AHoy

Ground baiting with coffee dregs - bound to get more than one PBSBAC vessel close with that. A new nautical term "coffee rafting"? Will keep an eye/ear out for you both. AHoy.

I have one of the "standard" small power boat policies (can't recall underwriters at present) administered via Saga. They were adamant that only boats with a hull length 23 ft or more could be covered beyond 12NM. Perhaps (Saga hat on) they think in the event of engine failure I wouldn't be able to row back from more than 12 miles - age and weary muscles etc. Policy seems identical to offerings from other brokers, except that my excess was much lower with Saga and there were no exclusions on underwater gear. I will see what options on area are available when I renew.

I do indeed, but my insurance cover limits me to a max of 12NM offshore and they are not willing to extend cover. Looks like the Rips will have to wait.

I hope to be out with "Marsel" and crew for a while tomorrow, can someone PM me with the location as I don't recognize "the Rips", we might be able to act as a part-time buddy boat. Maybe catch some fish as well. AHoy

Confirmed - and most are either sun-dried, salted or both

I know the approx location but have not been to this venue before, is parking available or is it on-street? Also any life-support facilities available e.g. bar food/refreshments maybe a selection by the fish chefs in the club, old bait or w.h.y. ? Alan.

That cheered me up Reg . I'm in the "old dog new tricks" phase and can't pass myself off as my sons older brother anymore, not until he gets some grey hair anyway Decided 27 years old was a good phase so mentally remaining there.

Flushed with my (moderate) success in catching fish i.e two trips without blanking, I am in the process of buying my own tackle rather than using loaned kit. I have spent umpteen hours on the web checking rod and reel manufacturers blurb, comparing prices and reading the collective "wisdom" from many sites. Result - not much the wiser what to go for as every model is alternatively the best or total cr@p according to the contributors. Also it seems to be a fashion/mines the latest race with new models every few months and I can't believe the technology is moving that fast Knowing that the esteemed members of this club are real rather than armchair anglers and don't have any supplier bias I need your help in getting to a short list of tackle. Cost is a factor but I would prefer to buy items that will last and not disappoint as my skill improves. Good used items seem to be in short supply (all you hoarders) so established or end-of-line models would seem favourite. I don't see myself doing any serious big fish/wrecking sorties for some time, but for the rest I am still optimistic. What I think I need for starters is: 1 or 2 downtide rods plus multiplier reels (level wind probably) - totally confused on what weight/sensitivity and line strength 1 uptide rod (or dual purpose rod) plus reel (multiplier?) - not a clue, but I had some success with borrowed ones. Rods need to be a manageable length when not in use to avoid stowage and carrying damage i.e. a 10ft 6in one piece wouldn't suit. I do have a Shakespeare Summit 2909 reel with 25lb mono line which I will probably pair with one of the downtide rods (or not) depending on advice. I have not tried braid yet, should I stick with mono for now on the downtiders? Some of the big suppliers are doing rod/reel combo offers - any that I should go for or will mix and match be better long term? If the price difference isn't too great then I would be happy to support a local supplier, but only if there is genuine choice and support. Anticipating your recommendations - and lack of confusion. Alan.

You cooking a sunday roast or are you just showing off ...... Me using the skillet is likely to get a better result than me with a BBQ on the boat Boats should have funnels if they carry BBQs, and asbestos dinghy bottoms cause the dinghy always ends up under the barbie at some stage (from watching other floating practitioners of the charcoal art)

I was commenting about on-boat cooking facilities on another forum and thought my response might also be useful here, apologies if its "old hat" to the more experienced users found on this forum For the single burner galley get the old fashioned but versatile "double skillet" do-it-all utensil. Frying pan, steamer, roasting oven, toaster, w.h.y. and economical on the fuel as well. Look here: http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/articles/view.asp?id=116 No commercial contact with suppliers, but commenting as a satisfied user both camping and boating. Handy for rapid processing of a good catch!

Warning: long rambling post. Discounting an earlier intro of a trip out, when I maintained my

Mike, Fit the tube reflector vertically, then switch the boat stabilisers on to limit the heel to less than 1 deg - sorted. And just keep the boat yawing by 30 deg to move the horizontal nulls around (should be easy with the steering response of a MF ). As per other members, I had short listed the tri-lobe reflectors as being the best of a not very effective selection but will hold off on any purchase and see what the market comes up with as a response to the MAIB report. The new standard requires performance in excess of all bar 2 of the tested reflectors and the cost of those two leaves plenty of scope for some price conscious alternatives. Alan.

Just some feedback, I was talking to a former member recently who didn't renew last year because he no longer had regular internet access. He felt unable to keep in touch with club activities as the newsletter and other info was only available online or via the forum, also he lives away from the Poole area so had difficulties attending club nights. He was complimentary about the club and may well rejoin in the future.

