a big leap...

"Ninety percent of everything is crap"

                                                                                                  -Theodore Sturgeon

Back when I had the great good fortune to actually meet Theodore Sturgeon and get to talk with him on a semi-regular basis I considered Sturgeon's Law to be somewhat cynical. Now, almost fifty years later I've come to the conclusion that Mr Sturgeon was actually something of an optimist.

I mention this especially where boat advice and wisdom is concerned as far too much is inclined to the crap end of the scale.

Whether it’s advice on boats, advice on cruising grounds, or the best color to paint your boat, it’s more than likely going to be excremental.

If you want to get terrible results, just ask around for information and advice on budgets where boats and cruising are concerned. It’s fun when the Crap-O-Meter pegs out. 

The big problem is where budgets and frugality cross over into the boat zone. For successful refitting, building, or cruising a boat on a budget, you need to up your game. A task that involves a different head-space and rely on your own critical thinking.

Almost all the advice that’s someone’s volunteered for my various boat builds has been just plain wrong. Taking said advice, I would have been doing stuff ass-backwards at a cost that I could not afford.

However, I sought advice from folks who knew what they were doing and walked their talk. Vetting people’s knowledge and experience takes time and is more difficult than just getting on a forum and asking a question, albeit very worthwhile. Many experts inhabiting forums are of the all hat/no cattle ilk and guaranteed to cause problems.

The downside for many is that being responsible and accepting that the buck stops with you can be problematic, as our modern society does not promote doing your own thing or swimming upstream.

Doing your own research can be rewarding. As far as finding stuff you need to know is so much easier than in the dark ages when I built the first Loose Moose. Today, if I wanted to build another Loose Moose, the task would be so much easier, as the needful information is available. Even having to sift out all the incorrect information you’ll find on the net, it’s easy once you get the hang of it.

Next up, we’ll look at a couple of problems that need solving and see how you, Dear Reader, will solve them…