many accounts =
of people having done it in far smaller and lighter built craft than the =
R 22 to believe that it is all that tough, given decent weather and a =
couple of modifications, of course. I would agree that Bermuda might be =
kind of a stretch though. But, I see that some guy has just finished a =
trip, San Francisco to Hilo, Hawaii in August in his WW Potter 19.
Some of us seem to set pretty low limits for ourselves.
Rik
----- Original Message -----=20
From: Roger Pihlaja=20
To: rhodes22-list@rhodes22.org=20
Sent: Friday, September 06, 2002 10:48 AM
Subject: [Rhodes22-list] The Rhodes 22 As An "Offshore" Cruising Boat
Hi Everybody,
We've had this discussion before on the list as to whether the Rhodes =
22 can be used "offshore". We've even had lengthy discussions of what =
"offshore" means.
Well, clearly nobody is about to attempt to circumnavigate the earth =
in a Rhodes 22. Even an ocean crossing, which would involve weeks at =
sea, is probably too much. But, explain to me what's different about =
sailing in the Bahama Islands vs. sailing along some remote stretch of =
the United States coastline, the Great Lakes, or in the Florida Keys? =
There are enough islands & destinations in the northern Bahama Islands, =
each one less than a day's sail from each other, to make for a great =
cruising vacation. But, to get to & from the Bahama Islands by the =
route I suggested in my previous post, you would have to be willing to =
wait in Florida & the West End for a suitable weather window. My family =
has done extensive wilderness cruising on the Great Lakes & it's no =
different. We routinely pack 2 - 3 extra days rations along on a Great =
Lakes cruise to allow for weather related layover days. Patience to =
wait for suitable conditions is simply a fundamental ingredient in this =
sort of cruising. Crossing the Gulf Stream in a Rhodes 22 is definitely =
at the upper edge of the boat's capability envelope. I certainly =
couldn't guarantee a pleasant or comfortable Gulf Stream crossing. But, =
given a suitable weather window with a capable crew on board & the boat =
properly prepared, I think it's doable.
This sort of voyaging in a Rhodes 22 has more in common with remote =
wilderness backpacking than with big boat cruising. You have to learn =
to be self sufficient; plan all aspects of the voyage; posses the proper =
skills - sailing, navigation, First Aid, weather forecasting, etc; set =
the boat up properly; plan the meals & the use of other consumables such =
as fuel & water. The whole trip becomes a series of calculated risks =
with contingency plans A,B, & C at every step of the way. At this =
level, factoring weather into the equation, even the possibility of a =
hurricane, becomes just another part of the process. Obviously, this =
sort of cruising is not everybody's cup of tea & it's definitely not for =
the faint of heart or a beginner. But, this is the manner in which some =
people, myself & sons included, choose to use their small boats. I =
thank God our society has not yet reached the point where the do-gooders =
have made it impossible to play in this manner. Richard, please excuse =
my bluntness, but I tend to chafe at such intrusions into my personal =
liberty. I think I know far better than you what the risks are, what =
Dynamic Equilibrium, my sons, & I are capable of accomplishing, & I =
neither need or want your advice. If I screw up, then I am also =
prepared to accept the consequences.
There are a thousand things that could go wrong on this sort of trip. =
You try to prepare & plan it out as best as you can beforehand. But, at =
some point, the trip is all about having sufficient confidence in =
yourself, your crew, & your equipment to go & do it. If your =
personality isn't setup that way, then you will never understand & you =
should stay closer to home.
