From World's Fastest Ocean Liner To World's Largest Artificial Reef
The Tugboat Trip of a Lifetime
It is a long journey from buying a dilapidated tugboat and spending ten months getting it seaworthy to owning a trustworthy fleet that is sought after for difficult tows.
That is the life journey taken by Mike Vinik of Keyport, N.J. His present fleet of tugboats couldn't be more different than that first derelict tug. Read the entire story HERE.
Click on the Vinik Marine link in the story. It'll take uou to their webpage that has a 20min. video that's pretty informative. Even as a derelict, that ship is still impressive AF. I can only imagine that thing in it's hey-day. -lg
I thought it was pretty cool, but I like boat stories and almost everything about boats. I also like 'Bama a whole lot and I wish I could go visit the Flora-Bama again sometime soon.
Home page photo: Pretty sure that absolutely beautiful place is Punchbowl Falls, east of America's shit hole, Portland. You have to buy a permit before leaving your car in the parking lot. Biden voters breaking into your car just for practice is a given. FJB and remember, diversity is our strength.
One of the best books I've read in a long time is "Tugboats Illustrated" by Paul Farrell (2016). Here is a description: "From river to harbor to ocean, tugboats are among the most ubiquitous but underappreciated craft afloat. Whether maneuvering ships out from between tight harbor finger piers, pushing rafts of forty barges up the Mississippi, towing enormous oil rigs, or just delivering huge piles of gravel to a river port near you, tugs exude a sense of genial strength guided by the wise experience of their crews. We can admire the precision of their coordination, the determination in their movements, the glow of signal lights at night, silently communicating their condition and intentions to vessels nearby. It is nearly impossible not to be intrigued and impressed by the way tugs work. In Tugboats Illustrated, Paul Farrell traces the evolution, design, and role of tugboats, ranging from the first steam-powered tug to today's hyper-specialized offshore workboats. Through extensive photographs, dynamic drawings, and enlightening diagrams, he explores the development of these hard-working boats, always shaped by the demands of their waterborne environment, by an ever-present element of danger, and by advancements in technology. Whether making impossible turns in small spaces, crashing through huge swells, pushing or pulling or prodding or coaxing or escorting, we come to understand not only what tugs do, but how physics and engineering allow them to do it. From the deck layout of a nineteenth-century sidewheel tug to the mechanics of barge towing--whether by humans, mules, steam or diesel engines--to the advantages of various types and configurations of propulsion systems, to the operation of an oil rig anchor-handling tug/supply vessel, Tugboats Illustrated is a comprehensive tribute to these beloved workhorses of the sea and their intrepid crews".
Wasn’t much of a story.
ReplyDeleteClick on the Vinik Marine link in the story. It'll take uou to their webpage that has a 20min. video that's pretty informative.
DeleteEven as a derelict, that ship is still impressive AF. I can only imagine that thing in it's hey-day.
-lg
I thought it was pretty cool, but I like boat stories and almost everything about boats. I also like 'Bama a whole lot and I wish I could go visit the Flora-Bama again sometime soon.
ReplyDeleteIf you only knew the times I've spent there that I don't remember...
Deletesar_scarab
ReplyDeleteBecoming an artificial reef is a more noble end than being broken up for razor blades. I'm adding diving on her to my Bucket List.
ReplyDeleteOr it could be used to build new machinery, buildings, cars, trucks, etc at less cost than starting from iron ore.
DeleteWeapons, but I like her where she sits
DeleteWell, I liked it. 😁
ReplyDeleteQuite the story. And, quite the tow.
ReplyDeleteRest quietly, SS United States.
I wish my name was Mike Vinik jr. for about two weeks
ReplyDeleteps That probably granted him the right to walk around on the Ole Sweetheart, wouldn’t that have been cool.
ReplyDeleteHow the world truly works…
ReplyDeleteStart in part 2 its a shorter vid and will help get thorigh Part 1 that starts slow but builds with shocking revelations…
A Regular Guy Talks About Not Karl Marx (Part 2/2)
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7UhMRMNQoOY&pp=QAFIAQ%3D%3D
Don’t all sunken ships become “artificial reefs”? How is this one the biggest?
ReplyDeleteHome page photo: Pretty sure that absolutely beautiful place is Punchbowl Falls, east of America's shit hole, Portland. You have to buy a permit before leaving your car in the parking lot. Biden voters breaking into your car just for practice is a given. FJB and remember, diversity is our strength.
ReplyDeleteRoy, you still near the Pecos?
DeleteThe SS United States was a beautiful ship.
ReplyDeleteToo bad it couldn't be saved.
One of the best books I've read in a long time is "Tugboats Illustrated" by Paul Farrell (2016). Here is a description:
ReplyDelete"From river to harbor to ocean, tugboats are among the most ubiquitous but underappreciated craft afloat. Whether maneuvering ships out from between tight harbor finger piers, pushing rafts of forty barges up the Mississippi, towing enormous oil rigs, or just delivering huge piles of gravel to a river port near you, tugs exude a sense of genial strength guided by the wise experience of their crews. We can admire the precision of their coordination, the determination in their movements, the glow of signal lights at night, silently communicating their condition and intentions to vessels nearby. It is nearly impossible not to be intrigued and impressed by the way tugs work. In Tugboats Illustrated, Paul Farrell traces the evolution, design, and role of tugboats, ranging from the first steam-powered tug to today's hyper-specialized offshore workboats. Through extensive photographs, dynamic drawings, and enlightening diagrams, he explores the development of these hard-working boats, always shaped by the demands of their waterborne environment, by an ever-present element of danger, and by advancements in technology. Whether making impossible turns in small spaces, crashing through huge swells, pushing or pulling or prodding or coaxing or escorting, we come to understand not only what tugs do, but how physics and engineering allow them to do it. From the deck layout of a nineteenth-century sidewheel tug to the mechanics of barge towing--whether by humans, mules, steam or diesel engines--to the advantages of various types and configurations of propulsion systems, to the operation of an oil rig anchor-handling tug/supply vessel, Tugboats Illustrated is a comprehensive tribute to these beloved workhorses of the sea and their intrepid crews".