Harbour Exchange » Featured

Lost Generation – Not sailing but worth sharing

Ralph Varcoe — Thu, 20 May 2010 07:56:12 +0000

13.5m people have watched this on YouTube. If you’re one of them enjoy it all over again. If this is a 1st for you watch it all the way through.

It has nothing to do with sailing but it’s something that is worth sharing. Feel good on a Thursday morning.

The Best Sailing TV on the Web

Spectacular Zapcat Crash Video

Ralph Varcoe — Tue, 18 May 2010 17:43:27 +0000

This looks like so much fun. I need to get one. Anyone know of a good company for personal injury and life insurance?

No related posts.

Top 9 Websites to Buy or Sell a Boat

Ralph Varcoe — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:44:35 +0000

: Image via Wikipedia

Harbour Exchange’s ‘Top 9 Websites to Buy or Sell a Boat’ includes a little-known and not-yet-well-used ‘New Entrant’ in the guise of our friendly little Goblin named ‘Hex’. As it is free to register and list an item for sale on BoatGoblin.com, if you are going to use one of the other sites to list a boat, can we please ask you to consider placing the same item for sale with our little green friend?

Here are our Top 8 (plus 1):

BoatShed.com (Broker) – Easy to work with, lots and lots of photos (up to 70) with an excellent on-line presence. In fact the broker personally photographs every boat in minute detail so they can vouch for the state of the boat before anyone comes to view it. They are the new breed of brokers that are growing because of a great reputation and service. Because their online presence is so good, many boats are sold to overseas buyers on the strength of the details and photos alone. If they were not being so honest and open this would not be possible and the fact that they are continuing to grow shows the level of trust people have with this organisation. I have met the team behind BoatShed and they are an impressive bunch. In fact I very nearly bought a franchise from them back in 2008. (www.boatshed.com)
BoatBid.com (Auction) – BoatBid.com is part of BoatShed.com and enables people to have their boats auctioned rather than advertised at a set price. The model is not the same as the ebay type auction most are familiar with, as potential bidders need to be registered (£4.95 one-off) and the process is managed by the BoatBid team. This could be an excellent way to maximise the sale price of your boat if you are selling, or to pick up a real bargain if you are buying. You bid and if you are the winning bidder, you pay 10% deposit within 5 days. Then you have 21 days to complete a survey and the transaction in full. (www.boatbid.com)
Boats and Outboards (Classified) – They regularly boast more than 13,000 adverts everyday from both private advertisers and brokers. Many of the brokers also list their ‘stock’ on Boats and Outboards so you get the best of the brokers’ and private sellers’ offerings. For a private seller to place an advert it is free for any item and they can then pay to have lots of photos or to be featured. I’ve used this site to advertise a business and to sell a boat. The response to the ‘boat for sale’ was pretty good. The listing process is easy and does not require any registration, and the only problem I had was that it took rather too many attempts to upload the photo. (www.boatsandoutboards.co.uk)
Ebay (Classified, Auction and Buy it Now) - At the time of writing there are over 50,000 items on ebay.co.uk under the search category of ‘Boats’. Of course not all are Yachts or Dinghies, but this shows that it is a very active market place for all things boating. You can place auctions, classifieds or items as a ‘Buy it Now’. With ebay being the biggest on-line marketplace you get the benefit of lots of people getting exposure to your listing but there are some downsides too – like the expense. I recently sold an old Laser Dinghy on ebay for £765 and paid almost £45 in fees which I think is pretty expensive. The more expensive the item though, the lower the percentage cost (as final fees are capped at £40). For lower priced items, bank on losing 10% plus insertion/photo fees. Now if you are a buyer, using ebay can be excellent, but you need to be careful and make sure you know the seller’s ratings, and that you get all questions answered before the final bid. I know of a couple of young guys who buy cheap boats and accessories, tidy them up and the re-sell them on ebay again for a profit, so if you’re buying, you can bag yourself a bargain if you are careful and thorough. (www.ebay.co.uk)
YBW Boats for Sale (Classified) – YBW.com 0r Yachting and Boating World is owned by IPC Media which also owns many other magazine titles, including ‘Practical Boat Owner’ (PBO), ‘Yaching Monthly’ and ‘Motor Boat Monthly’ to name just a few. In addition to a great deal of high quality news, info, reviews, etc on their site, there is a section devoted to boats for sale. There are 2 sides to this section, ‘Brokerage Boats’ and ‘Private Boats’. As you would expect from the largest marine publisher in the UK, there are all sorts of packages for the private seller, ranging from web only to web plus all magazines, and these vary in cost depending on what type of advert you want, in how many publications and for how long. As well as large and expensive boats, they also have a special section on Boats for Under £10,000. (www.ybw-boatsforsale.com)
BoatShop24 (Classified) – More than 102,000 adverts from over 15 Countries from both the Trade (Brokers) and private sellers. This is also a free site to advertise your boat for sale. The site also includes links to tests of boats from BoatTest.com which is a nice touch. Where there is one posted, and where it is relevant to the boat you are interested in this can be really useful. (www.boatshop24.com)
Apollo Duck (Classified) – Thousands of adverts on the UK part of the site from fishing boats to yachts and everything in between. To place a basic advert is free but for £39.95 the advert can be upgraded to have multiple photos, videos and lots of other information besides. Apollo Duck is an international site with listings from virtually every country of the World. (www.apolloduck.co.uk)
Boats.com (Classified) – Boats.com is a US based site that has been over in the UK for quite a while at http://uk.boats.com as well as France, Spain, Netherlands, Italy and Australia. They have over 150,000 boats listed from Brokerage to Private sale. For private sellers, this is a huge marketplace that has been established for a long time so is a good choice, though they haven’t yet woken to the idea of free basic adverts. A basic advert will cost £11 for a 2 week period with just 1 photo. This seems like a lot to me. Their upgrade packages provide unlimited photos for 6 weeks at £31, and a premium 12 week version for £49. If they sell your boat you won’t mind paying this but with many other free sites you might think twice before placing an advert here. (http://uk.boats.com)
BoatGoblin.com (Classified, Auction and Buy it Now) – This is a little bit of self-promotion as our little friend ‘Hex’ the friendly Boat Goblin has only been out and about in his little motor boat for a little while. BoatGoblin.com is a Harbour Exchange venture and the site enables people to list items as either auction or classified free of charge for a basic listing. It’s not yet in the same league as the big boys above which have been established for many many years, but our little Goblin is already making waves as you’ll be able to see from the site logo. Free to join, free to list, free to use. (www.boatgoblin.com)

