Boating To Florida?

 A question came to me the other day about whether we have ever considered taking our current boat - or any boat for that matter - south to Florida for the winters. Given the fact that live aboard our boat for the summer months, it seemed logical to this person that we just fired up the engines when it got cold and pointed it south towards the palm trees and sandy beaches. . . Here is my reply.


Yes, we currently call 'Boogaboo IV' home from May to October and love the lifestyle. It's a bit of effort to make happen, as I still work full time in my own contracting business and have to commute daily to and from the boat. The good part of that is I get to travel mostly through country roads, so it's quite scenic. As for taking her to Florida, we have discussed that possibility, but not any time soon. Again, I have a business to run for now and being away toooooooo long, or having to commute back and forth to Ontario throughout the process is not something I would entertain at this point.

That said, we are unsure as to which way the fickle winds of fate may send us as we travel through this plane of existence. Ultimately, we would love to be able to step off the boat at the end of the season and head south for the ensuing six months until the boating season resumes the following spring and that is something I am working towards. To that end, I have just released my first, feature length travel video 'Cruising The Trent Severn Waterway'.

 One other option we toyed with was to buy a second boat to keep in Florida, but the overall costs currently make that prohibitive, but something we may revisit down the road. Despite the life of Riley that many folks may perceive from my endless postings, we are like most of the rest of the working world; car payments, a mortgage and all the rest that comes with every day living. The one major difference is that we have made a solid decision to live more on our own terms and take advantage of the good days as much as we can. With my MS diagnosis a few years ago, we learned quickly that good health is precious and not to be taken for granted. We have worked contentiously to reverse my condition and a huge part of that has been stress reduction and, like I said, living life on our terms - even if it does mean maxing out the old credit card once in awhile ;-)

 Laughing at ones' self is also paramount to a healthy life, so thanks you for recognizing that. I stopped taking myself too seriously awhile back and that helps to lighten the load, so to speak. As for the lovely deck hands you mentioned you've spotted some of in my videos, I'm not sure on their availability, apart from my own Anchor Girl. She's got her hands full with taking care of me and the MAJOR reason I am working at making our lives more fun. And that, is the funnest part for me . . .

:-)

Book Review - 'Leap of Faith, Quit Your Job And Live On A Boat'

I don't recall when I first came to hear of the book 'Leap of Faith, Quit Your Job And Live On A Boat' (Leap), by Ed Robinson, but I'm sure it was during one of those times when I was dreamily pondering our own upcoming move to the boat. I was most likely searching for stories of folks who took their own ship's south to escape the increasingly unpleasant winters we are forced to endure. . .

Cover of 'Leap of Faith - Quit Your Job & Live on a Boat'

Whatever my state of mind, it must have been that 'live on a boat' part of the title that caught my eye. Now, before we dive into Ed Robinson's tale, I should let you all in on a little something; 'Leap' represents only the fourth book I've read in my 50 years on this planet. Don't get me wrong, I actually read quite a bit, but my attention span is for more of the bite size chunks, something that I can get through in one sitting. So, to say that I actually read this book from cover to cover really speaks to the strength of the author to keep a reader like me engaged, entertained and ultimately, inspired.

Photo: Ed Robinson.

  Ed refers to himself in the book as 'the luckiest man in the world'. Quite a statement and reason enough to read on to find out why he can say that . . .

 Like many of us, he began to feel trapped in a never ending rut of going to work, coming home to bitch at the wife about the day's stresses, go to bed and start it all over again. And again. And again. As he says, it was sucking at his soul. It wasn't as if he was struggling with a lower paying job that was stressing him out, but rather that he had a management position, bouncing between babysitting staff and kissing a** with clients.

 Sounds all to familiar with my own experiences.

 Beyond  the work related stress, he found himself increasingly frustrated with the endless BS he was bombarded with in the news. Crap that seemed to be piling directly on top of him; political fighting, financial crises, American Idol and all the rest of it. There is an entire chapter on the madness of the world that we live in that is more akin to an extended rant. I found myself reading this chapter in a hyper fast way, not missing a beat - I could have wrote it myself!

You can now see how I was drawn further into his tale . . .

Photo: Ed Robinson.