Roger Pihlaja
S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
------=_NextPart_000_0037_01C25712.89462A60
Content-Type: text/html;
charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META http-equiv=3DContent-Type content=3D"text/html; =
charset=3Diso-8859-1">
<META content=3D"MSHTML 5.50.4134.100" name=3DGENERATOR>
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=3D#ffffff>
<DIV>Rik,</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I've told this story before, I'm not sure you were on the =
list:</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>A guy I went to college with sailed a 9 foot something boat across =
the=20
Atlantic, setting the record for small boats at that time. He then =
towed=20
his boat to San Diego and set out to claim the Pacific title as =
well. =20
He was never heard from again.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Bill Effros</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message -----=20
<DIV style=3D"BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B> <A=20
title=3Dracerrik@rea-alp.com href=3D"mailto:racerrik@rea-alp.com">Rik =
Sandberg</A>=20
</DIV>
<DIV><B>To:</B> <A title=3Drhodes22-list@rhodes22.org=20
href=3D"mailto:rhodes22-list@rhodes22.org">rhodes22-list@rhodes22.org</A>=
</DIV>
<DIV><B>Sent:</B> Friday, September 06, 2002 12:36 PM</DIV>
<DIV><B>Subject:</B> Re: [Rhodes22-list] The Rhodes 22 As An "Offshore" =
Cruising=20
Boat</DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2>Roger, and all</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2>That was very, very well said. I am with you =
100% on=20
this, both in the "knowing and having confidence in what you are =
doing" and=20
the "responsibility for your own actions" parts. I too am getting=20
extremely frustrated with all the "safety" police who would treat =
us=20
all at the level of the most ignorant, no matter how skilled or=20
knowledgeable we may be in a particular area. This is not only =
restrictive, but=20
expensive, as people try to develop fancier and fancier equipment =
designed to=20
save us in the event of our own foolishness.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2>Truth be known, I am looking forward to the =
opportunity to=20
take our R 22 across the stream to the Bahamas some day. I have read too =
many=20
accounts of people having done it in far smaller and lighter built craft =
than=20
the R 22 to believe that it is all that tough, given decent weather and =
a couple=20
of modifications, of course. I would agree that Bermuda might be =
kind of a=20
stretch though. But, I see that some guy has just finished a trip, San =
Francisco=20
to Hilo, Hawaii in August in his WW Potter 19.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2>Some of us seem to set pretty low limits for=20
ourselves.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3D2>Rik</FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE dir=3Dltr=20
style=3D"PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; =
BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV=20
style=3D"BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: =
black"><B>From:</B>=20
<A title=3Dcen09402@centurytel.net =
href=3D"mailto:cen09402@centurytel.net">Roger=20
Pihlaja</A> </DIV>
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A =
title=3Drhodes22-list@rhodes22.org=20
=
href=3D"mailto:rhodes22-list@rhodes22.org">rhodes22-list@rhodes22.org</A>=
</DIV>
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Friday, September 06, =
2002 10:48=20
AM</DIV>
<DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [Rhodes22-list] The =
Rhodes 22 As=20
An "Offshore" Cruising Boat</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Hi Everybody,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>We've had this discussion before on =
the=20
list as to whether the Rhodes 22 can be used =
"offshore". We've=20
even had lengthy discussions of what "offshore" means.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Well, clearly nobody is about to =
attempt to=20
circumnavigate the earth in a Rhodes 22. Even an ocean =
crossing,=20
which would involve weeks at sea, is probably too much. But, =
explain to=20
me what's different about sailing in the Bahama Islands vs. sailing =
along some=20
remote stretch of the United States coastline, the Great =
Lakes, or in the=20
Florida Keys? There are enough islands & destinations in the =
northern Bahama Islands, each one less than a day's sail from each =
other, to=20
make for a great cruising vacation. But, to get to & from =
the Bahama=20
Islands by the route I suggested in my previous post, you would have =
to be=20
willing to wait in Florida & the West End for a suitable weather=20
window. My family has done extensive wilderness cruising on the =
Great=20
Lakes & it's no different. We routinely pack 2 - 3 extra =
days=20
rations along on a Great Lakes cruise to allow for weather related =
layover=20
days. Patience to wait for suitable conditions is simply a =
fundamental=20
ingredient in this sort of cruising. Crossing the Gulf Stream in =
a=20
Rhodes 22 is definitely at the upper edge of the =
boat's capability=20
envelope. I certainly couldn't guarantee a pleasant or =
comfortable Gulf=20
Stream crossing. But, given a suitable weather window with a =
capable=20
crew on board & the boat properly prepared, I think it's=20
doable.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>This sort of voyaging in =
a Rhodes 22=20
has more in common with remote wilderness backpacking than with big =
boat=20
cruising. You have to learn to be self sufficient; plan all =
aspects of=20
the voyage; posses the proper skills - sailing, navigation, First Aid, =
weather=20
forecasting, etc; set the boat up properly; plan the meals & the =
use of=20
other consumables such as fuel & water. The whole trip =
becomes a=20
series of calculated risks with contingency plans A,B, & C at =
every=20
step of the way. At this level, factoring weather into the =
equation,=20
even the possibility of a hurricane, becomes just another part of the=20
process. Obviously, this sort of cruising is not everybody's cup =
of tea=20
& it's definitely not for the faint of heart or a beginner. =
But,=20
this is the manner in which some people, myself & sons included, =
choose to=20
use their small boats. I thank God our society has not yet =
reached the=20
point where the do-gooders have made it impossible to play in =
this=20
manner. Richard, please excuse my bluntness, but I tend to chafe =
at such=20
intrusions into my personal liberty. I think I know far better =
than you=20
what the risks are, what Dynamic Equilibrium, my sons, & =
I are=20
capable of accomplishing, & I neither need or want your =
advice. If I=20
screw up, then I am also prepared to accept the =
consequences.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>There are a thousand things that =
could go wrong=20
on this sort of trip. You try to prepare & plan it out =
as best=20
as you can beforehand. But, at some point, the trip is all =
about=20
having sufficient confidence in yourself, your crew, & =
your=20
equipment to go & do it. If your personality isn't setup =
that way,=20
then you will never understand & you should stay closer to=20
home.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>Roger Pihlaja</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DArial size=3D2>S/V Dynamic=20
Equilibrium</FONT></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>
------=_NextPart_000_0037_01C25712.89462A60--