The 2nd Annual Hospice by the Sea Regatta will be held on Saturday May 19, 2012 in Ft. Lauderdale Beach. This event is part of the National Hospice Regatta Alliance racing circuit. In 2011 the overall winner of the first Hospice by the Sea event was Magic Marine with Bret Moss at the helm. The same boat and captain will participate in the 2012 National Hospice Regatta Championship to be held later in SAINT PETERSBURG, FLORIDA. Hospice by the Sea promises to be a great day of sailing fun for the whole family and you will be contributing to a very worthy charity so why not call and become involved. There will be a very special Awards Ceremony and Celebration at the end of the day at the Coral Ridge Yacht Club for which tickets can be purchased for $50 per person. For more information about Hospice by the Sea call Betty Pepper at 561-416-5007.

There are two schools of thought on bottom blisters. Some people absolutely refuse to accept a boat with blisters. Other people feel they are a part of life when you have a boat in saltwater and they don't effect the operation or performance of the boat. If you have or are considering buying a boat with blisters and you want them gone the first step is to blast off the thick layers of old antifouling paint. After the bottom is stripped if there are obvious bumps in the gelcoat they should be examined to see if any liquid is seeping from them. If there is, your yard should have recommendations for more serious measures to repair them. Often blistering issues can be attributed to the original fiberglass layup in which the layers of mat were not applied correctly or inferior materials may have been used. This can result in a hull with a hidden layer of mat that is full of dry spots that have not been saturated with resin. Over time the gelcoat becomes permeable to water and the unsaturated spots may become blisters. Often this results in just small areas of dry glass and not the more troublesome weeping blisters. So where do you go from here if you want to get rid of those blisters? Usually the yard will blast, machine peel, or grind until they reach healthy material. If it is dry (which it often is) they will then coat with several layers of epoxy based barrier coat to prevent the same problem in the future. However the yard should still use a moisture meter to determine the moisture content of the remaining fiberglass. If the yard you are working with doesn't do this then see if you can call in an expert who can. Remember the hull should be completely dry before applying epoxy barrier coats and if you end up working with blisters that are weeping be sure you are dealing with a yard that has experience in this more troublesome situation.

Have you heard about the problem with "lion fish" in some of our favorite cruising grounds like the water along the eastern US Coast, Florida, Bahamas, and further down into the Caribbean. The problem began a few years ago when this beautiful but venomous and apparently quickly reproducing species was accidently introduced into these waters. Not only are they dangerous to humans but they could potentially wipe out other fish species. Even though we are experiencing an invasion of lion fish, it still appears to be in its early stages so we are hopefully still in time to eradicate the problem. One way to begin helping is by contacting The Reef Guardian program which has been set up for voluntary responses in the BVI including the training and use of markers for divers and tourists to mark the fish where they are sighted. You might think this an overwhelming prospect but it may not be as difficult as you think because these fish are extremely territorial and stay within feet of their territory as long as they have a good food supply. The fish can simply be scooped up in nets and taken to the surface. Of course in areas were the population has expanded to large numbers the job may be more daunting. According to some reports the BVI has also relaxed certain rules and is allowing certified dive instructors employed by BVI companies to kill the lion fish with sling guns. One of the main objectives of the Reef Guardians is to deal with the lion fish problem in the BVI. Monitoring and learning their techniques could be educational for helping groups in Florida and Bahamian waters to deal with the same problem. (Photo by Wolcott Henry)

Congratulations to local Florida sailor, Grant Dumas of St. Petersburg, Fla., and his crew on Warrior, a Tripp 38ML, winners of Sail Magazine's 2012 Best Around the Buoys contest. This event is in it's early stages and is working to help promote local teams and encouraging them to continue on to national events. This team will now continue on to race a new Beneteau Oceanis 37 during Charleston Race Week April 19-22 in South Carolina. We wish them all the best in their next challenge.

