How far offshore would be reasonable from the Jersey shore? '98 Sea Ray Sundancer 25',

Now I know prior to making any excursion that is outside a somewhat controlled environemnt (i.e. Hudson river), I really have to get comfortable with the boat and know how it handles, as well as how I can handle it. The boat is pretty loaded with VHF, Compass, GPS/ Sounder, and your common safety equipment. So if I can maybe gather some opinions to the following it would be greatly appreciated.

- How far offshore is reasonable in this style, size, and equipped boat?

- What else should I consider getting to ensure any offshore trip would be a safe one?

- Are there any places or clubs to meet up with other boaters heading out to the hot fishing spots that might allow someone less experienced to follow them out? (This would offer a level of safety that if something did go wrong there are other boats in the area)

Thanks in advance. I am excited to get in the water, the waiting is killing me. I assume if your reading this newsgroup in February you are also as eager to see the thermometor tip some warmer numbers.

MJK

For my money, I like the shaft protruding about a foot or so from the cutlass bearing, protected by a keel, skeg, and rudder. Much safer than running naked.

And of course, don't leave the dock without a VHF and a decent antenna.

I agree with your point of diesel vs gas although modern diesels are increasingly reliant on electronics to run. There are, however, other propulsion system failures or accidents that could leave you dead in the water while doing offshore cruising and/or fishing. IMO being dead in the water, 30 or 40 miles from land in rough seas is second only to fire in terms of danger.

Eisboch

Funniest "accident" I've ever seen. The fish was flopping around the stern and three guys hanging onto the top of the console and the T-Top.

I know a guy who had the prop shaft supports ripped out the bottom of his boat by a whale that came out of nowhere - hit the stern and everything went bye-bye.

Fortunately, it didn't sink - some quick thinking bystanders came to the guys rescue with some tarps, the CG sent a pump and two bigger boats came alongside and limped the owners boat in until Sea//Tow could get to it.

They ended up wrapping a submerged chunk of 2" hawser on one of their shafts and ripped the cutlass bearing mounting plate right out of the hull. Fortunately they were able to stuff the hole enough and maintain headway on the other engine until the Coast Guard arrived.

Eisboch

While I've done it, I didn't consider it fun.

- Wandering into that submarine practice zone, IIRC west of Block Island. Dad said "Nah..that's not where we are." I'd just taken the power squadron course, and I was positive we were in the zone. We're puttering along, trolling for stripers or something, and a half mile away, a sub surfaces, contacts us, and politely re-educates my dad. I said nothing. I don't know what he was thinking. Maybe "Hey - I'm ex-Navy. I'm allowed".

- Demo of why plastic dishes are good on boats: Dad didn't care if winds from a certain direction always meant crazy water (even for a 42' Owens). Ex torpedo bomber pilots have no fear, apparently. So, one day, north of Orient Point, things got interesting. The boat was all over the place. The first sign of trouble was when my mom's stoneware dishes became too much for the latches on the cabinets below. Big noise, all dishes declared dead. Then, my sister brings the Chapman book up to the bridge and points out the artist's rendering of pitchpoling. She had a weird sense of timing. My younger sister slept through the whole thing.

- Townsend marina, Greenport: Dad & mechanic standing in bilge of 32' Luhrs, 95 degrees, mosquitoes as thick as pea soup, oil up to their ankles. I must've been nagging him for bait money or some such thing - I don't recall. He climbs out of the bilge, says "Get over here", I follow him to the bow, where he picks me up and tosses me into the water. Much laughter from adjacent boats. No more kid noise till engine was fixed. :-)

We heard a distress conversation 2 years ago between a 110 ft Broward and the coast guard. They had become entangled in floating line somewhere off the Carolina coast and were dead in the water.

I agree with all of the previous advice: radar, liferaft, EPIRB, kicker engine, navigation courses, SeaTow membership, etc.

In addition, I would encourage you to get a lot more experience with the boat and its equipment. Over time you will get a much better appreciation for what it can and can not do safely, and you will gain experience in how to manage difficult conditions.

The Jersey shore is a dangerous place in conditions that are only moderately severe. The inlets can have breaking seas even when the wind is not blowing, all it takes is a large swell and an outgoing tide. 25 foot boats get rolled and people lost every year after getting caught by an inopportune breaking wave.

Tough to do in a smallish boat.

Especially when you are upside down with people in the water.

People who are moving up from smaller boats tend to think of a 25 footer as being large. I used to, because most of my time on the water as a kid was spent in 14 to 17 ft runabouts.

However even with our new SeaRay 270 it is still pretty easy to get beat up on open water. We were out on the Gulf of Mexico two weeks ago with just a moderate 12 kt breeze, and that was plenty. Not dangerous by any means, but rough enough to require a substantial speed reduction.

Now if I still had my old Bertram 33, it would have been damn the torpedoes...

And of course, don't leave the dock without a VHF and a decent antenna.