PFD - Stearn Sospenders Auto Inflate With Harness

[Val sporting the Sterns Sospenders AutoInflate PFD with Harness]

Based on our research, the Sterns Sospenders became our Personal Flotation Device (PFD) of choice. The easy pick would have been Mustang, but after reading lots of reviews, we decided that the Sospenders would fit the bill perfectly. These are in addition to our standard, old school orange, manual PFDs.

Prices on the Internet for these particular PFDs are $179.97, but we sourced them in Savannah at a store called River Supply for $161. Plus, because of the recommendation and affiliation of our marina with River Supply, River Supply knocked off another 10 bucks per PFD! Thank you Mr. Long at Sail Harbor Marina AND Pat at River Supply.

Val and I wore these PFDs every time we were underway (our family rule), and we both forgot we were wearing them! We didn't test out the auto inflation feature (triggered when submerged and powered by a CO2 cartridge), but Val did try out the manual inflation and they both worked just fine.

Oh, River Supply's web site is atrocious. If you want something, call them (1-800-673-9391, ask for Pat and tell him that the Sailboat Family sent you!).

Vaccinations Needed For A Trip Around The World

The world is full of diseases. In the USA, as in most developed nations, the common population eliminators such as Yellow Fever and Typhoid are no longer an issue. However, our family isn't staying in the United States, we are adventuring abroad ... into places that haven't yet wrestled down these killers. So, what do we do?

Please keep in mind that we are not physicians or experts on vaccinations. We are simply sharing what we've learned about vaccinations and our current strategy. If you are considering a trip around the world, you should seek expert advice before you make your decision.

At a recent wellness check up for our girls, Val talked with their pediatrician about what vaccinations we should get. Our girl's doctor has been aware of our trip for 3 years now, so she wasn't surprised when Val asked. After their dialog, plus lots of research, we've decided that we should all get vaccinations beyond the normal childhood ones.

The first major vaccination we will get is for Yellow Fever. KJ, Dy, and Val will receive this in the next few months. Fortunately, I've already had this one due to my worldly travels. To help stem the spread of this killer, some countries, many in South America and Sub-Saharan Africa, require proof that you've had this immunization.

The second major vaccination that we've decided to go forward with is for Rabies. This treatment doesn't really stop you from being infected, but it does increase the time needed between getting Rabies and being treated for it. Given that we will be in some very small towns way out from major civilization centers, it is prudent to go forward with this.

The final major vaccination we will be taking care of is for Typhoid. This one, however, we are going to delay as long as possible. We've agreed that when we enter the Pacific, we will begin taking the Typhoid pills. Vaccinations are tough enough on a grown body, but little maturing ones can be risky. The odds of having a deleterious effect from this particular vaccination seems to go down as physical size and bodily maturity increases.

An often over looked part of getting vaccinations is that many of them require multiple treatments over months of time. This has to be baked into any trip being planned. We've backed into a departure date of December 2010 the vaccinations visits we need.

Vaccinations of kids is a turbulent subject. In our family, given the potential exposures we will have, we've decided to go forward with a few more.

Merry Christmas! You have 2000 lbs!

Merry Christmas!

Yesterday's post was about the load capacity issue. While we search out the exact number, we will use our comfortable/reasonable guestimate of 2,000 lbs load capacity.... about the same as Santa's sleigh.

What does 2,000 lbs allow us to have?

Here are some numbers to share to help figure this out:

100 U.S. Gallons of Water = 833 lbs

4 of us (Bill, Val, KJ, Dy) = 440 lbs

3 Laptops = 16 lbs

Extra Anchors and Chain = 250 lbs

Extra Rode/Rope = 50 lbs

3 Months of Food = 250 lbs

Well that's about it! No more stuff. Scary because we have a number of other things we want to bring (like an extra mainsail). Maybe we will find the actual load capacity and find that it is more than 2,000 lbs!

Load / Carrying Capacity on the Gemini 3200

One of the areas we have to always be cognizant of is how much stuff we put on the boat. With a catamaran, and all of its space, it is very easy to over load it.... that is, put too much stuff in it.

