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Dame.n.Jess · 20-02-2011, 14:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by joey69

They were in a Bluewater Rally Convoy and left it to go hand out bibles.

It would be interesting to see if this is true, it sounds far fetched but then again stranger things have happened.

Just my opinion but if its truely the reason they were heading their then im rooting for the pirates! I cant stand when others force their religion onto me. They are welcome to do it in their own home/yacht etc but try doing it on my boat and they will be jabbed off the deck with a boat hook.

Damien

P.S I don't have anything against religion only the extreme methods of delivery some brands use.

markpierce · 20-02-2011, 14:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dame.n.Jess

Just my opinion but if its truely the reason they were heading their then im rooting for the pirates! I cant stand when others force their religion onto me. They are welcome to do it in their own home/yacht etc but try doing it on my boat and they will be jabbed off the deck with a boat hook.

Those people are part of a Christian terrorist group kidnapping Somali pirates which aren't released until the individual pirate has memorized the most substantive portions of the Bible.

bangkaboat · 20-02-2011, 14:34

Who pays for the escort of the commercial ships? The companies, alone, or do taxpayers of the involved countries foot part of the bill for salaries, wear & tear on the ships, etc.? If the Dutch taxpayers are on the hook for some of the costs then I'll be controversial & back the cruisers' demands.

Doodles · 20-02-2011, 14:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tom and Maje

Hypothetically, or maybe not. I don't see why some former or retired spec ops person(s) couldn't make it work. There is already a company who is hiring those guys for ship protection. I know because my husband was approached.

Maje

I imagine it would take a small navy to provide adequate security. Spread the cost of how many cruisers could they protect at a time, and how many trips a season. This wouldn't be a year round job remember, so what do you do in the off season to keep personnel and equipment busy. I'm thinking its going to be very expensive. How many cruisers could afford it? At some point its just as cheap or cheaper to ship the boat as some are already doing. Really, the costs would be too high or else someone would already be doing it. Remember, this isn't a new problem.

markpierce · 20-02-2011, 14:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by bangkaboat

Who pays for the escort of the commercial ships? The companies, alone, or do taxpayers of the involved countries foot part of the bill for salaries, wear & tear on the ships, etc.? If the Dutch taxpayers are on the hook for some of the costs then I'll be controversial & back the cruisers' demands.

If I thought that was appropriate, I'd be asking my local police to accompany me whenever I visit a bad part of town.

DannySt · 20-02-2011, 15:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by SabreKai

Those two Iranian ships are not going to hang around in the area. They plan on transiting the Suez, and then going on to Syria. The Israelis are having a fit about it. Calling it provocative etc.

I suspect the two ships will make a point of entering the Israeli No Go blockade zone off the coast of Gaza with a specific intention to take on the Israelis. Everyone's been bitching about the illegality of the Israeli blockade but no one has done anything about it. Perhaps the Iranians intend to do so.

If that's the case, its another reason to go via South Africa instead of mucking about in the Middle East.

As for the Dutch couple? Ballsy. Stupid but Ballsy.

Sabre

Everyone's been bitching about the illegality of the Israeli blockade but no one has done anything about it? Are you for real?

Papa Joe · 20-02-2011, 17:07

There are regular scheduled convoys with both naval vessels and helicopter gunships, checkin slots every half hour etc. Additionally, there are several private services for just this scenerio. I think that we have three in the Ft. Lauderdale area that work world wide. If you absolutely insist on going in harms way contact some of these folks or join a convoy. It seems foolish to be entering the area to start off with.

stevensuf · 21-02-2011, 01:01

mark, funnily enough i was in egypt last year and 2 friends were in cario, and they had tourist police, they would walk 100 yards behind you and keep an eye in the distance.

svBeBe · 21-02-2011, 02:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by joey69

They were in a Bluewater Rally Convoy and left it to go hand out bibles.

The above statement is so wrong, so uninformed and downright [fill in the blank]

No they did not!

They were docked next to us in Cochin, India and unlike the "person" making the above posting, I know the facts.

I will not waste any more time responding to this.

Best,

Bill
s/v BeBe

svBeBe · 21-02-2011, 02:12

Regarding the original subject of this thread, we are currently docked near the Dutch couple's yacht s/y Alondra.

Alondra had organized a group of about 30 yachts and was asking for escort for the group when he was turned down. The 30 yachts have since scattered, some going South Africa later this year, some returning to Thailand, some already in Salalah, Oman and some hiring a Yacht Transport company to transport their yachts.

The Dutch couple has a website describing the now defunct TTT (Thailand to Turkey) Rally: Welcome

Best,

Bill
s/v BeBe

Doodles · 21-02-2011, 02:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by svBeBe

The above statement is so wrong, so uninformed and downright [fill in the blank]

No they did not!

They were docked next to us in Cochin, India and unlike the "person" making the above posting, I know the facts.

I will not waste any more time responding to this.

