Well, John, I am sorry that you are dissapointed.  I can assure you that if my physical and personal situation (elderly ill parent) were other wise, I would not be on this list--and would be doing what I really love.  That is voyaging.

You have the experience of a number who have done voyages and they give what information they can.  On the other hand, those who are voyaging will most likely not contribute to such a list.  When I was voyaging I didn't have time to post on lists and was totally absorbed in the passages, reading about the places we were going to visit, seaking information on the Ham radio and fixing things that broke, as well as navigation and sleeping.

The problem with SSCA (and I was a member for over 30 years, including a hitch on the board of directors) is that information in the bulletin is at least 6 months old.  It is edited by people who have absolutely no sailing or voyaging experience and SSCA is a bifold organization;  Those in the minority who are actually cruising and the people who live in the Fort Lauderdale area and want to "control" SSCA.  SSCA is not power boat friendly.
I cannot speak for today, but for years they were selling "guides" which were way out of date. SSCA always has a membership crisis--and it is more acute currently than it has been in a number of years.  They could serve an exellent function, but have not kept up with the times.  This would include involving power voyagers, having a moderated active forum for questions and answers (I started the SSCA Web site along with Jay Stormer, and the initial goals were not followed thru)

If you want the most recent port or local informaton, the ham radio or SSB nets are still your best shots.  To my knowlege there is no other board which deals with power boat long range cruising. So it is what we--those who are subscribed, put into it.

Take care,

Bob Austin

Hi, Bob,

I'm not disappointed by the knowledgeable answers I get here. I'm
grateful that you and others are here and sharing your experiences. But,
no one is expert in all areas, and the membership thus far doesn't seem
to have the kind of detailed info I'm looking for on paravanes. Hence
the disappointment.

Re: SSCA, I understand completely, but I also am aware of the rift
between power and sail. I have been a SSCA member for ten years or so,
and I find that the cruising info is very timely (once a month) and not
at all out-of date, thanks to email. There are many cruisers who have
gone to "new" places like Ecuador, encouraged and assisted by the
writings of those who have gone before, sometimes the first cruisers to
do so, and these folks do the updates. Another good benefit is the
worldwide cruising stations. And, membership is no longer limited to
sailboat owners. I don't pay attention to the politics, an inevitable
problem with all organizations.

There just isn't better, more detailed information available than that
from the people who are out there doing it, and let's face it, the
number of blow-boaters far outweighs the trawlers. Wannabe trawler
PUPsters would be foolish to overlook this resource, especially for
those wanting to cruise foreign. You'll find the vast majority of US
circumnavigators are SSCAers, many of whom "wrote the books" we've all
read, such as the Hiscocks, Pardeys, Eric Forsyth, Beth Leonard, Dashews
and many others.

Of course you are right about the HAM and SSB nets. They are fine while
underway and upon approach, but are of little use in passage planning as
they are usually limited to boats underway.

John
"Seahorse"

Bob Austin writes:

Well, John, I am sorry that you are dissapointed.  I can assure you that
if
my physical and personal situation (elderly ill parent) were other wise,
I
would not be on this list--and would be doing what I really love.  That
is
voyaging.

You have the experience of a number who have done voyages and they give
what
information they can.  On the other hand, those who are voyaging will
most
likely not contribute to such a list.  When I was voyaging I didn't have
time to post on lists and was totally absorbed in the passages, reading
about the places we were going to visit, seaking information on the Ham
radio and fixing things that broke, as well as navigation and sleeping.

The problem with SSCA (and I was a member for over 30 years, including a
hitch on the board of directors) is that information in the bulletin is
at
least 6 months old.  It is edited by people who have absolutely no
sailing
or voyaging experience and SSCA is a bifold organization;  Those in the
minority who are actually cruising and the people who live in the Fort
Lauderdale area and want to "control" SSCA.  SSCA is not power boat
friendly.
I cannot speak for today, but for years they were selling "guides" which
were way out of date. SSCA always has a membership crisis--and it is
more
acute currently than it has been in a number of years.  They could serve
an
exellent function, but have not kept up with the times.  This would
include
involving power voyagers, having a moderated active forum for questions
and
answers (I started the SSCA Web site along with Jay Stormer, and the
initial
goals were not followed thru)

If you want the most recent port or local informaton, the ham radio or
SSB
nets are still your best shots.  To my knowlege there is no other board
which deals with power boat long range cruising. So it is what we--those
who
are subscribed, put into it.

Take care,

Bob Austin