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I dont think you are exaggerating, brother...and like to return boats in same shape or better as well.

They are exactly trying to anchor where you really cant with radius and only 150 ft of chain...guy who hit me didnt believe it until he checked anchor watch

Hope you have a great rest of your trip

You’re either the show or you’re watching the show

Thanks!

I'd better stop commentating as I think this may go on late into the night. At present all 3 monohulls continue to cause havoc. Circling like sharks...on the original monohull the crew have retreated inside, leaving the skipper (if you can call him that) just motoring around aimlessly up and down with the anchor dangling just above water, smashing against the hull every now and then.

+1 for entertainment!

Well original monohull has now steamed out of GH at full speed...could be trying his luck at CGB? Or perhaps back to the Moorings base to demand a new anchor...because that one clearly didn't work properly!

Monohull 2 anchored in front of the boatyballs...too close. More chapters to that story I suspect.

Monohull 3 after going aground, managed to backtrack and picked up a boatyball just as another sportfisher squatter vacated it...they all looked a bit confused by the ball, so doesn't look like they are the rightful owners. Perhaps more chapters on this one also!

...on another tangent (sorry), half the mooring field (on mooring balls) have every possible light on...anchor light, steaming lights, nav lights, deck lights...every possible switch on that panel is in the 'on' position. This stuff worries me...it suggests a much broader lack of knowledge and understanding that is essential if you are going to be legally responsible for your vessel and the safety of those aboard.

Foxy's BBQ sure smells good from here though!

Or helping to create the show my friend....

+1

Well at least you’re getting something out of BoatyBall haha

Lol...well played Alec

The boatyballs are taller than a normal ball with a big steel ring on top. When they go under the bridge deck of a cat there is not enough clearance on most boats and you have a steel ring scraping fiberglass. You can avoid that and the balks banging the hulls by trapping the ball between the hulls on a cat.
G

I can see where that would be a problem on a cat.

captmoby - many of the restaurants and marinas have wifi. Nanny Cay has wifi at the marina. Omar's cafe, Cool Breezes, Neptunes, Village Cay, and the French Deli all say they are open at 7. If you have not been by the French Deli it is worth the stop. They have excellent sandwiches, desserts and their wifi is very fast. Cooper has wifi outside the coffee shop but it does not open until 8. Rhymers also has free wifi but they do not open until 7:30. Leverick has wifi by the pool. I have used wifi at all three of these to help reserve a mooring.

The moorings stand around 2.5 ft out of the water when there is nothing pulling on the pennant. We have had reports of the moorings bumping the hulls but we have had no reports of this causing damage. At Cooper the winds and current can cause havoc. As GeorgeC1 and a couple of other have suggested if you have a cat and want to prevent the moorings from hitting the hulls you can tie off in such a way that traps the mooring between the hulls. This also shortens the swing radius which can be beneficial at Cooper.

Anytime I am in a area where the boat can be backwinded or current and wind differ or it’s going to be calm at night I trap the ball. It makes for a quiet and peaceful night and will avoid problems with taller balls. The method I normally use is to take the Mooring pennant to one bow cleat. I then run a dock line through the steel ring on the ball and to the other bow cleat. As long as the lines are adjusted to less than the width between the hulls the ball cant bang on the hulls or get up under the bridge deck. Don’t pull the ball dead tight between the hulls. You can leave plenty of slack and be fine. I like to see about 45 degree angles on the lines to the ball. Strangely as much as I have complained about the height of the boatyballs it’s easier to do this with their balls because they are tall enough to reach down and run the dock line through the ring. Standard type balls require you to either hoist the ball up out of the water or use the dinghy. As mentioned a added benefit at a place like Cooper is reduced swing room. I see people all the time put two dock lines extended as far as possible through the pennant loop at Cooper. This extends the swinging arc substantially. In addition to the bridgedeck problem it can allow the Mooring line to get between the keels and props on a cat. The wind comes up in the morning and Houston we have a problem!
George

George should keep this valuable advice near the top of a page

This whole BB fiasco is another reason why cruising sailors are avoiding the BVI's like the plague. Besides high C/I fees and an unfriendly government, there is the increased cost of $40 for a mooring, something unheard of before BB in the usual BVI bays (excluding Peter Island of course). So the increased mooring fees are to create an APP, as BB keeps saying??? Geeze, any 16 year old wiz kid can knock that APP out in a hour or so.

There is an easy solution to the BB monopoly and increased mooring fees, just sail in the USVI where the cruisers are now!!! Just sayin'

...but how long until the BB plague crosses the border?!

The mooring balls in the USVI are all privately (individually) owned and not for rent unless you’re using a National Park mooring ball which are owned and serviced by the NP.

In addition to the NPS moorings in St John (only $26 or $13 with the Senior Pass), there are many free overnight moorings available in St Thomas - 20 at Christmas Cove, Little St James, and ~12 at Buck/Capella Island.

