Who Are These People?!

You definitely meet an eclectic group of folks who have decided that voyaging in sailboats is their thing.

At least here in the Bahamas, if I had to generalize or market to this group I'd say the demographic reads something like this: Married couple mid-60s. There's at least an even chance there was an early retirement involved. He worked in a technical field, perhaps engineering, where he made a pretty good living. She also worked. Probably it was his dream, at least initially, but she's come around to the idea, although it may have taken a bit of time to get there. Many couples -- and it's a married male-female couple 85 percent of the time -- have been doing the Bahamas circuit for several years. They are retracing old routes and have plans to go to x cay and z harbor they've never gotten down to before now. Everyone professes to be on a tight budget, but it's clear that these folks have a different definition of "tight" than we do. They aren't worried. 

Their boat? A fairly modern fin-keeler with lots of space and good working systems -- say, a post 2000 Beneteau of about 40 to 42'. There are a few with older boats, such as ours, in this demographic and some budgets that are fairly tight, but these folks seem to be less common.

We are wedged into an odd place on the cruising spectrum. People tend to be either retired or fairly young. The younger crowd are, as you might imagine, less conservative, more willing to take chances and go with boats that are less well kitted out. Often it's two guy friends. Their boats are smaller and older. They stay up late and miss Chris Parker's shortwave broadcast (if indeed, they even know it exists). By contrast, the typical demographic noted above tends to listen to that forecast religiously. These folks are looking for the perfect (no drama) passage and won't leave the dock or the anchorage until they get it. It's a science for them.

The irony is that despite the influence of the now-octogenarian Lin and Larry Pardy to "go simple, go small, go now" it is the younger cruisers, if anyone, who have taken that advice to heart. The "typical" (older) demographic have gone mostly complicated, big, and later (i.e., after retirement).

The younger cruisers' boat might be a Morgan 30 or something of unusual vintage. A dog's breakfast of older systems that may or may not be operating. The engine "works fine" but is troublesome.

There are also a few single-handers, but very few in my estimation. Interesting, a fairly even split between men and women. They tend to be a bit younger than the typical demographic -- maybe mid-50s, although we are talking about such a small group that it's hard to get an accurate read. Sailing is hard work, and it's a lot for one person to handle.

We fall awkwardly in the middle of all this. We are certainly not in the "young cruiser" crowd, and not in the retired group, either. Of course, Noi is younger than I am, which throws the calculus off a bit. But, like the young guns, our boat is older, our budget is tighter and our systems are not quite as complex, and not all in the best of shape. But, we tend to identify with the other end when it comes to sailing conservatively.

I'd say there's roughly a 50-50 mix of dog and cat people.

Since Noi and I are waiting for weather at Grand Bahamas Yacht Club along with several other cruisers, we decided to have an impromptu pot luck last night. Perhaps it wasn't representative of the folks "who go down to the sea in small boats," but it's a glimpse:

At the table were Noel and Suki, who own a Hans Christian 38 -- similar in appearance and displacement to our boat (people often confuse the two). As an aside, we met Noel and Suki on the dock a few days ago and I remember remarking to Noi that they reminded me of a couple we had met several years ago on a sailing trip to Newport, R.I. Even the boat was similar, but not exactly the same. Talking to Noel later, something he said sparked an epiphany that it was indeed the very same couple. Apparently, the two of them were head-scratching toward the same realization. Their boat had been repainted green and renamed.

Noel and Suki are about our age and live in Malaysia now. Noel works in the petroleum industry.

Then there's Thomas and Patty, formerly Canadaians who are now U.S. citizens. They live in Titusville, Fla. Retired. I gather that he was an engineer. It is their seventh cruise in the Bahamas. They own a newer Bristol of about 40'. 

Jeb and Greg, Australian friends are aboard a German-made boat called a Neptune, 31' if I recall. It's the same vintage as ours (1978). Jeb bought it in Florida and the two of them are on an open-ended itinerary and seem to be deciding how to do as they go along. Good on 'em.