Golly, Georgs, I'm sorry you misinterpreted what I wrote as derision. Let me say that none was intended. I'l admit that I perceive Idlewild's journey as a stunt, and I may poke a bit of fun now and then, but I mean no offense to anyone. I was merely stating my opinion regarding passagemaking vs record-attempts. Surely, Done Dreamin's crew are enjoying a very different experience of life at sea than is Idlewild's. So, let's call a spade a spade. George Buehler calls Idlewild a "power cruiser;" while Ben Gray calls her a "powerboat." I don't think that Idlewild is a trawler-yacht, nor is she what any typical sailor would choose as a passagemaker. Idlewild is a purpose-built record-setter, incorporating many compromises in order to achieve her purpose. In seas such as Ben has reported encountering, these guys are getting tossed around like sardines in a half-empty can. If you want to call that "having the time of their lives," I guess you'd be right! Regarding your request for contribution to the list, I did post a small snippet following my most recent passage. I guess you missed that. Thankfully, because I have a capable, comfortable passagemaker, I didn't have much to report, other than some metrics. I don't make many passages these days, but I do have opinions based on what experience I have, and what I wrote was a small effort to share some of that. Here's another bit I have to share: Seahorse's main engine is bolted solidly to the bedrails so as to eliminate problems caused by engine mounts. Regards, John "Seahorse" Skookum 53 Passagemaker Georgs writes: John of Seahorse wrote: >Best of luck to Ben and crew in setting a new record. But, what will it >represent? Robert Beebe would be aghast at Idlewild's punishing journey, which >runs counter to what he pioneered - *comfortable* passagemaking. Ben Gray and his two sons aboard Idlewild are having the time of their lives on a circumnavigation that the father has dreamed about for many years. If they set a record, it will represent just that, a record, a new level of achievement that will inspire others to follow their own dreams. Why deride their efforts just because their voyage doesn't come up to your standards of comfort? Instead, why not post accounts of your own passages to add to out collective wisdom about passagemaking under power? --Georgs -- Georgs Kolesnikovs Your host at Trawlers & Trawlering, formerly Trawler World, since 1997