The simple sailboats

I’ve got time on my hands while recovering. One of the things I’ve been doing is watching a lot of YouTube videos. Since one of my interests is sailing I’ve been watching a lot of sailing channels. It’s not all bikinis on the beach videos either. The vast majority of them have been of sailors doing repairs on their boats.

It’s said that sailing is boat repair in exotic locations. All too often, that’s the truth of it. Boat repairs are one of the biggest expenses for the sailors. There are some beautiful boats out there that I could not afford to own, even if they were given to me. For example, one couple is sailing around in a nice 54 foot sailboat with all the amenities. This is a boat worth about $600,000. The owners estimated that yearly repairs ran then around $60,000.

That might seem like an awful lot of money, and it is. However, it’s not surprising. A nice boat like that has power everything: winches, windlasses, air conditioners, generators, solar panels, and every appliance anyone could ever desire. The problem is all that machinery is in a harsh environment of salt water and vibration.

One of the attractions of sailboats is that if an area starts to feel sketchy all one has to do is raise the anchor and sail somewhere else. That’s all well and good -unless your boat is on the hard in some third world country while repairs are underway.

One couple was stuck in just such a boatyard recently while waiting for parts. They found the boatyard in the middle of a land dispute involving mercenaries, firearms, and a bulldozer destroying buildings. The couple grabbed a couple of backpacks and paddled their dinghy across the bay to safety. Their boat is still stuck in the yard. Who knows when or even if they’ll be able to launch it again.

There’s something to be said for simple boats that can be fixed quickly and on the cheap. If you can’t do emergency repairs with duct tape, zip times and WD-40, maybe it’s too complicated.

-Sixbears