Wow,
Talk about off topic ! now we're back to lamenting the merits of a survey.
I've already expressed my feelings about "surveys and surverors" in other posts.
On one hand I hear posters claiming experience and knowledge of boats and sailing , then in the same paragraph stating they wouldn't buy a boat w/out a survey ??? So which is it?
Anyone can become a surveyor if they are willing to pay the organizations that represent them (schools,online,study courses).
What makes the "surveyor" all knowing? isn't he/she just another person offering a service for money? Are there any warranties w/ surveys ?
If your too inept to determine the condition of the equipment w/out a paid surveyor, how can you know if the information provided is accurate or relevent when you recieve the survey ?? AND if you are capable of determining the information is accurate, then what did you need a surveyor for to begin with ??
I know the banks ,insurance companies and brokers all tout the merits of surveyors. Somehow I'm just not sold on them.
I guess if your completely inept,inexperienced, and to busy/lazy to educate yourself about boats they may fill a need.
Or, if your just fulfilling the requirements for a loan or insurance policy that will require a survey.
Other than that, I question whether I really want to share the waterways with you, if you're not willing/capable of determining the condition of the boat and equipment you'll be utilizing, what else are you missing ? navigation and rules of the road skills? (basic marine courtesy,i.e.wake,noise,safety)
Reference is made here time and again questioning the judgement of living aboard a potentially unsafe vessel w/ children. I would have to add that if you feel unable to determine the condition of a vessel and equipment your considering aquisition/operation of, and you need to hire someone to tell you if it's worthwhile, then you may be more or at least as much of a risk/danger to yourself, your passengers and others on the water as the former situation, maybe even more so !
I hear all the time from the boat owners tied to the dock (for years upon years) about their vast knowledge and experience ( I always inquire when the last time they-"took her out for a sail")..
Yea, I
anchor, I sail (not motor,motorsail) . Of course, I keep the diesel operational, I use it to move in and out of marinas when seeking
fuel,water,pumpout. But primarilly I sail.
"If the wind's not blowin' I probably ain't goin' "
I have to add that managing a west marine, or a marina (not a DIY yard that offers dockage and not repair maint. haulout services,etc), does not equate to any vast knowledge of boating , only a knowledge of buss. management .
Even holding certificates from USCG or sailing schools only guarantee one thing- you (or somebody) paid alot of money to get a piece of paper from the organization.
Experience is going, having been, and doing. Really doing , not motoring from marina to marina and paying (outragious fees) to tie up everynight and plug in. Experience is living it , it's ongoing, it's fluent , it's continually learning different inlet's,anchorages,regulations,conditions, and exchanging information with others doing the same (not dock dogs).
Most of the Dock dwellers I speak w/ seem unsure and afraid of what's over the horizon on one hand ( seeking instead the false security of being tied to a dock), but are often the first to adamently council and warn me off of any far ranging travels.
I thank god I quit listening to them years ago. Had I not , I would probably havenever gone and discovered for myself the reality of it, with my own eyes,hands, and with my family (and pets).
As per the cost issues, I never spent more than $1-2000 for a boat, never paid a surveyor and have sailed from St.pete, Fl. to lake Erie and back (yes, I motored the NYS canal system) with family and pets aboard.
It would seem to me that if you got a boat for nothing and wisely,frugally invested money in it's repair, you would , as a result have a worthwhile vessel.
I don't think boat ownership is ever an investment that pays any returns other than the experience,knowledge and pleasure gained from it's use. Never heard anyone remark about boat ownership as a form of investment, usually the opposite, with rare exception.
Rather than seek to obtain council here in this forum I would suggest a trip to the library to read actual accounts from those with verifiable life experiences. Rather than anonymous, faceless internet personas making often unverified claims of vast experience while tied to a dock in a marina between monthly daysails.
Nothing emboldens me more than when someone tells me what I cannot do.
After all somebody had to be first to do it, who surveyed that boat?
Who certified the first surveyor?
How was the first "Captain" ordained?
Never Forgotten
.....i2f
