Cruising With Children

[jheldatksuedu]

This is a great thread, I don't have kids yet, but hope to soon, I've got to find the wife first, that's why I'm planning to circumnavigate. Thanks to all that have added their wisdom. Jon

[Boasun]

One thing is for sure!! You can't say to the child: GO TO YOUR ROOM!! So you have to learn how to speak the language of children for a better relationship with them.
Then the kids from three or four other boats want a sleep over. And while that is happening you pray that the parents of the visiting kids don't sail away in the dark of night.

[pem]

Originally Posted by Cruisingdad

I have been selling my house and moving my business (and getting ready for the plunge!!!!) so, it has been put off a bit. I have NOT forgotten about it yet, though!!!

Cruisingdad,

I was following this thread last year and was really looking forward to your article. Have you had the time to pick it back up again?

[Cruisingdad]

Not yet, sorry. I am drowning in my business with work to be done. Hopefully soon I can get back into this.

THanks,

CD

[anthony11]

Originally Posted by Sabreman

Our daughter is now 13 and I can see a day when she'll not want to come on a two week trip unless a boy is involved (No way! says Dad). I kind of recall a time when I was that age and I balked at sailing, but have apparently gotten over it.

I realize that this is an old thread, but what's the objection to a boy being along? It's not like they can hide anywhere on a boat, arguably better than having them running around on land where you can't watch.

[Boasun]

As long as the boy sleeps in the dinghy on a long painter, it should be Okay.

[anthony11]

Originally Posted by camaraderie

Knot... my own view is to never take teenagers out cruising because it is unfiar to their personal developement (peers, sports, techniical schooling, girl/boyfriends) and never cross oceans with kids of any kind since the risks go up dramatically when you can't avoid bad weather or duck into port. If adults want to cross oceans...that is just fine, but to make that choice for thier kids concerns mel

Clearly "cruising" means something different to many here than it does to most people I've talked to. "Cruising" to me means going out on a boat for a week or two to regional destinations. Going off trans-ocean or around the world for a couple of years is another thing entirely and puzzling to me to see it assumed in this discussion.

[anthony11]

Originally Posted by camaraderie

1. Academics...most parents cannot provide a rich educational environment at the high school or ADVANCED high school levels. Advanced math, physics, Chem, PC programming, etc. ...let alone the easy stuff like English grammer (sp! lol), history, foreign languages. A teen taken sailing will most always be academically disadvantaged, less prepared to do well on the SAT's and less likely to get into as good a college as he/she might otherwise do in a good school on land.

If a parent/parents can afford to buy and maintain a six-figure boat and to not have a job, they're rich enough to hire a teacher to voyage with them, and the only reason for that teen to go to college would be to party, since he/she isn't going to have to work for a living either. Let's stop pretending that multi-millionaires have the same concerns as anyone else, ie. what's left of the middle class.

Furthermore the ability to take part in group activities such as sports, plays, dance, scouting etc. where one learns to work hard to hone a talent or reach a goal and work as a team member are also quite important.

That's the convention wisdom, but let's stop kidding ourselves: it's been at least decades since these activities have had anything to do with goals and teamwork. Professional sports today actively encourage kids to be self-centered. School sports are about bullying, getting laid, and driving home the idea that actually learning something is of little value.

[GreatWhite]

We plan on cruising with our kids, but we are not multi millionaires....just determined! All the cruisers with kids I know are fairly middle class people, they just have the will to make it happen financially.

Home schooling for the younger kids, again, is a matter of determination... No professional teacher will be required!

[camaraderie]

Anthony...Well you can take it as you want but my entire POST was devoted to FULL TIME CRUISING with teenagers. That is a subset of ALL cruising but a very important one to many of those who have posted on this thread including the originator who is planning on going full time. Try reading the posts by Giu and CD before mine which were ALL about FT Cruising.Since when am I or anyone else limited to only discussing YOUR version of cruising?

As far as your second post goes...most cruisers with big boats sold their house to get them and no one here said you have to have a big boat to go f/t cruising. They can't afford to stay in marinas let alone bring a tutor that is capable of teaching college level high school courses in all areas of science and math. Your assumptions about people who can afford to cruise are dead wrong for 90% of the full timers out there...many of whom are on strict budgets, anchor out full time and have a limited window of a couple of years or so to cruise. Others like me worked for thirty years at 60-70 hours a week and went without lots of stuff in order to make retirement possible. Your post smacks of class envy and a petty jealousness of anyone who has it better than you.



As to sports, teamwork, socialization, and nuturing of special talents... let's just say that our opinions differ and I hope your kids turn out ok.