Beautiful story -- and a good reminder for some of us males who shout more than we oughta'.
Boat names - what are yours, why?
- Thread starter Kestrel
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No way! You mean the "classy" x rated film of the 1970s? (Boy, am I gettin' myself in trouble here....)
I, too, value the stately serenity that can be conveyed by a name, so I called my boat "Tuna Nugget".
My previous boat came with the name "Casino". Yes, it really was a gamble every time I went out.
My previous boat came with the name "Casino". Yes, it really was a gamble every time I went out.
Fortune. Despite what you might be thinking, it's not as in 'How do you make a small fortune...', although 'Small Fortune' would be a good boat name. 
Not having any great ideas, I was at the time showing my kids a family genealogy that was done on my mother's side many years before. One of the most interesting aspects is that we can trace our ancestry back to a man named Luther White who happened to come to America with the Pilgrims. He was not on the Mayflower, however, the ship he rode was named Fortune. So a little homage to the past.
EDIT: It was William Palmer, not Luther White. I always get them mixed up.
Not having any great ideas, I was at the time showing my kids a family genealogy that was done on my mother's side many years before. One of the most interesting aspects is that we can trace our ancestry back to a man named Luther White who happened to come to America with the Pilgrims. He was not on the Mayflower, however, the ship he rode was named Fortune. So a little homage to the past.
EDIT: It was William Palmer, not Luther White. I always get them mixed up.
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A friend who was a professional musician named his boat "Showtime". The dinghy was named "Intermission". The previous owner named our boat "Kickapoo" which, although the name of a great Native American tribe, tends to get snickers from kids and adults alike. Currently we just refer to it as "the boat". I've been considering names for a while, and while I haven't found a definite winner, my favorite so far is "Blue Rondo", after the Dave Brubeck piece "Blue Rondo a la Turk". (The dinghy's name becomes obvious.) Of course that will limit my color scheme when I repaint her.
At one point I thought "Drum", considering I've been a drummer since age 9, but that's also the name of the boat that lost it's keel and capsized in the '85 Fastnet race. (Drum roll please...:dance. Bad omen.
At one point I thought "Drum", considering I've been a drummer since age 9, but that's also the name of the boat that lost it's keel and capsized in the '85 Fastnet race. (Drum roll please...:dance
. Bad omen.boat name
I named my Catalina 25 Amanda Molly, after my two daughters, that I taught to sail, at a young age, on my Venture 23.
I named my Catalina 25 Amanda Molly, after my two daughters, that I taught to sail, at a young age, on my Venture 23.
Our first boat was a mac 22 we named jujubean which is my first grandchilds nickname. Second boat, a hunter 240 we named 'garinion' ,which is gaelic for granddaughter, because by then we had 2 granddaughters and wanted to be fair. Recently purchased hunter 28.5 is named pilgrim and is slated for a rename in the spring. We now have 2 granddaughters and one grandson. Suggestions welcome
Thanks! I love your bird names. I'm very much a bird of prey kinda guy. I had a non-releasable kestrel back in the '90s. Great bird. Had several other birds, too. My favorite was a red-tailed hawk. Called him Ed. (with a period). Called him Ed. since he was an education bird.
Some years ago in Annapolis there was a Concordia 47 called Dancer. The mothers ship was a Trumpy 65 called Broadway and the dinghy was Off Broadway. He bought Concordia Yachts later on. Probably use to do or produce Broadway Shows.
My wife and I have often debated the best way to name a boat, without ever reachng a consensus. She seems to always suggest For Sail, which I have never liked. Our first was named Gossamer. It evoked th light airy quality of sailing to me. When we upgraded to a Catalina 30, it came with the name Carina. I' sure t is a perfectly lovely ladies name, but to me it meant an anatomical feature of the airway, the diision of the trachea into 2 mainstem bronchi; not a particularly romantic vision to me. We renamed it Gossamer for the sme reason. Our next boat, a Hunter Legend 37.5 was named "Sail Ah Vie." I thought "boring," and renamed her "Papagayo", Spanish for parrot, just right for a Spanish speaking Parrothead. I guess you just go with what strikes your fancy.
Our boat was a boat show special and as such had a flag blue hull with a gold accent stripe. As my wife and I sat in the living room several days later we tried to come up with a name but with no success. By this time I was having serious buyer's remorse when my wife announced the name, "Wings of Gold". As a Naval Academy graduate whose colors are blue and gold and a retired navy pilot (hence the pilot's wings of gold), that seemed to be the perfect name and buyer's remorse departed immediately. We refer to her as the prettiest boat on Puget Sound. When calling into a marina as "Wings of Gold" the reply has often been, "You must be a sailboat". Indeed we are.
My wife has collected frog things for years. She sold glass wind chimes on ebay under the name Froggy. And now everybody calls her the froglady (also her license plate tag). Since I have been married to her for 54 years (in Feb), I decided to name the boat after her - so, the boat has a green hull and is named FROGLADY. Not to mention that the boat (as any amphibian) spends time out of the water (on her trailer) and in the water.
I was in a serious relationship with a nurse. I worked for Snap-on tools. We tech-ed out a Pearson 28 for racing. The name of the boat was "Nurse Ratchet".
One of my favorite past-times to do is to walk around to the transient docks and check out the names and graphic designs on the boats that are visiting. I always try to figure out what the significance of the name is (kids, spouse, occupation, etc.) and try to guess the personality of the owner.
In our advanced years (old) we have down-sized to an O'Day 25 which serves our needs quite well. So her name is Gudenuph
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