Which is most annoying?

[Mike Pilolla]

Brain Dead Skippers

....who still anchor too close and then you end up having to fend them off in the middle of the night because their 2 to 1 scope didn't hold the ground and they are surprised you are not offering them a beer as they lift their spotless anchor by hand as they go back to the same spot they were anchored before they dragged, they drop the hook again, hear the splash and then go below to sleep the rest of the night away.

 

[Dakota Jim Russell]

Farnsworth Duct Tape more civil than a cut halyard

Farnsworth Duct Tape more civil than a cut halyard, an option offered in South Dakota.And if there is a potential for a fist fight, it means the guy is there and should be correcting the problem.In truth I've stepped on many a boat to correct that problem. If they want to take issue, I'll be more than happy to set them straight verbally or otherwise <grin>.

 

[Frank Gloss]

Jetskis must DIE

did I say that?

 

[hp Gary Jensen]

fixing a loose halyard

I will and have many times bungied or retied loose halyards..I have had mine retied once (and I appreciated it)..Loose, slapping halyards are a problem and it is irriating. If I saw someone reting mine I'd thank them..It would be a different story if I "CAUGHT" someone cutting or duct taping them.

 

[Pat in Nuevo Mexico]

besides sounds...

besides sounds (my boy tells me that a halyard stopper is known as a gilguy, by the way), dog poop around the marina is a bit off-putting. Well-behaved dogs are fine by me, but dogs that are allowed to roam, defecate at will, get into fights with other dogs, and growl at people who are minding their own business are not welcome.

 

[Paul]

I've tried but I can't think of anything...

I've decided there are no noises when I'm on my boat, only sounds. They are only noises if they are unpleasant and I can't think of anything that annoys me when I'm on my boat. When I arrive at the marina after work, the first sound I hear is the halyards clinking against the masts and right away the stress of my day starts to vanish. I hear a couple kids take off on jet skis and I remember how great it is to do something just because it's fun. I hear a power boat motor off full of fishing gear and remember all those evenings fishing with my grandfather.Maybe someday I'll get old and grumpy and complain about every little sound but not tonight. It would drag my boat back into my real day to day world of problems, headaches and stress and that would be a great loss.Paul1974 Catalina 27Vancouver, BC, Canada

 

[Matt]

The graddaddy of them all...

People that complain too much about sounds around the marina. Relax, it is all about enjoyment. If you don't like the sounds of halyard slaps, jet-skis, powerboats, generators, cockpit speakers, dog pooping in the wrong place (would you rather them go in the water so it can float by while you're taking a dip?), and yadda yadda yadda, you could go back to the city. All of it is part of the experience. The powerboaters probably complain about us just as much as we complain about them. Would you rather hear the sounds of the washing machine, the dryer, the diswasher? A TV/VCR keeps the kids from killing each other. What's wrong with a little Jimmy Buffett and a cold beer? I'll take loud conversation over the sounds of 18-wheelers and teenagers with "booming" car stereos any day.Nothing bothers me on the water.

 

[Tony Z]

I agree. F$$( jet skis

Theres a whole big ass ocean out there and the only place the jet ski's can come up with is a nice peacefull harbor or cove. There aught to be a law.....

 

[Brian Jarchow]

Matt, I respectfully disagree

I am with you for the most part, but...When I anchor across the bay from the railroad (about 5 nm) I can still hear the train, and especially the horn. This doesn't bother me, the sound is soft. Also, I can sometimes hear the music from a wild party on the beach, but again it doesn't bother me. I enjoy the sound of mast-slapping halyards, and I know that in a couple of hours' sail I can get away from almost all the personal watercraft (but I would support laws requiring mufflers).What really gets me is when I have gone all day to get to a secluded anchorage on an island small enough to not even have a dirt airstrip or ferry service, and somebody else comes into the anchorage and starts showing off their party stereo for the benefit of the people five miles across the water.If somebody asks me to fasten my halyards at the anchorage, I will do so out of courtesy

 

[John Thomas]

