VIEW FROM THE MARINA: Star the Wonder Dog

View from the Marina
Star the Wonder Dog
By Barb Hansen


What if there were a World’s Best Boat Dog for the year? You could submit your nominations to me: however, Vic and I would be the judges. You should know that Vic and I have declared Star, our border collie, as the winner. Your dog could come in second.

Well, why not a World’s Best Boat Dog contest? I read recently about the Canine World Hero contest. I have read about a Dress Up Your Dog contest and a Monster Dawg Pull contest. There is a Most Like a Rock Star contest, a Looks like a Famous Person contest, and Looks Most Like Owner contest.

We’re not looking for pedigree or prancing like you’ve seen on TV from the Westminster Kennel Club show. On the scale of dog contests, ours is on the other end, perhaps closer to the coon hunt where dogs harmonize in 10-parts and make their owners proud and in which all canine contestants are thereinafter declared winners. Our World’s Best Boat Dog contest would be something like that. But, of course, Star would be first among equals.

Traditionally, border collies herded sheep. We have not given Star the opportunity to herd sheep. However, Star may be the only border collie who herds dolphins from the deck of any trawler or sailboat. Just a whistle and the cry "daaaalphin" from anyone aboard, and Star leaps into action, rapidly moving from one side of the boat to the other and barking at the playful creatures as they surf our bow wave or jump in the boat's wake astern.

This contest would have a special division for deceased dogs and, in this category, Vic and I have nominated our dearly departed Shadow, a lab mix who gave new meaning to the term retriever. Environmentalist that she was, Shadow would dive in the water and retrieve beer bottles and other discarded containers tossed overboard by inconsiderate slobs. If we could have outfitted her with a mask and snorkel, Shadow would have dog paddled around for hours with her head submerged and her eyes searching the bottom for discarded bottles and such. I know they make personal flotation devices for dogs. Has anybody invented a mask-and-snorkel for dogs?

Vic and I applaud all who have helped their dogs make the transition to boat dog. Spending time on the boat with your dog is good for the owners because pets, well, just smooth things out for their lucky owners no matter where they are. Most dogs grow to love the boating life. If you’re going for a cruise, they say, Take Me With You. That’s the way dogs are unless you’re going to the vet. How do they know?

Yes, there are some things you have to do to accommodate their lifestyles, like row them to shore a couple or three times a day. But, that’s a small effort for the dog love you get in return. (Lord, please help me be the person my dog thinks I am.)

Sit. Write. Speak. Think about that special canine companion of yours and all the great cruising time shared.

Good boy.

CRUISING WITH NON-BOATING GUESTS (Or how to survive having landlubbers aboard!)

View from the Marina
Cruising with Non-Boating Guests
By Barb Hansen
October 1, 2004

Did you see the cartoon about the invited couple arriving at the hosts’ vessel for the overnight cruise? The “vessel,” I should note, is a rather tiny thing.

The lady is wearing a miniskirt and high heels. He’s still wearing his rumpled suit from work. He has an overstuffed briefcase tucked under his arm. His shoulder is weighted down with golf clubs and tennis rackets. And everything else they could think of is stuffed into two huge, hard-sided suitcases. Oh, and the cell phone on his belt is ringing.

“We’re here,” she sings, waving a bottle of wine.

Some of you have met this well-meaning couple. The cartoon rather overstates the typical scenario, but makes the point clearly that non-boating guests just don’t know what to bring or what to wear when they’re invited to cruise.

We can also safely assume they do not know boating’s protocols. For example, they do not realize that on a boat it’s really bad form to take long showers or turn on the galley tap and let the water run. They don’t realize that reading lamps are used sparingly, if at all.

Well, you may reasonably ask, if guests are such a problem why do we even invite them to cruise with us? The reason is, we like them. They are our friends. We enjoy their company.

There’s something else. We like to boat. Time is short. So if they cruise with us we can enjoy our friends and the boat at the same time.

The challenge is, how do we gently educate new friends about the do’s and don’ts of cruising. We don’t want to hurt their feelings, but they need to know the rules of the boat and the protocols of boating.

I usually talk to the female ahead of time and tell her what to wear and what to bring and, importantly, what not to bring. I tell them the boat only has so much fresh water so we take quick and infrequent showers. I say boating is a lot like camping. Space is tight. Reading lights are fine when the boat is running or plugged in to power at a marina, but otherwise they just drain the batteries. Vic carries on the male version of that conversation with the man.

I’ve found it helpful to couch all the warnings in the context of the rewards of boating. Cruising is that way, I say. We give up so many of the luxuries in order to experience the joy of being on the water.

Some items are best discussed when the guests are on the boat and can see what you’re talking about. We show them the PFDs and how to put them on. We show them the first aid kit, the flashlight, the fire extinquishers. We tell them what to do with wet towels and such. We cover safety matters like never letting their hands get pinched between the boat railing and the pilings. Regarding the propane stove, we just simply ask them to let Vic or I take care of all the cooking and heating.

One of the problems is that guests want to be helpful. However, on a boat, if their volunteering is not channeled, it can be dangerous. You know what I’m talking about. I usually give our guests some real boating clean-up assignments in advance and ask them not to worry about doing anything else. That way they can make a real contribution to the cruise. They’ll feel better and so will you.

There is another reason why Vic and I like our friends to cruise with us. Ambassadors of boating that we are, we want all our friends to like boating, too. To do that, we’ve got to get them on the boat and give them a taste of the good life.

