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If you are a “wannabe” cruiser with questions, there are plenty of us out here to give you answers. One of the defining characteristics of the cruising community is our opinionatedness (is that a word?).

But there is a far more insidious aspect to this opinionatedness an evangelical quality that we take on when we talk or write about cruising. We assert, either covertly or overtly, that cruising is a panacea for people like us, we who have rejected the material world, are seeking enlightenment from nature, want to living off the land, crave adventure, or whatever motivators put us onto a floating home. There is a kind of arrogance in our position especially, dare I say it, among sail boaters that implies that we have found “the way.”

As I look over books and articles that I and others in the fleet have written, I recognize potential snags in what we say. We do mean well when we transmit our opinions, but the assertions can be misleading, especially to novice cruisers investing our words with more weight and significance than they should have.

“Go NOW!”

One example is the “Go Now” slogan. It is usually said in the context of “There will never be an ideal time to go, so go now!” Most of us who write and talk about cruising have this message somewhere in what we’re saying. Our point is that it can be really easy to come up with reasons why you can’t take off on a boat. We are trying to keep you from just thinking about it the rest of your life, and are cheering you on to take the leap sooner than later. We talk about the great places we have visited, the challenges we’ve surmounted, the great people we’ve met along the way. Even when we talk about the down sides of cruising, we inevitably wind up saying that the rewards outweigh the discomforts.

I myself listened to the “Go Now” cheer from the crowd. My desire to go cruising overrode other matters in my first and second experiences. I first took off on a boat that was still partially owned by the bank because we didn’t want to do what we needed to pay her off first. Better to go now, right? That monthly payment was a weight around our necks the whole time we were on the water.

The second time I left before I was mentally ready to goI had built a business that was just shifting into high gear. Because we were so focused on cruising and listening to the “Go Now” siren song, I chose to sell the business and leave. Even though I enjoyed the cruise, I still never stopped regretting that choice. I didn’t allow myself to experience fruits from all of my hard work. If I had stayed even just one more year, I could have left feeling a lot more complete about what remained behind.

“Don’t Be a Weenie!”

Another message directed especially at budding first mates comes from the “sisterhood of the water” the distaff side of cruising couples who write and talk about cruising. Almost invariably, we (and I include myself in this group) talk about the lifestyle in glowing terms. Some of us will admit that we first entered it in the shadows of our husbands or boyfriends, but we will go on to list all the fabulous things that have come from the experience. We assert that if we hadn’t made the decision to support our partners in their dream, we would have missed out on the experience of a lifetime. And we imply, usually unwittingly, that it should be okay to leave family and creature comforts behind, that having those (or similar) issues is the mark of a milquetoast.

There are voices that are not being heard. In addition to meeting many women who love cruising, I have met a number of women on the water who were very unhappy. Some were deeply depressed. They missed their families, they missed their homes, they didn’t like sailing, and didn’t enjoy what they considered “roughing it.” And many of them felt very guilty about it. A few even admitted that they were afraid that the relationship with their partners would end if they hadn’t agreed to go cruising!

What makes a woman go cruising against her preferences? That is a very complex subject, and not one I’m qualified to tackle…so I won’t go there, except for one thing. I believe that we - the first mates who do love the lifestyle contribute to the problem unknowingly. I went back and reread some of the stuff I’ve written in the past, then I read material from other women on the water, and it came to me that we may be putting peer pressure on budding first mates. And that I experienced this kind of pressure when I first went cruising.

Don’t misunderstand. I’m glad I did it. I love to cruise. The peer pressure worked on me. I did embrace the challenges and allowed the rewards to outweigh the discomforts. But what about the women for whom the peer pressure didn’t work? Those who gave it a try, found that it wasn’t their cup of tea, but are afraid to say so? Could their unhappiness be avoided? I think so.

A first mate in training needs to be very clear with her partner about the terms under which she will participate that is, what aspects of their cruising life are important to her, what are non-negotiable, and what she will compromise on. For example, flying home to visit family and friends twice a year might be a non-negotiable term; if so, the cost for this item will need to be incorporated into the budget, which might impact how far they will cruise.

On the other hand, she might be willing to compromise regarding how often they will stay in marinas three nights a month, say, instead of the ten or more that she’d prefer in order to save money. Understanding her terms will allow the cruising couple to create a plan for the lifestyle that will suit both of them.

Do This, Don’t Do That!

I recently read an article by a guy who is out cruising, giving advice about how to prepare for a life on the water. The points he made were valid, but I felt my hackles rise as I read. His style of advice-giving was so pompous. He pontificated about the “right” way to do things…the “right” way, of course, being the way that he did it. The subliminal message was that you’d better do the same or you’ll be sorry.

YOU WILL TAKE SAILING COURSES BEFORE YOU LEAVE!

YOU WILL PRACTICE AT EVERY OPPORTUNITY!

YOU WILL CONSTRUCT A BUDGET AND NET WORTH STATEMENT!