Each boat designed has an amount of weight that they are comfortable carrying and if you go beyond it, you risk disturbing the safe operating parameters of the boat making for a dangerous situation.

We've been searching the internet, our owners manuals, and assorted magazines for the actual carrying capacity of our boat. Our boat is a Gemini 3200 and so far we've not been able to find out for sure how much we can safely carry.

What we've been able to find out is that a similar model, from the same manufacturer, the Gemini 105Mc, has a carrying capacity of 3,600 lbs. We've also found references to the fact that the Gemini 105Mc has a "much improved carrying capacity." But how much does "much improved" come out to?

We don't mind taking calculated risks. We would, for example, be:

1. very comfortable assuming that our boat has at least 1,000 lbs carrying capacity
2. comfortable assuming that our boat has at least 2,000 lbs carrying capacity
3. not real comfortable that our boat has at least 3,000 lbs carrying capacity

Until we can find out for sure what we can carry, we will assume that we can carry 2,000 lbs safely on the boat. We will use the 2,000 lbs figure for our packing ceiling.

Honda Generator EU2000ia

After much deliberation, we've made the decision to add a small generator to our list of items to be brought on the journey. We wanted to avoid adding one if at all possible; simplicity is key for self reliance. Alas, we acknowledge that there will be times that we need power generation and when those moments strike, we could be in a critical situation.

After evaluating a lot of options, we've decided on Honda's EU2000ia generator. The specifications, the simplicity of operation, the reliability Honda is known for, and its demonstrated efficiency made it an easy pick. We've seen them in action and they do a remarkable job. 15 hours of generation on 1 gallon of gasoline is pretty good (under heavy load you can still make 8 hours.... a full day!)

By selecting a true portable generator, we have the option of taking it off the boat if we need to. You never know when you want to go ashore on a desert island and want some power! ;) Or, you could be trying to escape from a hurricane and must go ashore where power may be suspect. Either way, we will be glad we have a source of power for things like radios.

Redundancy

Does your family own two vehicles? Do you own more than one computer?

Redundancies. On a self contained boat, redundancies are very important. When you are out at sea with no land in sight and your sails have been riped to shreds by a squall, you will be glad that you have an engine or extra sails. What if the engine wouldn't start? Without another system of propulsion you would be at the mercy of the ocean.

Redundant systems are good, but it is more important to have non-integrated multi methods of accomplishing a task. That way if one of the methods is destroyed or not functional, we will still have another. Examples of other systems that we have that have non-integrated multi methods are water, power, and navigation.

On the boat we need the redundant systems, because most of the time we will be somewhere were we will be the only repair shop for a 100 miles.

Don't swim at a marina - Electrocution Hazard

Now that we are officially boat owners and we have a boat at a marina, we spent a Saturday a few weeks ago at the dock doing an inventory of the items on board AND swimming off the back of the boat like other folks in the marina. We had a great day and learned more about our boat.

The very next morning, while surfing my usual nautical sites, I read a post about the dangers of marinas and electrocutions! At marinas that provide shore supplied power to boats, there is a real risk of electrical current running in and around the marina in the water. The issue is that not all boats do a good job of keeping their current only in/on their boat and many boat owners don't know they are leaking electricity. Meanwhile, the marina power supply posts continue to happily pump out as much current as is being requested.

There are ways to check to see if there is electrical current in the water (basically, attaching one lead of a a voltohm meter to the power supply post and the other in the water looking to see if there is current).

There have been a number of deaths attributed to this risk, including a 9 year old boy of a boating safety instructor.

One would imagine, with the conductive properties of salt water, that the risk is even greater in a salt water marina.

The advice I read about this issue is, if you are in the water at a marina and you feel a tingle, back away slowly (don't turn and bolt, that will disturb the current flow and could potentially make it worse). The best advice, of course, is to simply not swim in a marina. We will no longer do this.

Remember, you may feel good about your boat, but who knows about the other boats? Simply don't swim in a marina.