Why SSB Still Makes Sense to Today's Cruisers. In this high tech world of cell phones, "smart phones", Ipads, etc. it still makes sense for cruising sailors to have Single Side Band onboard. Cell phones are great for land lubbers and they do come in handy at sea but SSB is valuable for different reasons. Maybe one of the most important advantages to SSB is the safety issue. The SSB range can be many thousands of miles and you can broadcast to many people at one time. AND SSB may be more useful in countries that do not have advanced satellite phone systems established yet. A SSB DSC alert will broadcast an alarm out to every major vessel around. Think of it like the distress button on your VHF only with a much improved range. Not only does SSB give you added comfort for safety reasons but it is also good for weather alerts, gathering information about local events, the best local restaurants, cruiser's networks, etc. It is a great tool to enhance your social networking if you are not yet within easy VHF range or to keep in touch with cruising companions who may be out of range of your VHF. With the proper equipment you can also have email contact with friends and family or get the latest world news. The uses really are endless. And once you have made the investment to purchase and install the equipment - the service is FREE so it becomes more widely used by more people. There will be a charge if you choose to have access to services like "Sailmail" but the cost is relatively low especially when you consider the very wide coverage area. Bottom line...SSB is still a great piece of equipment to have onboard. Not only will it give you a lot of confidence and peace of mind it will also greatly enhance your level of communication and ability to keep up with what is going on in the world. Why wouldn't you continue to take advantage of this 'old friend' to sailors everywhere.

Being a "green" sailor isn't really that hard...consider installing a wind generator. So how do you begin to find the right one? First lets review the basic types of wind generators. Lets start with the smaller quieter six or five blade units. These are great for smaller boats and tend to begin generating power at lower wind speeds. The power output varies but you can expect to get between 20 to 40 amp hours in a 24 hour period. Not a great deal of energy but enough to keep the beer cold. Next we have the larger diameter 3-blade systems. These units need a sturdy mounting system and are usually a bit more noisy. The plus is you get a greater output especially in high wind situations. You can expect to get up to 100 amp hours per day with these models which can be a great power boost for operating your floating home. Finally you have the big 2-blade generators which require a very sturdy mounting system. Some sailors have gotten inventive and tried mounting these models on a staysail halyard in the foretriangle where they will harness the wind better. Some of these generators will put out 200 amp hours per day in a steady breeze. With one of these units you could be self-sufficient for days. So the good news is there is sure to be a wind generator to fit your needs and budget. Install a wind generator and be "green" and stay out on the big "blue" longer

This year will be the 16th year for the Southeast U.S. Boat Show. It is currently set for April 20-22 at Metropolitan Park & Marina in Jacksonville, Florida. This year's event has been expanded and offers seven acres of all things nautical. It will also include floating docks with all types of vessels on display. Included will be Sailing Showcase East - an exhibition that all sailors will be sure in enjoy. Admission price is reasonable and Kids 16 and under are FREE so come out and enjoy the spring weather at the show.

Friendly Tax Law in Florida makes for Happier Days for Everyone! Enough time has passed (almost a year and a half) since Florida instituted the $18,000 sales/use tax cap on boat sales. A group of Florida boat dealers were recently surveyed. The survey findings show in the first year sales tax collections on boats selling for more than $300,000 reached 5.5 million. This reflects roughly 291% increase from previous tax receipts of 1.4 million! It is a win/win situation. These numbers show that it is fairly clear the new law has more than paid for itself in the form of extra tax revenue. A nice side benefit is the preservation of marine related jobs. And in addition businesses of all kinds benefit because boat buyers keep their boat in Florida and spend money here. There are a lot of reasons to love Florida and one of the best is being able to enjoy the beautiful waterways. The new law has opened the door for more people from other states and from countries around the world to purchase and leave their boat in Florida so they can enjoy them year round. In a world where we often tire of useless new laws or laws that don't do what they were intended to do it is a very pleasant change to see one that works for everyone. Hey everyone...come on down to Florida...the water is fine AND it is now more affordable!