Boating advice for beginners

BY ROBIN BAILEY

A Westhaven chandlery and a bunch of experts with a range of maritime skills have joined forces to spread the word to boaters, particularly new ones.

Organised by Smart Marine, the free workshops at their premises in Beaumont St have been arranged as a result of customer feedback.

The first, on Tuesday, September 14 from 6 to 7.30pm, is titled Secrets of Anti-Fouling and will be run by Ron Brown, one of the country's most experienced marine painting consultants.

Brown, from the marine coatings giant Altex, has become increasingly aware of a new segment of boat owners who need to know more about the basics of their lifestyle choice.

"When I talk to a yacht club, for example, I start by asking how many of those in the audience have owned their boat for more than a year," he says. "These days less than half are putting up their hands."

Brown says this is a huge contrast to the 70s, 80s and even the 90s. "Then most owners had grown up boating, started in small boats and progressed up the range, often to a big launch or yacht that lived on a mooring or marina. Along the way they learned a lot about boats and how to look after them.

"Today's owners have often bought a 30 or 40-footer as their first boat and suddenly realise they know very little about how it works or how to maintain it.

"Not too many years ago, boat-owners used harbour haul-up grids or the hard stand each year to anti-foul their craft," says Brown.

"Today that doesn't happen because the leaching of toxic material into the water is an environmental no-no. Also, the new anti-fouling preparations must be applied exactly as the instructions say to ensure the finish does its job and is long-lasting. Which is why I spend a lot of time talking to clubs and at boat shows to ensure the right message gets across."

Another of the seminars will be given by fishing expert Bruce Duncan, author of the popular, back-to-basics book Fishing the Hauraki Gulf. He was one of the first to discover the "thirst for knowledge" phenomenon and pass it on to other sections of the recreational marine sector.

Duncan says he speaks at clubs and boat shows throughout the country and finds a desire to learn is widespread and involves people from all walks of life and whole families.

"A few years ago if I did a fishing session at a boating club the audience would be all men. Now, families attend and the women and children are as enthusiastic as the blokes. They might be newcomers to boating, but they are aware they are playing "catch-up" and are enthusiastic to learn."

Smart Marine general manager Javana Schiphorst says she decided to set up the free seminars after noticing her staff were spending increasing amounts of time giving advice to customers about how best to use their purchases.

"For example they know their boat needs anti-fouling and are keen to do it themselves, but are not sure exactly how to go about it or what is the best product for their boat," she says.

"It is not uncommon for a staffer to be explaining a product to a client and he suddenly finds he has an attentive audience as others listen in to the discussion."

The Secrets of Anti-Fouling workshop will cover a range of topic including:

Why is anti-fouling so different from other marine paints?

Are you applying too much anti-fouling or replacing it too often?

Is your anti-fouling saving you fuel or costing you money?

Which anti-fouling is best for your boat?

The workshop will also look at new types of anti-fouling about to be released and show the best way to remove the old coats and correctly apply the new one.

Schiphorst says the sessions will be presented in a practical easy-to-understand way and will be both informative and lots of fun, with drinks and nibbles, a free gift pack and special product purchase prices.

Duncan will present Secrets of Straylining on October 13; a Hutchwilco team will talk Fun and Safety on the Water, on November 16 and the last workshop, on December 7, will be Going Gamefishing, with Bruce Smith from Striker.