I will be splashing on the Intracoastal near Fort Myers on Saturday... This will be my third winter in the area along with 50+ years on the Great Lakes...  Let me comment that if I have any vessel, either passing or overtaking, during this trip sound a horn/whistle to indicate intentions it will be a first in a long time  - and I likely will faint from sheer novelty of it...  I have not heard a peep from any of the go-fasts ripping past me, in either direction...  When I bought this tug 3 years ago we relocated from our yacht club on Tawas Bay (sailboats only and they do NOT blow horns)  and berthed her at a marina on Lake Huron where I kept boats 30+ years before...  The marina was both familiar and an alien vista...  30 years ago I was the new kid in the marina and the older boaters were happy, even eager, to share their knowledge of the rules of the sea...  Horn usage, right of way, displaying the colors, having wooden plugs for your thruhulls, and many other bits of wisdom were avidly discussed over the picnic tables along the docks..  So anyway here we are, the first day sail on the brand new tug; I'm starting to back out of the slip and I sound 3 short blasts...  Within seconds there are people peering at me from their Bay Liners and Sea Rays and shortly the radio crackles to life... It is the harbor master (marina manager) asking me what the problem is???  When we got back to the dock I had several people (I won't call them sailors) come up and say they don't appreciate the NOISE...   A few more episodes of people (not sailors) getting their undies in a wedgie over what I understand to be following the Colregs (and tradition) and I went to stealth boating - no horns, no colors, and silently steal away...  From what I observed that summer, what I am supposed to do is rev the engine up good and loud for ten seconds to make sure it is "warm" - and the bellowing exhaust is the proper signal that I am going in reverse... Then throw it in reverse, toss my empty beer can towards the cabin, where it bounces around with a clatter, while loudly calling down, "hey, need a cold one up here!"...It is clear that I don't have what it takes, anymore... denny -o Ranger Tug R25 ________________________________

How right you are. It is a sad but all too true commentary on the majority of boaters one meets these days. By the way, you know what a boater is, don't you? Do you remember the flat straw hats worn back in the 1920's? Boater: an empty straw hat with no brain in it. Captain Steve ----- Original Message ----- From: "Dennis OConnor" <ad4hk2004@yahoo.com> To: <great-loop@lists.trawlering.com> Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2012 8:08 AM Subject: Re: GL: 4 Whistle / Horn Signal I will be splashing on the Intracoastal near Fort Myers on Saturday... This will be my third winter in the area along with 50+ years on the Great Lakes... Let me comment that if I have any vessel, either passing or overtaking, during this trip sound a horn/whistle to indicate intentions it will be a first in a long time - and I likely will faint from sheer novelty of it... I have not heard a peep from any of the go-fasts ripping past me, in either direction... When I bought this tug 3 years ago we relocated from our yacht club on Tawas Bay (sailboats only and they do NOT blow horns) and berthed her at a marina on Lake Huron where I kept boats 30+ years before... The marina was both familiar and an alien vista... 30 years ago I was the new kid in the marina and the older boaters were happy, even eager, to share their knowledge of the rules of the sea... Horn usage, right of way, displaying the colors, having wooden plugs for your thruhulls, and many other bits of wisdom were avidly discussed over the picnic tables along the docks.. So anyway here we are, the first day sail on the brand new tug; I'm starting to back out of the slip and I sound 3 short blasts... Within seconds there are people peering at me from their Bay Liners and Sea Rays and shortly the radio crackles to life... It is the harbor master (marina manager) asking me what the problem is??? When we got back to the dock I had several people (I won't call them sailors) come up and say they don't appreciate the NOISE... A few more episodes of people (not sailors) getting their undies in a wedgie over what I understand to be following the Colregs (and tradition) and I went to stealth boating - no horns, no colors, and silently steal away... >From what I observed that summer, what I am supposed to do is rev the engine up good and loud for ten seconds to make sure it is "warm" - and the bellowing exhaust is the proper signal that I am going in reverse... Then throw it in reverse, toss my empty beer can towards the cabin, where it bounces around with a clatter, while loudly calling down, "hey, need a cold one up here!"...It is clear that I don't have what it takes, anymore... denny -o Ranger Tug R25 ________________________________ _______________________________________________ http://lists.trawlering.com/mailman/listinfo/great-loop_lists.trawlering.com To modify your Great-Loop subscription options (change email address, unsubscribe, etc.) go to: http://lists.trawlering.com/mailman/options/great-loop_lists.trawlering.com

Well  Denny-O welcome to the new breed of boaters. If you haven't tried it yet spend some time in the ICW in South East Florida. Around Fort Lauderdale and N. Miami. If one does not understand the meaning of the word "seiche" you will not only expand your vocabulary, you will have a boating experience you will not forget. Especially if you make the run on a Saturday afternoon Tom B.