  Don't worry, it's not all bad news. In fact, apart from those two segments, you'll find it increasingly uplifting as the story moves us past the virtual despair and frustration and into hatching a plan to move Ed's life forward and away from the madness. Initially, escape came in the form of the musical storytelling from the likes of Jimmy Buffet and all those great Trop-Rock singers. Songs of passing the days in hot tropical climes, palm trees and boats. I mean really, who wouldn't find escapism in a song that spoke of ice cold Corona beer and sunsets on the beach?

 Did I mention I was really getting drawn into the book?

Photo: Ed Robinson.

  Now that these visions of a new life in flip flops and Hawaiian shirts had planted themselves in his mind, the next thought was how he would make it become a reality. Naturally, any sane person would come to the conclusion that selling everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) and moving to a boat full time would be a logical course of action. . . Or not. Apart from his wife, Kim, pretty much everyone around him thought he was crazy. Perhaps not only because he didn't have a boat, but that he also had a big debt load to overcome before saying adios to his job.

 How would he move the plans for his wife and himself from a fantasy of tropical escapes to the reality of living feet up on a boat in the middle of south-west Florida? It was very simple, actually; make a firm plan, and work it with disciplined resolution to see it through. The carrot on the end of the stick would ultimately become a goal of not running Away from a world that was crushing his spirit, but rather running To a new life of utter contentment.

Photo: Ed Robinson.

 Even if chucking it all and living in the shade of palm trees isn't your speed, this book offers compelling and practical insights as to how any one of us can better our current financial standing and enjoy the freedom that being debt free allows. That said, I might offer a word of warning before you read the book yourself. You may end up being so moved by the enticing world they have discovered that you could find yourself perusing online ads for boats that could one day become your own piece of paradise :-)

Photo: Ed Robinson.

The book is available at Amazon.com - both in print and Kindle e-reader versions.

  A big thanks to Ed for being good enough to allow me to share some his beautiful photos in this review, all of which have been taken during his enjoyment as 'happiest guy in the world'.

 

 :-)

Rebound For Florida Based Boat Builders

 I recently read a very positive article from the Miami Herald regarding a significant rebound for the 172 boat builders that call Florida home. So, why is that important to the rest of us, you ask? What does Florida have to do with us located well outside of that area of the world? Well, read on. . .

Our visit to the Sea Ray plant in Palm Coast Florida, in 2011.

 

 Firstly, it marks a continuing turnaround from the ugly depths of 2008/9 when boat sales dropped off by 30% and put many builders at risk of going out of business, some of which sadly did. Both attendance, as well as the number of boats shown at the Miami & Fort Lauderdale shows are up by 6% (the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, held every year at the end of October, and is the largest boat show in THE WORLD, so that 6% says a lot!).

The Bahia Mar Marina, home of the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show (FLIBS)

 

 This is great and welcome news to everyone associated with boating. Whether one is in the market for big or small, new and even used, the increased capacity and breadth of choices can only be a good thing for the market in whole. Even for those boaters who might be looking to trade up in the years to come, but wouldn't necessarily have the resources to go new, the increased number of these currently sold boats will trickle down to the used market in the future and offer more options for this type of buyer.

The top deck of a new Sea Ray Sundancer is readied for mating with the hull. At Palm Coast Sea Ray plant.

 

 In the meantime, those employed in the industry can take advantage of this hard won turnaround. Bravo to all those who stuck it out, stayed the course and continue to provide the boats and lifestyle we all love :-)

An assortment of brand new Sea Rays and Meridians, almost ready for delivery to their new owners.

Weather, Man!

I just came across a report talking about the predictions of Florida sea levels rising as much as 60cm over the next 50 years. This prediction is being taken seriously. So serious in fact, that a local fire department currently under construction in the Florida Keys is being built well above grade to alleviate the possibility of it's being flooded in the future.

 That's some serious considerations for those living coastal areas. But what does that have to do with those of us living well inland and many hundreds of feet above sea level, you ask? Much, actually. I recall learning that, as a result of global warming, our weather will become more erratic, and rather than enjoying the normal summertime patterns of days of sun and warm being gradually replaced with rain or periodic, fast moving thunderstorms, we should expect much more rapid changes. These changes would be more severe as well, with more dramatic changes and more prolonged stormy days and nights.