Mike, Duncan, Thanks for the tips. I hope to be away under the bridge before the rush tomorrow. Thinking I should have borrowed a radar from the clubnight demo, for finding my way back through the predicted BBQ smoke and short trip cold diesel motors.

Looks like I have been "enabled" since this morning. Thanks Admin, I wasn't expecting such prompt action.

I often get told where to go - this time I am hoping for an angling variation ... As the club novice (nil catches) I thought I would try for a PB this Saturday i.e. anything worth recording and/or cooking. I can't access the club's info on marks yet, waiting for my user upgrade, so would appreciate if someone could give some general recommendations or specific marks - by PM if confidential My optimistic crew member has suggested going West, but all options considered. Alan.

While you are at it consider getting a separate marine VHF Portable licence as an alternative to registering it with the boat radio licence. Useful if you use the portable on other boats as you will still be "legal" plus have a distinct call sign for distinguishing the radio during emergency use.

There was quite a bit of comment on the WSF forum about beach anglers leaving unused bait and other rubbish on beach and other public areas - doesn't seem that uncommon.

From the BBC news website on 20/04/07 "The amount of litter on Britain's beaches has increased by more than 90% since 1994, says an annual survey. The Marine Conservation Society's (MCS) Beachwatch survey of 358 areas found an average of two items of litter for each metre (3.3ft) of beach. Individuals are the worst offenders, either for direct litter-dropping or wrongly flushing items, such as cotton buds, that end up on beaches. Fishing debris was another key source, accounting for about 11% of litter." Possible "official" response (seed of an opportunity): maybe there should be some way of raising revenue from the guilty parties to pay for the clear-up - how about licencing

Most (many?) GPS and plotter units have the ability to display speed in mph. knots or Kph saving the underway calculations - if you have one with you. As an easy rule of thumb a knot is 1 and 1/8 mph (not as accurate as 1.15 mph but easier to do on the move).

The Ouzo incident provides sombre reading and irrespective of any official recommendations should prompt us to check our plans for such circumstances. Having experienced a cross-channel ferry bearing down on me at speed whilst I was under sail made me realize the limited time and options available on a small craft to deal with such a position. In my opinion once there is a risk of collision the highest priority must be establishing contact with the approaching (and possibly unknown) vessel. For this there is a lot to be said for visual communication with the prompt use of warning flares (day or night) to make your presence more obvious - prompt would mean having suitable flares ready to hand at all times. With the availability of VHF radio then a call on the inter-ship navigation safety channel (CH.13 bridge-to-bridge) would probably be more appropriate than using CH.16. If you have an AIS receiver/display then identification of the other vessel allows VHF calling to be specific. None of this applies, of course, without a good watch being kept as the situation develops rapidly with our typical 3 mile horizon and maybe 20 knot speeds involved. Having been involved in coastal surveillance radar trials I would never assume that small boats such as ours were visible on radar, even with reflectors fitted, once the sea state was more than slight. The radar reflector evaluations and recommendations will make interesting reading when published in May.

Thanks for the encouragement and offers of assistance. Arranging to get some "initial guidance" from a club member soon about equipment, technique ... and fish! Later maybe find someone willing to join me as tutor and crew and possibly buddy up with other boats on some trips. That only leaves work/weather/domestics to sort - must be some expert club advice on that

Hi all. I have been lurking in the background for a few months gathering valuable information and wondering if it was right for me to join the forum and club with my combination of novice angling status and "mature years". Club member Clive put me at ease on that and here I am For the record I have been around boats since "I were a lad", my father being a coaster skipper on the south coast in the '60s and '70s. I subsequently got into sailing, getting my Yachtmaster cert in 1976 - when trailing logs, flags and morse-by-light were part of the syllabus and VHF DF the height of technology After several years away from boats my son got me back into boating via the sports powerboat route and the "pleasures" of boat ownership and dreams of idyllic angling trips recently got the better of me. A bit of updating with Powerboat level 2 and VHF DSC courses last year has got rid of most of the cobwebs and the fast motor boat experience is building - soon be time to add the angling complications. Although I used to live and work in the Poole/Wimborne area for some years most of my boating has been Solent based, so I am spending time getting to know the harbour and local waters better. Any comments and advice from experienced club members more than welcome. As far as angling goes, I have not caught a fish by rod and line - ever! Plenty of mackerel when spinning off the back of a sailboat but that is it. Lots to learn then. For general singlehanded/family boating activities and the planned fishing action I eventually decided on a Quicksilver 640 Pilothouse, which I keep moored at Cobbs Quay (another F Pontoon resident). Looking forward to meeting some of you in the near future and also to catching that first fish - automatically a record for me If anyone got this far - apologies for the long intro! Alan.