Newsletter #22
Newsletter #22 - September 22, 2009
ActiveCaptain - the wave of the future?
In This Issue:
- "ActiveCaptain Could be the Wave of the Future"
- Free Docks and Anchorages
- Rescue at Sea
- Where's ActiveCaptain?
"ActiveCaptain Could be the Wave of the Future"
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Those are the words of Tom Tripp in his recent article about ActiveCaptain in the online publication OceanLines. We blush but still feel proud that what started as a simple idea 3 years ago has taken off and gained recognition. We thank all our Captains for helping us!
You can read the entire article at:
http://tinyurl.com/OceanLinesActiveCaptain
Free Docks and Anchorages
==========================
We all like to stretch our cruising dollars when possible. After all, that translates into more cruising. A good way is to find a free spot to spend the night. ActiveCaptain has the largest database of anchorages in existence. If you're looking for a place of quiet beauty to spend a few days or a secure spot just for the night, you can find it on ActiveCaptain.
While choosing from thousands of places to drop the hook is valuable, sometimes a free tie up, bulkhead, or mooring is preferable. And you have been letting us know about those as well! What isn't clear is how these markers should be categorized. It could be a municipal dock, a wall by a lock, or a complimentary mooring. The key is a consistent way to locate them. In the past they've been entered as marinas, anchorages, boat ramps, and in a variety of other inventive forms.
We've decided it's time to make an executive decision. Any location indicating a free overnight stay will be noted as an anchorage marker from now on. We have already been working with Captains to modify entries, if needed, and we will be correcting existing entries as we find them - you can edit them too if you come across them. If a wall, mooring, or overnight tie up has any type of fee, it should be a red marina marker instead.
Based on feedback from our Captains, we will also be enhancing the anchorage marker to include a field for dinghy access and one for local services (walkable-distance groceries, hardware stores, etc). Look for these new fields in the upcoming release of ActiveCaptain Explorer and let us know what other information would be helpful.
Rescue at Sea
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Would it be going too far to say that ActiveCaptain helped save a Captain and his boat? Probably, but we like to think we had a small role in helping Captain Keith Olive get safely back to port after an engine room emergency. Here's the story in his own words:
We were cruising in Canada and stopped for the night at Cowichan
Bay Marina. We met another owner of the same boat we use, an
Albin 25. We gave each other tours of our respective boats and I
lifted the hood to our engine compartment to find 4" of sea water
in the compartment and quickly found the leak. There was a
galvanized section of 2" pipe that a previous owner had put in the
exhaust that was rusted out and leaking water into the compartment.
I quickly reached for the Rescue Tape, wrapped the rusty pipe and
stopped the leak. Of course, this was in the evening and I could
not remove the part for repair. But the tape prevented ANY water
from coming in and I was able to remove the part and replace it
with a new part later the next day. Perfect timing on the rescue
tape award. THANK YOU!
So keep contributing to ActiveCaptain to earn those points and receive free products - like Rescue Tape. Who knows, maybe one of those freebies could help you have a happy ending too.
Where's ActiveCaptain Now?
===========================
Just as we were leaving Maine we enabled a SPOT Satellite Personal Tracker device on aCappella. Whenever we're moving, it records our position every 10 minutes and makes it publicly available. You can see our current position and most recent track at: http://tinyurl.com/ActiveCaptainSPOT
Last week we attended the 4 day MTOA Rendezvous in Crisfield, Maryland. We saw some old friends, met lots of new folks, and had a great time. If you own a trawler and are not familiar with the Marine Trawler Owner's Association check them out at:
http://www.mtoa.net/
If you join, make sure you tell them you heard about MTOA from ActiveCaptain. See more about the event on our blog and even watch a video of our Coffee House Performance on the September 16, 2009 entry:
http://takingpaws.blogspot.com/2009/09/coffee-house.html
We're currently heading towards the Rhode River near Annapolis for the Seven Seas Cruising Association (SSCA) Gam - if you're attending, be sure to look us up. Next is TrawlerFest in Solomons, Maryland. The rest of October will be spent exploring the southern Chesapeake Bay with no plans, meetings, or events. In November, we'll be in Georgia at the Brunswick Landing Marina.
We hope to meet you on the water!
==================================
Karen and Jeffrey Siegel
aCappella
Castine, Maine
www.activecaptain.com
The Interactive Cruising Guidebook
Newsletter Archive
| 2010-07-21 | #35 - My Card, messaging, and more... |
| 2010-06-29 | #34 - New ActiveCaptain award... |
| 2010-06-02 | #33 - MaxSea Time Zero v1.9 Released |
| 2010-05-18 | #32 - ActiveCaptain loves the iPhone/iPad |
| 2010-04-27 | #31 - Coastal Explorer Now Available |
| 2010-04-14 | #30 - ActiveCaptain Loves Coastal Explorer |
| 2010-03-16 | #29 - ActiveCaptain Co-Ops - This is big... |
| 2010-02-23 | #28 - ActiveCaptain "X" is now live |
| 2010-02-15 | #27 - ActiveCaptain Loves MaxSea/Furuno |
| 2010-01-19 | #26 - ActiveCaptain 2010 |
| 2009-12-10 | #25 - ActiveCaptain X goes beta |
| 2009-11-17 | #24 - Quick Lists |
| 2009-10-20 | #23 - A fresh look at the iPhone |
| 2009-09-22 | #22 - Are we the wave of the future? |
| 2009-08-19 | #21 - ActiveCaptain Sets Sail |
| 2009-07-21 | #20 - Rescue Tape for 150 Points |
| 2009-07-14 | #19 - ActiveCaptain Rocks! |
| 2009-07-01 | #18 - ActiveCaptain Gets a Facelift |
| 2009-06-02 | #17 - Another ActiveCaptain award! |
| 2009-05-19 | #16 - Hats off to you! |
| 2009-05-06 | #15 - Twitter, New PodCast, and more |
| 2009-03-17 | #14 - Using phones in the Bahamas |
| 2009-03-03 | #13 - The best fuel prices |
| 2009-01-28 | #12 - SAIL innovation award |
| 2009-01-05 | #11 - Power accessories article |
| 2008-12-02 | #10 - Bluetooth headsets article |
| 2008-10-28 | #9 - The next wave |
| 2008-09-13 | #8 - ActiveCaptain Mobile news |
| 2008-06-15 | #7 - Mad Mariner |
| 2008-03-12 | #6 - ActiveCaptain Mobile |
| 2008-01-21 | #5 - Inlets |
| 2007-09-19 | #4 - Boat ramps |
| 2007-07-09 | #3 - Local knowledge released |
| 2007-04-14 | #2 - Global support |
| 2007-02-11 | #1 - Anchorages released |
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