Perry the Penguin enjoys a windy, albeit beautiful, sunset at Fenelon Falls

  Well, it looks like we are there. So far this summer, I have heard of 4 severe storms being forecast while boating, three of them being tornado watches or warnings! Only last night, enjoying the final hour of light aboard the boat, sitting on the flybridge, we heard squall warnings for both Georgian Bay & Lake Simcoe. Thankfully we never got the squalls on Simcoe, but there was lightning, gusts and LOTS of rain on and off for most the night.

 As I have said to Anchor Girl many times over the past couple of seasons, if we are going to keep boating, we have to get used to travelling, docking and going through the locks in the wind - something she doesn't like. Looks like we don't have a choice anymore :-(

Antique Boat Museum Founder Passes Away

 I recently learned that Robert Cox, co-founder of the renowned Antique Boat Museum (ABM) in Clayton, New York has passed away at the age of 95.

Photo: Antique Boat Museum

 Although I am not an antique boat enthusiast, per se, I do have a lot of respect for those amongst the boating crowd who have the passion and commitment to keep those old boats afloat and protect the history of early boating. Many famous builds of the day came from this area of the world (central Ontario, New York and Michigan) and part of that heritage can be discovered the ABM.

 But the ABM is only a small part of Mr. Cox's story. He also started a Marina in Fort Lauderdale, aptly named Lauderdale Marina, in 1946 - something that forms part of the very history of the city of Fort Lauderdale.

 The property that is now the marina was an old, top secret base used by the American navy during world war two for testing torpedoes and such. Mr. Cox acquired the dilapidated docks and began selling fuel in what what was then a very remote part of Florida. So remote, in fact, that passing boaters actually asked 'how far to Fort Lauderdale' upon their arrival. For anyone familiar with the what the current part of Lauderdale looks like down at the 17th Street Bridge, there are some fascinating old photos to compare with on the marina's web site, as well as their Facebook Page.

 One other interesting pieces of Mr. Cox's life is that he was very active on the political scene in Fort Lauderdale from the 1960's through to the nineties, serving as it's mayor from 1986 to 1991. He is credited as one of the main driving forces that transformed the city into what is now known as the mega yacht capital of the world. No small feat!

Sea Ray Plant Tour - Palm Coast, Florida

 At long last, I'm finally gonna post some photos & video from our tour of the Palm Coast Sea Ray manufacturing plant we took back in February when we were in Florida. When we were in Florida?!?!? The Sea Ray plant tour was the whole inspiration for the trip to begin with - I kid you not!

 So, Mr. Harbour Master, here are the photos you requested.

  Told you I was there;

This was so cool, the folks at the plant knew we were coming & had this welcome ready for us - that's 'Commodore Frankie & Anchor Girl', in case you can't read it through the Florida sunshine glare;

It was neat to see how all the components of the inside were put in place before the upper deck was installed;

Here we see the interior walls being put together. I was impressed to see that they built all the cabinetry and did all the upholstery right on site. I always figured they would bring those components in from outside suppliers.
No, I wasn't taking notes, just listening;

The engine bay with all the systems in place for a big Sundancer;

Here's the upper deck section ready to be 'married' to the hull in the previous picture;

A finished Sundancer, ready for final rigging;

This is  Shawn Wilson, who was good enough to take us on a 1-1/2 tour of the ENTIRE plant. He is the guy to contact at Sea Ray for any technical support or insights, as he has been working with them for 25 years in the manufacturing side and can come up with part numbers by wrote & has an encyclopedic recall of the boats, hulls, engines and parts right down to special clips that hold down trim!
 In this shot, Shawn was just looking back to make sure I wasn't taking any spy photos of hull #1 of the newest 450 Sedan Bridge (the current designation for our Boogaboo boat)  before it reached the market;

This is the final station before the boats go in the water, where the boats are gone over by white clad specialists who make sure there are no scratches or other blemishes - including touching up the bottom coat paint.
 Again, I was very impressed with the attention to detail and quality put into a mass production boat. I guess that's one reason that Sea Ray was able to weather the economic melt down in the US boating market, as well the support of long term, die hard Sea Ray owners like my wife ;-)

 The last part of the process is an in water test of EVERY boat that they produce, complete with a Mercruiser technician dialing in the power plants. After that, it's a shake down cruise on Florida's Intracoastal (NOT 'Inter-Coastal) Waterway to  make sure everything is ship-shape.
 And yes, they actually pay people to do this kind of thing. Did I mention this is in Florida??