Photo of the Week 6

Ralph Varcoe — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 09:29:48 +0000

Here’s a great shot for you all at Christmas.

We will be eating, drinking and being merry over the next few weeks, so no more posts until 2010. See you all then and have a great holiday season.

A Turkish bulk carrier is seen half sunk near Sukhumi, capital of the breakaway Georgion region of Abkhazia. The freighter was blown on shore by a storm.

Credit: AP Photo/Sergey Ponomarev

Yachting & Boating Magazines for Christmas

Commodore — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 14:42:53 +0000

There’s just one week left until Christmas so now is the time to get those last minute gifts. With no last delivery date, a magazine subscription is the perfect gift because you can order right up until Christmas Day and simply print out a gift certificate to give to your loved one.

You can buy subscriptions to some of the best yachting and boating magazines by clicking on the pictures below, or you can buy subscriptions to almost any other type of magazine imaginable at Magazine Group by clicking the link.

The snow is still deep and white outside here and so it really feels like Christmas is around the corner.

Seasons greetings to you all from Harbour Exchange and a big Thank You to those who have been reading our articles and have made comments over the past months. It means a lot to know others are enjoying the snippets we post.

GET YOUR SUBSCRIPTIONS HERE

Yachting World

Cover Price: ¬£3.90 ¬†|¬† Frequency: 12¬†issues per year

Save up to 22% off UK shop prices this Christmas when you subscribe to Yachting World

Synonymous with quality, authority and excellence, Yachting World is known world-wide, being brought and read in over 100 countries. Ranging from blue water cruiser to super-yacht Yachting World provides the best in nautical writing and photography, up-to-the-minute technical reports, equipment valuation, new boat tests and informed comment. Yachting World is renowned for its coverage of international regatta, round the world races and other events, the magazine also has the latest sailing news, first hand cruising accounts and practical advice, our ever popular Great Seamanship series re-living epic sailing stories, new yacht equipment news and tests and offers a glimpse at the exotic world of superyachting. Why not subscribe and make sure you never miss an issue – with 12 issues a year, delivered straight to your door, there’s never been a better time to treat a friend, or treat yourself!

Yachting Monthly

Cover Price: ¬£3.70 ¬†|¬† Frequency: 12¬†issues per year

Save up to 19% off UK shop prices this Christmas when you subscribe to Yachting Monthly magazine

Written by sailors, for sailors, Yachting Monthly is at the heart of the British yachting market for people who actively sail their boats. Yachting Monthly provides an authoritative, yet entertaining, mix of information for yachtsmen with any level of experience. Each issue contains informative and inspirational articles, readers share real-life experiences in the Sailing Skills section and the ‘Confessional’ page. Plus read authoritative reports on yachting equipment, new technology and new and second-hand boats by one of the most trusted test teams in the industry.

