Re: TWL: RE: Is 900 horsepower too much?
In a message dated 5/29/2003 12:58:39 PM Central Daylight Time,
elnav@uniserve.com writes:
<< What we have is a fashion statement. An express cruiser with a cosmetic
"tug"
superstructure.
The people who demand a fast tug so they can cruise a t 17 knots are not
really in tune with the original concept of what Robert Beebe was advocating
with his Passagemaker design. >>
Boy, there are so many different directions I could go with this so pardon me
if my reply is a little scattered. For one, you are assuming that every
person that is into "trawlering" is in it for the exact mission that Beebe had. I
think that is a very narrow view and from a business standpoint, a narrow
market. Not necessarily narrow, but there is a market for this type of boat and
companies such as Nordic Tug are determined to meet it. And your staement
brings up the question, "Just what IS trawlering?". To many people it is many
different things. Which means to many companines, it is many different markets.
Let's not forget that Lynn Senour and his designs are not merely planing
hulls with a trawler "fashion statement" attached to the topsides. He and his
crew have many decades of designing hulls that are very sea worthy. Watch a
pilot boat(or a Nordic Tug for that matter) move through the water. There is a
lot to be said the way it cuts thru the waves and chop. It is not the most
efficient hull form, but definitely seaworthy and capable of speed. Anyway,
just a few thoughts........
Trawler on,
John
PS.......Willard(military.....their primary mission), Defever(POC), and
Krogen(Express 49 soon to be 52) all make semi-displacement hulls and some planing
hulls. Also, when people(at least me) think of pleasure trawlers, I would be
willing to bet the first type that comes to mind would be something like a
Grand Banks..........not sure if they have ever produced a boat with a true
displacement hull. The trawler "movement" is much broader than pure displacement
passagemakers.
-----Original Message-----
Boy, there are so many different directions I could go with this so pardon me
if my reply is a little scattered.
REPLY
Right on John!
I suspect Georgs posted his question to spark debate, so I added more fuel.
I figured "fashion statement" was enough of a button to get a few people out of
lurk mode.
This list has been too darn quiet since 9/11 in my opinion. < big grin>
But the question you ask - "what is trawlering" is worthy of more serious
deliberation.
Not so much to get a definitive answer as to provoke some thought by our list
members.
So what does distinguish trawlering from cruising or just plain boating.?
You are likely to get as many answers as we have subscribers but somehow there
is a feeling that "trawlering" is different if not definable..
Is it the hull, the speed, or the attitude of the skipper than makes that
difference? Is it the equipment, the locale or the lifestyle?
Food for thought.
Cheers
Arild
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----- Original Message -----
From: flyjbaker624@aol.com
The trawler "movement" is much broader than pure displacement
passagemakers.
----- Original Message -----
Surely this is the point. In particular, as engine technology progresses,
some of the "rules" about diesels should change. For example, will 80% power
always be the ideal? Will less than that cruising speed carbon-up the
engine? Should I still run the engine at WOT one hour in eight?
I suspect that the computerization of marine diesels should change these
"rules" and improve fuel economy at higher rpm. Arbitrarily, I have
concluded that 4GPH is the maximum that I want to spend when cruising.
Similarly, I want available a higher speed to get to port fast (12 to 14
knots) to avoid a storm or cope with a medical emergency. Perhaps
computerized diesels will permit me to have my cake and eat it too. Of
course, this will require a semi-displacement vessel.
Another unsubstantiated notion I have is that stabilizers might be avoided
if my semi-displacement hull picked-up form stability at 12-14 knots. You
could buy a lot of diesel for the $30 - $35,000 one could spend on wing
stabilizers.
Frugally yours,
Ron Rogers
Annapolis, MD
{8^0)
<<So what does distinguish trawlering from cruising or just
plain boating.?>>
It's less in the boat than in the use it is put to. Trawlers, in
my eyes, are powerboats used for long distance cruising. One of
us has and cruises extensively in a 15' outboard powered
"trawler". Others buy million dollar boats that they never have
enough time to use on weekends, much less for real distance
cruising to exciting places over the horizon.
Boats of such size and complexity need an amazing amount of
maintenance and repair, which may be beyond the expectation of
the new owners. Heaven help the dewey-eyed buyer of the same
boat 20 years later, after a couple of years of benign neglect by
the PO.
Yes, in my experience along the waterways, 900 HP is too much
power for many of the owners of such boats. Too many never
learned how to pass another boat properly, or what a 2' curling
wake can do to a 14' aluminum skiff. Now they're armed with a
deadly amount of power, with no real constraint on how they use
it.
Mark Richter, Winnie the Pooh
We're finally underway after 21 days of house and dog-sitting in
Stuart, FL. Tonight we're anchored in Ft. Pierce considering the
weather for the 44 hr ofshore to Georgetown, SC. This little
jaunt (370 nm outside) would save us about 7 days of typical
cruising up the ICW (562 statute miles inside). Forecast is W-SW
at 15-20 kts. SW at 15 would be great. W at 20 wouldn't be much
fun. The course is almost directly north, and would take us
about 90 miles offshore as we pass Fernandina Beach, FL and the
Georgia border.
The Gerogetowen entrance at Winyah Bay is a well-marked and easy
ship channel, doable even in the dark. From there, we'll slip up
the Wacamaw River and feast our eyes and ears on the wildlife
there at sunrise and sunset. Next comes Myrtle Beach and some of
that fine 95 cent diesel. We'll mosey up the ICW to Chesapeake
Bay, where I have a couple of boat repair jobs lined up at
Solomons, MD and Havre de Grace at the top of the Bay.
We'll try to make NYC by July 4 for the fireworks (they still
have fireworks?). Then re-exploring Long Island Sound where I
haven't been since 1988 on a 36'sailboat called Tigger. Our
ultimate goal is Maine for the heart of summer.
It's great to be "on the Road Again".
Mark & Cadey, Winnie the Pooh
e-mail by Verizon cell phone