Where in the world is - THAT WHALEBOAT?

Yesterday I didn't write because we were approached with a unique logistical problem. The XO of a naval base sent me an email that he had a 26-foot motor whaleboat - the main staple power boat for US Navy ships for more than 80 years. The hull is in great shape, and just as a test one of the enginemen on base started her six cylinder diesel last month. She only needs a little TLC to get back on the water. This boat, he said, was destined to be scrapped (sounds familiar) unless we would take it off his hands for the bargain sub-basement price of $free.

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Now, as a bit of background, these are not exactly ugly boats. Their lines are very similar to the Monomoy Pulling Boat we use because the first ones were just that - motorized Monomoys. They are stout, seaworthy boats that saw a great variety of service in the navy and for a long time could be found on each and every navy ship in service. Today, as the navy auctions them as surplus, eager restoration types gobble them up and turn them into pleasure launches, selling for upwards of $30,000. A boat like this would be perfect to start the NHS Power Squadron, but we feared we could never afford one - until now.

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Of course as with most major opportunities, it comes with a catch. She's at the COMNAVMARINAS (Commander Naval Forces Marianas) base in Guam. I'll take a minute for you to Google that. Yes, 3,820 miles from Hawaii, which itself is 2,563 miles from Los Angeles, which is 2,350 miles from Norfolk. Wait - math time.

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3,820+2,563+2,350=8,733 miles

The circumference of the Earth at the Equator is 24,901 miles.

8,733/24,901 = 35% of the distance around the Earth, or only 70% of the way to the exact opposite side.

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Whew - I thought it would be too far. I draw the line at travel for any object more than 50% of the distance around the Earth.

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SO - now the question becomes how do we get this 5,500 lb boat and its 2,000 lb cradle to this side of the planet. We need a ship, we need a train, we need to pull our minds back on this side of the gunwale. Realizing that this is near impossible, the thought of a perfectly good boat being scrapped on the other side of the planet simply because we could not get to it appalling. Several of us are, in fact, Merchant Marine Officers - at least we were before we joined the Navy - so we've been calling our classmates to see if they can help. So far, we've established that if we could fit her into a shipping container, we can send it. Unfortunately, she's several inches too wide. We could break her a little, but we'll leave that as Plan X. Point is, if we could come up with a free ride in a container around the world, what can we do without one?

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Lots of thinking, lots of phone calls, emails etc. And the wood chips have stopped flying, at least for the next day - until we get this potential gem figured out or abandon it.

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Thanks to all of our donors who've pledged money to get her here - you'll be the first to know when new developments arise.

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