Archive for July, 2011
Some things you never need until you wish you had them…
There’s a lot of things that may fall into this category. I shudder when I think of how many Mickey Mantle cards I put on my bicycle as a young lad with a clothes pin and let it flap on the spokes of my wheels to make my simple 2 wheel bicycle sound like a motorcycle (in my own mind). Now those cards would bring in enough money to pay off my mortgage!! ….but we didn’t know that then – after all, they were only worth a penny back then! Oh well, time keeps going forward and we have to swallow those things we did that we can no longer bring back to re-do. Some other things in today’s world that fit that category may include insurance for a certain thing, or maybe a VHF Marine Radio capable of broadcasting NOAA weather updates and warnings/alerts. You buy them, install them, listen to them, and maybe never need them. Hopefully this is true for you. The trouble with that is that we get sluggish in our planning when things are going well – you know – kinda chugging along nice and easy. When, suddenly you find yourself with a broken down outboard motor, a storm coming and things caving in all around you rapidly. Sure would be nice to say to your friends and guests on board that you are in communication with the USCG via your VHF marine radio and they are on the way to help you. These little radios are very inexpensive and could (and have) save your life. Happy Boater.
Tractors need communication too…
I know I usually blog about marine radios and communication available for boats and pontoons, but lets consider for a minute all those farmers out there that are spending a lot of time in the fields right about this time of the year. My brother-in-law farms in Kansas and I know he has spent some really long days in the fields lately…after all, when the crops are ripe for picking, they’re ripe for picking…no ifs, ands, or buts, about it. While they’re out in the fields, it sure would be nice to have communication with the home base, wouldn’t it? Now, I’m not sure he even has a radio in his tractor, but I intend to ask him. Of course, some of his fields are up to 5 miles away from his home base, so a CB radio wouldn’t work without a tall antenna, but a VHF Radio certainly would work – as long as there are no hills or tall buildings between the 2 points of broadcast. That’s because the beams travel in a straight line and don’t easily “sneak” around hills or buildings. That’s also why they work better on the water than on land. With them you can achieve a broadcast distance of over 20 miles. Whichever you choose – a CB Radio, or a VHF Radio – you can be sure of one thing…they will be more on time for supper!! …..and happy wives make for happy lives. Happy Boater.
Another year older…
Man – those years seem to fly by fast! Just yesterday I turned another year older. Friends and family all got together which is always fun! …always plenty of good food!! It does make a guy sit back a bit and just think about the things he wanted to get done this past year and maybe a lot of those things haven’t even been started yet. Hopefully you have had more success getting your list of things done than I have had, but I’m still sure there are a lot of you out there that are in the same boat as I’m in – playing catch-up. The good news is that with every passing year, the technology surrounding the makeup of VHF radios and marine speakers is more advanced than the previous year. Digital formatting is on the front line now and there are still a lot of “old style” new radios out there on the store shelves. Make sure that if you purchase a new marine radio that it is of the new digital type. There will still be a lot of “new”, “still-in-the-box” deals out there on e-bay, but be aware of what you may be buying. Unless you get such a deal you can’t pass it by, the new radios are no more expensive than the old radios and why pay the same price for an old style radio when you can get an up-to-date digital radio for the same price. With these new radios, you will be able to enhance your listening (and hearing/understanding) ability when monitoring or making a radio transmission. Be kind to yourself and upgrade today. Happy Boater.
Someone’s glad they listened to the radio weather warnings!
Just 2 days ago I was driving around and took my wife out for an ice cream cone when we got the idea to go take a look at the lake since the wind had really come up and sometimes you get some really impressive waves coming in. I’ve seen waves up to 30 feet (from valley to the crest) hit the shores of Lake Superior – those are the kind you don’t want to mess with. Anyway, on this particular day, the prevailing winds were from the east and were really pounding the shore. The normal boat landing which is on the harbor side of the break wall is unusable right now as they are making a new marina. In the meantime, the boaters us the “less-than -desirable” temporary boat launch at another bay in town. First, my compliments to whoever put that little dock in because it was still in place with waves pounding into it and rolling over the top of it by over 2 feet. It’s a mystery to me why in the world it wasn’t pounded to pieces. Those winds and systems are the kind of things you want to be forewarned of in enough time to be able to react to them. If you had a VHF marine radio on board, channel 16 would bring you updates of the weather as it unfolds and you will be given ample time to react to the forecast. It’s for sure you don’t want to be caught off guard and try to dock your boat in waves like that – you’d be swamped!! Take heed to warnings like this one and outfit your boat with the proper communication equipment – after all it only has to pay for itself once to be invaluable!! Happy Boater.