So we tell them ahead of time to shed those street clothes and get into water clothes. We tell them there won’t be time for golf, tennis, office work or cell phones.

But we also tell them there will be time for a sunrise from the bridge while taking the first few sips of coffee of the day. There will be time to watch dolphins surf the bow wave. And there will be time for watching a black sky carpeted from horizon to horizon with millions of brilliant stars.

WINTER IS ON THE WAY - THINK FLORIDA THIS WINTER!

I’ve heard it said that there’s no change of seasons in Florida. Of course there are seasons – “high” season and “low” season!

Seriously, as I write this fall is in the air. The mornings seem cooler, the palm trees sway to the gentle sea breeze, and the harvest moon glows brighter in the clear star-filled night sky. After the hurricanes of the last two months, it is as if Mother Nature has waived her wand of beauty and calm over us. And all is right with our world again.

Those of us in the Fort Myers area feel very lucky to have had such minor effects from the recent storms. Of course, “Charley” came the closest to our area, but the clean up has been swift and thorough. I had a caller ask me recently if our cruising area was “devastated.” My answer was, “absolutely not.” All of the marinas of Sanibel, Captiva, Cabbage Key, Useppa, and Gasparilla islands, except one, are already open or will be open by the end of this month. Southwest Florida is ready for business! And the islands and resorts will be better than ever. Of course, a few sandbars have shifted locations and a new pass or two have been created, but that has always been the nature of our cruising area whether we have a hurricane or not. Unfortunately, other parts of Florida did not fare nearly as well as we did here. We wish the people and businesses of the Panhandle, the East coast, and central Florida a speedy recovery. Please remember that the Hurricane Relief efforts for those areas that were hit the hardest depend, in part, on your contributions to the American Red Cross. ( http://www.redcross.org/ )

So, with the arrival of the fall season and winter not far behind, now would be a good time to plan your vacation to our islands. And what better way to see the islands than aboard a private sail or power yacht. Whether you want a weekend “getaway” cruise, a leisurely sailing charter, or a challenging power boating class we have it all.
We hope to see you soon in beautiful Southwest Florida! (http://www.swfyachts.com)

VIW FROM THE MARINA: Cruising with Non-Boating Guests

View from the Marina
Cruising with Non-Boating Guests
By Barb Hansen


Did you see the cartoon about the invited couple arriving at the hosts’ vessel for the overnight cruise? The “vessel,” I should note, is a rather tiny thing.

The lady is wearing a miniskirt and high heels. He’s still wearing his rumpled suit from work. He has an overstuffed briefcase tucked under his arm. His shoulder is weighted down with golf clubs and tennis rackets. And everything else they could think of is stuffed into two huge, hard-sided suitcases. Oh, and the cell phone on his belt is ringing.

“We’re here,” she sings, waving a bottle of wine.

Some of you have met this well-meaning couple. The cartoon rather overstates the typical scenario, but makes the point clearly that non-boating guests just don’t know what to bring or what to wear when they’re invited to cruise.

We can also safely assume they do not know boating’s protocols. For example, they do not realize that on a boat it’s really bad form to take long showers or turn on the galley tap and let the water run. They don’t realize that reading lamps are used sparingly, if at all.

Well, you may reasonably ask, if guests are such a problem why do we even invite them to cruise with us? The reason is, we like them. They are our friends. We enjoy their company.

There’s something else. We like to boat. Time is short. So if they cruise with us we can enjoy our friends and the boat at the same time.

The challenge is, how do we gently educate new friends about the do’s and don’ts of cruising. We don’t want to hurt their feelings, but they need to know the rules of the boat and the protocols of boating.

I usually talk to the female ahead of time and tell her what to wear and what to bring and, importantly, what not to bring. I tell them the boat only has so much fresh water so we take quick and infrequent showers. I say boating is a lot like camping. Space is tight. Reading lights are fine when the boat is running or plugged in to power at a marina, but otherwise they just drain the batteries. Vic carries on the male version of that conversation with the man.

I’ve found it helpful to couch all the warnings in the context of the rewards of boating. Cruising is that way, I say. We give up so many of the luxuries in order to experience the joy of being on the water.

Some items are best discussed when the guests are on the boat and can see what you’re talking about. We show them the PFDs and how to put them on. We show them the first aid kit, the flashlight, the fire extinquishers. We tell them what to do with wet towels and such. We cover safety matters like never letting their hands get pinched between the boat railing and the pilings. Regarding the propane stove, we just simply ask them to let Vic or I take care of all the cooking and heating.

One of the problems is that guests want to be helpful. However, on a boat, if their volunteering is not channeled, it can be dangerous. You know what I’m talking about. I usually give our guests some real boating clean-up assignments in advance and ask them not to worry about doing anything else. That way they can make a real contribution to the cruise. They’ll feel better and so will you.

There is another reason why Vic and I like our friends to cruise with us. Ambassadors of boating that we are, we want all our friends to like boating, too. To do that, we’ve got to get them on the boat and give them a taste of the good life.

So we tell them ahead of time to shed those street clothes and get into water clothes. We tell them there won’t be time for golf, tennis, office work or cell phones.

But we also tell them there will be time for a sunrise from the bridge while taking the first few sips of coffee of the day. There will be time to watch dolphins surf the bow wave. And there will be time for watching a black sky carpeted from horizon to horizon with millions of brilliant stars.