Best,

Bill
s/v BeBe

Bill, did they say why they were leaving the rally? Randal Johnson also mentioned he had spoken with them in Cochin but didn't say anything about why they chose to leave the rally. It is curious that they would leave at that point. Just asking.

svBeBe · 21-02-2011, 02:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doodles

Bill, did they say why they were leaving the rally? Randal Johnson also mentioned he had spoken with them in Cochin but didn't say anything about why they chose to leave the rally. It is curious that they would leave at that point. Just asking.

The Blue Water Rally (BWR) said they "left the rally." I do not buy it. When Quest left here they were part of the BWR. Quest had just joined the BWR in Phuket, Thailand...they were not leaving...no way!

Quest was the last boat to leave Cochin, India for Mumbai, India. This was the route of the BWR. The BWR had a "top secret" route from Mumbai to Salalah. I think it was after leaving Mumbai, hugging the coast until as far north as 24 degrees, then west to Muskat, Oman, then sailing close to the coast of Oman to Salalah.

As near as I can tell, Quest decided to sail the rhumb line from Mumbai to Salalah...this is my assumption based on the rhumb line and 18N 61E, which was the position they were taken.

Now, all of that said, the BWR normally does not sail in formation or even together for that matter...they give advice, but it is up to the skipper.

Almost all of the BWR left Cochin over a 1 week period...a few a day, so they certainly were not sailing in formation from here...and I know for a fact that they did not sail in formation anywhere between Thailand and here...additionally some of the BWR boats went to the Maldives rather than Cochin. So, I think you can see that it is a normal course of business of the BWR to scatter then get together at the next planned port.

My guess is that Quest decided that the rhumb line course was better. I would argue that he was correct. I have personally plotted every recorded pirate attack for the last 2 years. The rhumb line course would have reduced Quest's time in dangerous waters by 40%. In fact, if I were sailing to Salalah from Cochin, it would be basically a rhumb line course after I cleared the islands off India's west coast. The fact is, we determined that it is too dangerous this year vs last year with about a 13 time increase in pirate activity in the IO. We are shipping BeBe to the Med.

Bottom line: I am very disappointed in the BWR for publicly disparaging one of their own to keep from tarnishing their reputation...really poor!

Hope this answers your question.

Bill
s/v BeBe

Doodles · 21-02-2011, 02:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by svBeBe

The Blue Water Rally (BWR) said they "left the rally." I do not buy it. When Quest left here they were part of the BWR. Quest had just joined the BWR in Phuket, Thailand...they were not leaving...no way!

Quest was the last boat to leave Cochin, India for Mumbai, India. This was the route of the BWR. The BWR had a "top secret" route from Mumbai to Salalah. I think it was after leaving Mumbai, hugging the coast until as far north as 24 degrees, then west to Muskat, Oman, then sailing close to the coast of Oman to Salalah.

As near as I can tell, Quest decided to sail the rhumb line from Mumbai to Salalah...this is my assumption based on the rhumb line and 18N 61E, which was the position they were taken.

Now, all of that said, the BWR normally does not sail in formation or even together for that matter...they give advice, but it is up to the skipper.

Almost all of the BWR left Cochin over a 1 week period...a few a day, so they certainly were not sailing in formation from here...and I know for a fact that they did not sail in formation anywhere between Thailand and here...additionally some of the BWR boats went to the Maldives rather than Cochin. So, I think you can see that it is a normal course of business of the BWR to scatter then get together at the next planned port.

My guess is that Quest decided that the rhumb line course was better. I would argue that he was correct. I have personally plotted every recorded pirate attack for the last 2 years. The rhumb line course would have reduced Quest's time in dangerous waters by 40%. In fact, if I were sailing to Salalah from Cochin, it would be basically a rhumb line course after I cleared the islands off India's west coast. The fact is, we determined that it is too dangerous this year vs last year with about a 13 time increase in pirate activity in the IO. We are shipping BeBe to the Med.

Bottom line: I am very disappointed in the BWR for publicly disparaging one of their own to keep from tarnishing their reputation...really poor!

Hope this answers your question.

Bill
s/v BeBe

Yes it did, and thanks. If I understand you correctly, it sounds like they felt their course would be safer than the BWR course. Personally, with everyone leaving over a week's period and no escort, your analysis makes a lot of sense.

SabreKai · 21-02-2011, 08:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by DannySt

Everyone's been bitching about the illegality of the Israeli blockade but no one has done anything about it? Are you for real?

Yes, very real. I don't consider sending a yacht full of unarmed people in there in protest as doing anything besides getting themselves martyred.

Somali pirates hijacking ships with valuable cargo is costing someone money. That can not be allowed. Putting a wall around Gaza and starving the locals to death is not costing anyone any money. Ergo nothing substantive has been done, nor will be done.

Anything further on this is getting political and inflammatory. Its my opinion, just as you have yours.

Sabre