Motor Boat and Yachting

Cover Price: ¬£3.95 ¬†|¬† Frequency: 12¬†issues per year

Save up to 23% off UK shop prices this Christmas when you subscribe to Motor Boat & Yachting magazine

Europe’s premier yachting magazine, Motor Boat and Yachting’s boat tests are acknowledged as the most authoriative in the business and its technical coverage is without equal, plus no other publication offers so many motorboats for sale. Motor Boat and Yachting is a must-read for any boating enthusiast. Why not subscribe and make sure you never miss an issue – with 12 issues a year – delivered straight to your door, why not treat yourself or a friend today.

Photo of the Week 5

Ralph Varcoe — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 08:09:57 +0000

There’s something about New England. Maybe it’s because it reminds me of home. The scenery and coast line are so similar to those of England in so many ways and often I’ve seen a photo of some harbour (or I should say harbor as ‘Harbor’ is clearly the New ‘Harbour’ in ‘New England’) and thought it could be Poole or Dartmouth.

The lobster boats are such a classic, evocative and exciting sight, knowing that their catch will delight on the lunch table fresh from the depths later in the day. The classic New England style of building along the water’s edge with a lone rower pulling through a calm group of moorings on the way to a New England wooden dock.

Beautiful!

This week’s photo is a piece of art, shot in black & white and courtesy of mph007 on Flickr. It was shot in 2008 at Bar Harbor in Maine.

If you want to know where Bar Harbor is, here’s a map:

[mappress]

Just like flying

Ralph Varcoe — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 08:05:43 +0000

My photo of the week on Sunday was of an International Foiling Moth and I’ve been looking for videos too. These things really are rather amazing. So I give you a video of foiling Moths at Rutland Water in the UK in 15mph winds and upwards, taking part in the Tiger Trophy. The hull weight is just 8kg with an all up weight of 28kg. Sail area is 8m. Sailor must be pretty good.

Then I found some other great ‘foiling’ videos. Check out this one of a foiling winsurfer:

…. and this one of a foiling kite surf:

…. and lastly the record breaking Hydroptere:

Photo of the Week 4

Ralph Varcoe — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 16:05:11 +0000

I wish I were technically proficient enough to sail one of these. They look fantastic. Unfortunately, being middle aged and of large frame, I’m not quick enough to trim the balance in the gusts and lulls and in any case my balance isn’t great (maybe something to do with the pre-race ‘snifters’ in the bar?).

The Foiling Moth needs about 7 knots of boatspeed to get out of the water and it can get to that speed in about 7 knots of wind. Once you’re out and flying the boat will stay up in less pressure.

Fast, silent and looking like a mini oil rig travelling at speed with its square platform. The crashes can also be fast and spectacular, and I promise we’ll find some footage and post in an article soon.

So, here you are, the photo of the week – the Foiling Moth.

The Flying Bowline

Ralph Varcoe — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 07:46:13 +0000

I promised you in the article on how to tie a bowline with only one hand that I’d show you one with a difficulty rating of 12/10.

It’s so quick that if you want to master it you’ll need to watch it over and over and over and…. again. You will also need a good light-weight rope and enough space to practice so you don’t knock off the photos and other chintz from the mantelpiece.

I’d like to hear from the first person to perfect this. Post a comment and let us have a video of you achieving the flying bowline. I also want to hear from anyone who manages to do this on the foredeck while edging up to the pontoon to berth. If you can do a flying bowline and then use the knot to moor up then I’ll take my hat off to you. You will indeed be the Governor or the ‘Honorary Commodore’ no less.

3 wings better than 2 sails

Ralph Varcoe — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:33:35 +0000

BMW Oracle Racing have been testing in San Diego. Some great footage of the beast with the 3 wings… 2 horizontal ones on each side of the hull and 1 vertical foil. It looks strange but it moves like a dinghy.

In just 7 knots of wind the massive trimaran flies on only one of its horizontal wings. It’s a massive 90ft by 90ft as a platform and the vertical wing is almost 200ft tall. With an engine onboard to move the wing, there are no more grinders. Surely that’s just not Cricket! (For those nations bereft of the greatest gentlemans sport on the planet you may not understand that comment.)

It’s very impressive, but is it what’s needed in the America’s Cup? I can’t be the only one who is bored sh**less over the court wranglings. Can’t these grown men put their egos away and prove they have the best team at SAILING? Where apples are compared with apples?

What does my opinion matter? Have a look and marvel.

This video gives a little insight into the flying machine…

And here is a longer video showing it moving around the bay…