Music can make it or break it…
Summer is here – warm temps abound (sometimes too much so) – friends and neighbors have more free time…why not book a party?? One neat idea would be to book a party on your pontoon boat! Everyone likes that – after all, they didn’t earn the title “party barge” by accident. When planning this party (either on the boat or in your back yard with outside speakers), make sure you step back a few paces and consider the ages of the folks you will be inviting to your party. That accomplished, choose the type of music most fitting for the age group. Baby boomers may really enjoy “50′s/60′s” music whereas the younger generation may enjoy (although it’s not my taste) hip hop. Now, certainly you can get some of this music by just tuning in a favorite radio station, but why not pre-record you music on your MP3 memory stick or your I-Pod and simply plug it into your marine radio on board the pontoon? The digital format is incredible and when played through a set of marine speakers, it gives it a concert sound that will please all at your party. Your friends will enjoy an evening that they will remember. It’s a time to forget the stresses of the work-a-day world we all live in. Happy Boater.
CB’s are well rounded in their applications…
It sure seems like as long as there have been trucks, there have been CB radios. At least, that’s where I think they got their start. I’m sure glad they got their start somewhere, otherwise there would be a lot of folks coming up on the short end of the stick for communication needs today. Think about it…a lot of farmers use them in the fields to communicate with home, boats use them to communicate between other boats in their fishing group, construction workers use them on the job site, factories use them to contact someone in the warehouse, and it goes right down the line to commercial boats, trucks, motorcyclists, snowmobilers, vacationers, truckers, and many, many more folks just like you. CB’s aren’t dead – they didn’t die off in the 60′s like a lot of folks think…they’re out there and I believe they’re more popular today than they were 20 years ago. The best thing is that they are very affordable. Granted, the broadcast distance isn’t as great as a VHF Radio, but you can sure have fun with them in a 1 -2 mile radius. Get on board and enjoy. Happy Boater.
To me, music is all about the crisp, clear bass notes.
Now, some of you may not agree with my stand on this, but I tend to really enjoy a crisp, clear bass sound as it rumbles out of the speakers and you can actually feel them note by note in your stomach. Maybe some of you like the high notes – good for you! It takes all kinds to make the world go ’round. The point is, if you don’t have good marine speakers on your boat with which to play your music, you won’t be happy. You don’t want to “choke” out your music as it plays. How is it that that old song puts it??? ….”music makes the world go ’round”! If you have a poor day of fishing, you can at least say that you really enjoyed the music! (music is really hard to fry in the fry pan, though) Don’t cut yourself short on music quality. I’m really quite sure that anyone can tell the difference between “ok” sound and “great” sound when played through 2 different sets of speakers. Why not go first class when it costs so very little more. Life is good. Happy Boater.
Speakers can make it or break it…
When you install a great marine radio into your boat and you decide to save a couple of dollars and use your old marine speakers, you’ve only cheated yourself out of a great listening experience. I dare say, that your opinion of the new radio you just installed (as good as it may be) may not be a good as it should be. Why?? …because you may be trying to send high quality digital sound through a speaker that is not capable of handling it. In may ways, it is just like trying to drive to work on a rutted logging road when you have a freeway available to you. Don’t get stuck in one of those ruts. Make sure your speakers are capable of handling the watts of output your radio is sending to them. If they are not matched, you will never achieve the quality (wow factor) that you had hoped for when you purchased the radio. And it gets better…(yeah, I know it sounds like an info-mercial from TV) …the new speakers are weather proof so if it rains on them, your speakers won’t get hurt at all!! Many hours of enjoyment are straight ahead for you and your guests. Happy Boater.
Hit the water – take a break from mowing the lawn!!
I just finished mowing my 3-1/2 acres of lawn. Man, that gets to be a job when it’s in the upper 80′s and mid 90′s outside with high humidity. My eyes burn from the pollen when I’m done, but never-the-less, it needs to be done every week. Now, I really don’t mind mowing the lawn, but it sure is good for the soul to be able to hit the water and bob around a bit in the evening hours after all that pollen. It gives the ol’ eyes a break in the fresh air and rejuvenates the soul. Who knows, you may even catch a fish and what fun it would be to plug in one of your favorite CD’s and listen to your favorite music during your cruise. Nice. You don’t really have to even bring a CD with you – your I-pod or a MP3 will do because they simply plug into your marine radio receiver and presto – you have hours of fine listening surrounding you. Get on board with these fine ideas and install one of these fine radios into your pontoon or boat today. You’re never too old to enjoy music!!! Happy Boater.
Take Steps Now So Later you won’t have to say…”If only I had….”
When you’re on the water, you never want to find yourself in a place that requires you to start out a sentence with “If only I had…” when it comes to safety and communication items. With these little VHF Marine Radios so improved and affordable, there is really no reason why you can’t stay in constant radio communication with regular weather updates as well as the comfort feeling of knowing that if an emergency should arise, all you had to do was to dial in channel 16 (normally you should be there anyway) and you’d be able to reach the USCG for assistance. It doesn’t get much better than that! You’ll be able to receive NOAA weather at your fingertips so you will have plenty of time to reach a safe harbor should the need arise. Right now – believe it or not – in northern Minnesota are having hot, muggy weather conditions. Now, when we usually have it somewhat cool, and that cool air collides with the hot, muggy stuff we’ve had for the last couple of days, something has to happen. When that happens, you want the best and latest up-to-date information – especially if you’re on the water. Enjoy you summer on the water, but do it safely with the proper equipment at your fingertips. Happy Boater.