Author Peter Janssen

Cruising Life
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Owner Pumps Gas into Rod Holder, Boat Explodes at Fuel Dock

After the explosion and fire, several people said this type of mistake happens more often than you’d think: Someone pours gasoline into a fishing rod holder, thinking they’re filling the fuel tank. That’s exactly what happened around 4 on a Friday afternoon at the Ocean Isle Fishing Center at Ocean Isle Beach, which is between Bald Head Island and Myrtle Beach, North Carolina. David Martin, Jr., 40, and Jonathan Bickett, 35, both from Charlotte, thought they were filling up the fuel tank on Martin’s boat with gas. Instead, they were pouring gas into a rod holder. Jeff Williamson, who runs…

Cruising Life
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Prepare for a Hurricane: Great Advice from the Coast Guard

Hurricane season has just started, running from June 1 through Nov. 30, so it’s definitely time to prepare before one heads your way. This season is likely to be lively: NOAA is predicting 11 to 17 named tropical storms this year due to much warmer waters along the Atlantic coast. What to do now? Here’s a very thorough list from the Coast Guard that pretty much covers everything, from how to inspect your boat, get the right gear, tie up or anchor out, find a hurricane hole, secure the engines, and even recover your boat once the hurricane has passed…

Cruising Life
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How To Dock a Twin-Shaft Cruising Boat. Great Video

Here’s one of best on-the-water demonstrations of docking and around-the-docks maneuvering I’ve seen for a twin inboard shaft boat with a bow thruster. It seems a bit laid-back at first, but stay tuned.  The video is an excellent introduction if you’re new to boating, or a good reminder if you’re an old salt. Take a look: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yQZSgUy2hQ

Gear
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How To Get Rid of Odors from Heads and Holding Tanks

A smelly head can put a damper on even the best cruise, particularly since it is often so hard to deal with. And boats with seawater flush are particularly susceptible to a buildup of hydrogen sulfide that leaves an odor that seems to linger on and on. So, what to do? Here’s some great advice from Practical Sailor about holding tank treatments, including those that have proven to work, and those that don’t. Take a look here: https://www.practical-sailor.com/blog/A-Simple-Solution-for-Boat-Toilet-Stink-12224-1.html?ET=practicalsailor:e34937:684905a:&st=email&s=p_Grabbag060317&omhide=true

Boat Reviews
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New 49-foot Kodiak Mini-Expedition Yacht from Stephens Waring

Stephens Waring Yacht Design, the custom naval architecture and engineering firm in Belfast, Maine, doesn’t exactly follow the crowd. If you’re interested in a plastic floating condo that holds 12 for drinks, is top-heavy and gets 0.6 nm per gallon, you probably don’t need to go there. But if you love classic designs and old-world craftsmanship, combined with modern materials and technology, then you’ve found the right place. Their latest, which they write about after extolling the virtues of expedition yachts (business-like, seaworthy and serious), is a 49-foot mini-expedition yacht called Kodiak, which they say “speaks to the adventurer in…

Cruising Life
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Seven Things To Look For in Your Boat Insurance Policy, from BoatU.S.

It’s not something we usually think about – until we need it. But there’s no question that having the right insurance on your boat is not only important, but also necessary. Yet what exactly does that insurance cover? How many of us actually read the fine print on our policy? Sure, we know what the premium is, we know about the deductible, we know about the total amount covered. But the devil is in the details. Here’s a very good story by BoatU.S. about what you really should look for in your policy: http://www.boatus.com/pressroom/release.asp?id=1302#.WTVjDcdlmT-

Cruising Life
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37-Foot Cruiser Crashes into Descending Lift Bridge in Minnesota

It was just after 7 last Friday evening, and the Stillwater Lift Bridge, connecting Stillwater, Minnesota, with the Wisconsin shoreline across the St. Croix River, was starting to come down after a scheduled opening. The captain of a northbound 1967 37-foot cabin cruiser tried to make it under the descending bridge. He crashed into it, instead, wiping out the upper portion of his boat. The captain was not injured, but a woman on board was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The bridge was closed temporarily while officials checked for damage. For more: http://www.stillwatercurrent.com/breaking-boat-crashes-stillwater-lift-bridge-causing-friday-evening-bridge-closure/

On Watch with Peter Janssen
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On Watch

Former Music Exec and Wife Take Dream Cruise on New Sabre 48 Last September, Jerry Ade, a former music talent agency executive and real estate developer, and his wife, Marci, bought their dream boat, a Sabre 48 flybridge, from DiMillo’s in Portland, Maine. They named it Famous (Ade had been president of the Famous Artists Agency in New York, representing Jay-Z, Beyoncé, and The Beastie Boys, among others), and they headed down the coast to deliver it to their home in Naples, Florida. But weather, and a fuel problem, got in the way, and they ran out of time in…

Cruising Life
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Owner’s Latest Progress Report on Building New Kadey-Krogen 50 Open

Like most of us, Larry Polster has dreamed about building his own ideal cruising boat. The difference between Polster and the rest of us, however, is that he’s actually doing something about it. Indeed, Polster, who’s a partner and vice president of Kadey-Krogen Yachts, is building hull number one of the new Kadey-Krogen 50 Open, and we’ve been following him as he writes progress reports about all the decisions he and his wife Janet are making about making this cruising boat their own. Here’s Polster’s report number six, with pictures and discussions of the hull, from its fine entry to…

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