If you’re like me, anyone who orders you to follow a particular route in any of life’s enterprises is suspect. The challenge for me with these people is to keep from throwing the baby out with the bath water I have to make a conscious effort to separate their communication style from the information, and then consider the information in its own right.

Please remember that none of us in the cruising village is an expert. The best we can do is give our opinions and suggestions based on our own experiences and style of cruising. You need to decide if the information we’re giving you fits your own circumstances. I will do my best, in giving my own opinions, to refrain from evangelizing and dictating the “right” way. Please forgive me if I slip from time to time after all, I am a cruiser!!

Trish Lambert has been a cruising sailor for over twenty years and a first mate three times, with three different skippers and three very different cruising styles. She knows first hand what makes cruising successful, and what she has to share may surprise you! Whether you are a skipper or first mate, a singlehander or part of a cruising couple, sail boater or power boater, Trish can help make your cruising dream a reality. Check out her site at http://www.takehersailing.com for a wealth of cruising information.

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Ever wonder how those professional voiceovers are completed without respiration? Whenever we hear these voice over vocals, we rarely hear them breathe. These narrators are working with microphone and amplification instruments so the smallest breath would be detected. Yet we do not hear any inhaling or exhaling on these voiceover tracks. We think that they must be holding their breath as taugh to them during some strict voice over training. This is typically, and hopefully, not the case. These breaths are taken out in post production. Sometimes, instead of removing entirely, the editor will lower the pitch or volume on the breath so that it is less noticeable but still evident. This is why having access to a voice over production studio is so important to your project. Without it, your voiceover talent will be forced to deliver lines in one take without breathing which is not ideal to say the least.

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Say you want to scuba dive but your significant other is not a diver and would rather do other activities like shopping. If you both decided to go on a Caribbean cruise vacation, is it still possible for you to go scuba diving? The answer is yes. This will be a big relief to all certified scuba divers who are going on cruises with itineraries that include such great scuba dive destinations as Cozumel and Grand Cayman. After all, as certified scuba divers, it would be a shame to go to these ports and not dive.

Many cruise ships offer scuba diving as part of their available shore excursions. Some ships even have small dive centers on board for those who want to take introductory sessions in the ship pools. These cruise lines will often have business contracts with local dive operators at each port that has scuba diving. These local dive operators will take certified scuba divers on boat trips on behalf of the cruise lines. Booking and payment will be through the cruise ships rather than the local dive operators. The cruise lines claim that if for any reason the scuba trips run late, the cruise ships will not leave port until all passengers from these cruise ship organized excursions are back on board. They won’t wait around for passengers who decide to take their own excursions not booked through the cruise ship. This is how the cruise ships try to convince divers to take their excursions even if the cost is usually at a premium compared to what local dive operators would normally charge directly.

Another way to get some scuba diving in during a cruise vacation is to make arrangements and book in advance with local scuba dive operators at each port you are interested in diving at. Although there is always some risk in missing your port departure if your own outing runs late, just make sure you plan your own dive trips so that you are back on the ship well in advance of port departure. Usually if your cruise ship arrives at port early in the morning, you could book the morning dive trips with the local operator and still have the rest of the afternoon to shop or do other sightseeing. For later arrivals where you would miss the morning dive trips, it is still possible to take the local operators’ afternoon dive trips but in this case, it is very important to make sure that you confirm what the estimated time of return to the docks are. If you can return to the docks at least two hours before the cruise ship’s scheduled time of departure, than you will have ample time even if the dive boat returns a bit late. It it’s only an hour or less, the timing may be too tight. See if the dive operator has a shorter single tank afternoon trip which might get you back to the docks earlier.

Some local dive operators even have special pick up and drop off services to and from the cruise ship terminals to their dive shops. These dive businesses are obviously making an effort to take some dive business away from the cruise ship organized excursions. These particular local dive operators would be ideal if you could find them before your cruise vacation. Otherwise, you may have to take a local taxi to the dive shop if it is not within walking distance of the cruise ship terminal. Of course, this is usually not a problem either and even with the added cost of taxis, the overall cost of going with a local dive operator may still be lower than the cruise ship organized dive excursion.

Some cruise ship passengers have successfully gotten on local dive trips without any advance booking. These divers just walked into a local dive operator once at port. Although this is certainly feasible, it is not recommended especially in a destination that fills dive trips up quickly. With the internet, it is quite easy to make arrangements with many local dive operators in advance of your cruise vacation. Tell them which day your cruise ship will be coming in and the expected time of both arrival as well as departure. Some ports like Cozumel have more than one cruise ship terminal so it’s important to let them know if possible which one your ship will be docked in. They will then give you your best options for some scuba diving for that particular day.

Clint Leung is a NAUI certified Master and Rescue Scuba Diver. He is also owner of Free Spirit Activewear (www.FreeSpiritActivewear.com) , an online retailer/designer specializing in premium quality scuba diving activewear. Free Spirit Activewear has numerous information resource articles on scuba diving as well as free eCards.

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