Boat Maintenance Bootcamp

RichH · Mar 10, 2011

Good idea but youll be in competition of all the written works by the ever famous Don Casey, the worlds 'guru' of boat maintenance writings/books.

jdratlif · Mar 10, 2011

Not if the course was affiliated with Don Casey and his books were used as course material. That's how college professors make even more money. They write a book for the class they are teaching, then require that book for the class.

The idea of an intensive boat maintenance course is a good one

PotomacDaysailer · Mar 10, 2011

It would make a good sailing school offering - maybe have an ASA course number attached.

Phil Herring · Mar 10, 2011

I think it's a great idea. Not everyone learns well from books, some people much prefer hands-on courses. for example, look at all the seminars that exist on topics well covered in books.

The sponsor could book a chunk of space at a yard in a large or popular port, book a block or rooms, have a few "staff" on hand, and build a course around the projects people want to accomplish at the camp. After hours you'd hang with a bunch of other owners, drink too much, and swap lies. I'll bet it would it wouldn't cost much more than having the work done by a mechanic and would be one heck of a lot more fun.

Maine Sail, you following this thread?

CalebD · Mar 10, 2011

Phil Herring said:
...snip...

Maine Sail, you following this thread?

That cracks me up! I was thinking the same thing.
"MaineSail's Boat Maintenance Bootcamp" with assistance from SailingDog in the galley.
All the kim-chee you can eat plus you get your fingernails dirty and learn about ABYC standards.

Maine Sail · Mar 10, 2011

Phil Herring said:
I think it's a great idea. Not everyone learns well from books, some people much prefer hands-on courses. for example, look at all the seminars that exist on topics well covered in books.

The sponsor could book a chunk of space at a yard in a large or popular port, book a block or rooms, have a few "staff" on hand, and build a course around the projects people want to accomplish at the camp. After hours you'd hang with a bunch of other owners, drink too much, and swap lies. I'll bet it would it wouldn't cost much more than having the work done by a mechanic and would be one heck of a lot more fun.

Maine Sail, you following this thread?

It's pretty funny that you and I were just talking about "educational offerings" the other day.

I'll keep working on it!!

JK_Boston_Catalina310 · Mar 10, 2011

Already have them (kind of)

At the Boston (sorry New England) Boat Show a couple of weeks ago I took an 1.5 hour seminar on diesel engine maintenance. The company that put it on has a 3 day class you can go to that includes one day of class time and 2 days of hands on time.

tommays · Mar 10, 2011

We had a massive program 1000 hours over two years which is pretty gutted now compared to what it was and likely to get worse given the state budget

I went back for a sterndrive update it was a bit of a problem when it was 1/2 the classes first time doing any kind of repiar and kind of sad to see so much of the shop sold off in budget cutbacks

Its not cheep even a limited night class is 250 dollars

Ron20324 · Mar 10, 2011

Need some class time?

The Chesapeake Bay (MD) club I'm in (www.SinglesonSailboats.org) has an annual event, "Spring Training", coming up March 19th. March 11 is the last day to sign up on line. We get 9 classrooms at an Annapolis-area high school, and have 4 periods during the day. That nets 36 classes taught by our members and outsiders from the various sailing companies in the area. Breakfast and lunch and door prizes included for $55 for non-members. Though we can have 300 students, the event is always sold out.

We have 600-700 members in states nearby and a few around the country. We do daysails, weekends, a 10-day extended (any of which costs 15 dollars a day for members) plus we bareboat charter around the world.

Steve Dion · Mar 10, 2011

Mack Boring and some of the other distributors have offered these types of classes in the past. You should check with the master distributors in your area for some classes regarding the engines/transmissions.

Deadline · Mar 10, 2011

Even closer...

...to Colonial Beach is Gloucester Point where I teach a one-day maintenance class for the nonprofit Williamsburg Area Learning Tree. Still closer to you is Deltaville, where Craig Belcher of Norton Yachts teaches a Yanmar class twice a year.

catsailor · Mar 10, 2011

I learned the hard way (years, boats, and many years of chemical plant engineering practice, but...

I wonder if getting a good boat maintenance technician to spend ~ 1 week working with a class of 5 guys (gals) on 5 boats wouldn't be an ad hoc way to accomplish this. It is probable that each boat would have different problem areas (rigging, paint, engine, plumbing, electrical), so as a group 5 boat would get some TLC and all would see a variety of projects begun.

Warren Milberg · Mar 10, 2011

Here is a thread from 1/21/04 that applies.....

http://forums.sbo.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=45535

jfmid · Mar 10, 2011

Where do I send my deposit for the first class????
This would be amazing IMHO!! I'm a beginner and would love to learn from the "pros" who do this regularly.
There is so much to learn and it doesn't always go smoothly. Usually it's learning on the fly making mistakes and then having to undo them to fix it correctly which doubles the time and expense. Repairs become doubly stressful when there are safety issues involved and the potential for risking peoples lives if work is done incorrectly.
The OP nailed it as far as topics go but I'm sure that many could be added.

Maine Sail · Mar 10, 2011

What would you guys think about Webinars? I do a lot of them with the ABYC and they are great. I've have done quite a few of them with the likes of Ed Sherman, Steve D'antonio & David Rifkin among others. Well worth the price and these guys don't give them away.

kenn · Mar 10, 2011

The mechanic I worked for last year puts on all-day engine seminars on Saturdays starting in February, til launch time (end of April). Each seminar is usually based around a given manufacturer: one Saturday it will be Westerbeke, one is Yanmar, one is Volvo, one is Atomic 4, etc. but the seminar also includes alot of good general info. There's always one or more engines of the brand set-up for classroom running and study, as well as one in parts. There's also a demo of injector testing, and samples of typical failures. Each seminar includes a pretty decent 60-page book, and lunch.

I imagine that most serious dealers would do something similar... yes?

Anyway, I apprenticed for this guy for 10 weeks, which meant I got to carry tools all the time and do all the clean-up. And I learned TONS. Now THAT was bootcamp!

Bill1565 · Mar 10, 2011

Maine Sail said:
What would you guys think about Webinars? .

Little help for an old guy here. What is a webinar??

Stephen K · Mar 10, 2011

I think webinars are a good idea...almost like being there without the travel time and expense.

JoeWhite · Mar 10, 2011

Webinar - Not Seminar - is when you sit in front of your Computer screen and watch a live demo of the equipment serviced. You can also hear the voice and ask questions just as if you were there.

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