Matt,... I'll drink to that

I have to agree with Matt. Although after reading the responses here, I don't think I would have been quite so diplomatic. I dislike inconsiderate boaters as much as anyone, but tolerance is a virtue that apparently is in short supply here. We are all out there for our own reasons and sometimes our goals do not coincide with those of others, but that makes me appreciate the times when things do work out. When I am on my boat, whether in a crowded marina or an anchorage alone, I'm in a different world and the people and animals and the noises they make or don't make, are not irritations, but part of the whole experience. That being said...I'll bring my dog on my boat whenever I want, thank you very much. I'll try to keep him from barking because it bothers me. I do not let my halyards slap and have re-tied halyards on other boats...slapping halyards are just poor form. I'll play my Buffett loud enough for me to hear and I'll probably stay-up past your bedtime and drink more beer than you think appropriate. I might even howl at the moon with the coyotes myself. You know the sound that annoys me most at an ancourage. It is the whining sound of anal retentive, self-rightousness.

 

[Bob]

Definately...

BARKING DOGS! The owners go ashore for an almost all night pub crawl and they leave their dogs on board. These people should be strung up by their thumbs! Dogs do not belong on a boat! It's inconsiderate to other sailors and not a whole lotta fun for the pet. Let's see...smelly animal...smellier when wet... confined space...shedding all over everything...accidents in the cabin...It would take a lot more than KO to get rid of that odor!BobP.S. Don't get me wrong, I love and own animals. I'm just considerate to both the animals and fellow sailors.

 

[Joe Baker]

Winner????

How about a pile driver putting in metal pilings about a quarter mile away, on a calm morning????

 

[newly anonymous]

civil indeed

I spent a few weeks in a marina once where the harbormaster would unhook a chronically slatting halyard and haul the shackle to the masthead. He observed that it was often YEARS before the offender even noticed what had been done. Between you and me, I'd much rather have a neighbor fasten the halyard to a shroud with duct tape. What SOME boaters don't seem to realize is that a slating halyard is more than just an annoyance; it wears both halyard and sheeve, scars the mast and, on cable halyards, creates meathooks. It hardly seems to be an act of vandalism to correct such a problem. Duct tape is an inexpensive fix that also, it seems, sends the message about what bad form it is to let your halyards slam into the mast 24/7/365. (Or, for that matter, overnight in a crowded anchorage.)

 

[Gary Wyngarden]

There is a Law!

There oughta be a law? There is one. Jet skis are banned in San Juan County, WA. Yahoo.Gary WyngardenS/V Shibumi H335

 

[Tom]

It's that quiet "tap......tap.....tap......tap..."

noise that you hear on your own boat at about 3 am. You are "snug as a bug in a rug" when you hear a 'soft' tapping sound. Its not enough to waken anyone else, let alone another boat. But its there and even though its not very loud, it seems to echo in your head. You usually wait a few minutes and it seems to go away, so you sigh in relief, and go back to bed, but just as the 'sugar plums' start dancing in your head again, there it is....tap.....tap......tap.....ARRRGHH !!You get dressed and go on deck fumbling around with things trying to find the offending object and go back into you bunk for whatever rest you can salvage from the evening.And then you hear it.....tap.....tap.....tap

 

[Tim McCarty]

The sound of Twin Chryslers...

...on the Forty-five foot long Egg Harbour right next to me...the owner likes to run the engines for what seems like hours on end...

 

[Gloria]

I Hate 2 things!

1) Those annoying jetskis. Why do they have to bug us when we are resting at anchor?2) Blasting radios. Horrible to be anchored near 2 different boats play 2 different things on loud radios.G

 

[David Foster]

Cigarette with unmuffled twin engines

Intrudes on everyone within miles while oblivious to damage to eardrims, peace, and quiet.

 

[Rob Rich]

John Thomas and Matt....

You can crew on my boat anytime!We have a bunch of your type in my marina, and that's why I love it so much. Too bad more people can't enjoy sailing the way we do. Half the fun of learning a sport is passing on your knowledge to others - giving back. I am fortunate to have learned volumes from the sailors I have met, and, when asked, I try to modestly pass that on... And for the record, two bungees sit on my halyards as we speak, my shore power cord is well away from the water, my dock fingers are clear, etc. etc. etc.

 

[Mark]

I am a parent and I agree with LaDonna

What happened to discipline and common courtesy? Get those kids under control!