Head to Culebra in the SVI and you'll find 50+ free moorings throughout its many anchorages.

I was in Great Harbour last Saturday for Foxy's Music Fest / Full Moon Party. It must have been a few days before the 5 FCFS balls were converted to BB. All the FCFS balls were taken by mid-afternoon and several boats were anchored in the bay. Anchorage was packed but there was none of this mayhem. No boats getting kicked off mooring balls at sunset. Amazing how crazy the harbour becomes a week later with the conversion of 5 mooring balls from FCFS to BB.

BB has an effect on people

The free moorings you speak of are put there by the Department of Natural Resources and serviced by them.

The Spanish Virgin Islands are not everyones cup of tea.

Exactly. Which is what makes them so great. 124 watching this forum 11 watching US Virgins forum. Just trying to suggest an alternative for those pining for "the good old days".

Exactly! BB has solved zero problems and created loads! I don't get why this is even a discussion, it's clearly a half-baked idea that just doesn't work. This isn't uncommon to the BVI (Concorde runway at Anegada, runway expansion, BVI Airways) but usually it just costs some taxpayers money which gets siphoned off into corrupt politicians pockets and the idea dies a rightful death. How did this brainwave get the fast-track?!

I commend boaty ball for trying to make the BVI a better place.

There was never any guarantee of success for them.

I hope that BB is not committed to their vision no matter what harm they might cause.

Hey Christo, I hope you’re having a nice afternoon. We’ve been discussing changes to incorporate into the app and I figured I’d reach out to you and see if you had any input. If you were going to use the BoatyBall app what would you like to see featured on it or what do you think they could do better. I look forward to what you have to say. Cheers

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Christo Online content
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Hi Alec,

We are having a beautiful day in the BVI, thank you for asking, I hope you are also wherever in the world you are.

My honest response is that i'd pay 50 bucks a night to see them all returned to FCFS. It's worked in the Caribbean for decades, it works well and will continue to do so. The level of aggression and issues we have seen this year in the BVI is something we have never before witnessed. Boatyball is solely responsible for that. Besides all the other shortcomings that I have repeated time and time again on the forum. We found it interesting to hear how anti-boatyball the base-staff at Moorings/Sunsail were.

If you had left all the FCFS alone and added new boatyballs...you would have added value and choice to the mooring situation in the wake of the undersupply caused by Irma. What you have actually done is made things worse.

I'm sure I am getting a name on the forum for being negative about BB, but having been sailing here and throughout the Caribbean for 20 years I have very strong views, routed in experience and am vehemently opposed to the BB system.

It's nothing personal, but BB needs to be removed from the BVI. It has no place here.

I believe also there are a number of outstanding questions from others on the forum about BB that have gone unanswered. One member suggests for example that you do not have the work-permits required for the hands-on approach that has been taken by BB?...but there are numerous other questions outstanding.

I might also suggest that your lighthearted response to my posts about the mayhem going on in GH Jost a few days back that the 'entertainment' created was a positive thing that BB had created...are very ill-advised. Whilst it may be entertaining for those not involved to watch or hear about this mayhem, let's not forget that the bareboat charterers who were kicked off boatyballs late in the day and then found themselves unable to anchor...probably had that day/evening of their charter ruined. And that is on you Alec.

Yes, I am the first to say that if you don't know how to anchor then you have no place being a skipper...but, it's also true that when they tied up to the Boatyball (not knowing what it was) there were other FCFS balls free in Great Harbour. So without question, if BB didn't exist they would have had a good night. As it happens, who knows where they ended up, but it certainly wasn't the chilled day in the BVI they planned on having...or that they would have had if BB didn't exist.

I could, in true Denny-esque fashion continue for a few thousand words, but it's painkiller time and I suspect my words will fall on deaf ears anyhow.

👋👋

GeorgeC1 - thank you for your post. This is very helpful.

So basically you’re telling those who stayed up late the night before to dedicate a crew member to get up at daybreak and get to a cafe before 7AM and hopefully he’ll get a ball

I have been sailing in the BVI for 50 years. Not surprisingly, I have seen many changes:
1. Many more charter boats and charterers (I can remember many times with less than 6 boats anchored in the Bight)
2. Mooring balls introduced (along with a fee) to reduce coral damage and increase the anchorage capacity
3. Mooring ball fees (I think the first fees were $25) were a significant increase compared to anchoring
4. Need to go through C&I when going between USVI and BVI (I cannot tell a lie, I have sinned in the old days)
5. Irma dramatically reduced the number of attractive anchorages and maintained/available mooring balls while charter boats numbers rebounded more quickly
I chartered for three weeks in 2019 and found using BB a great way to optimize my vacation time. I can't remember how many days in previous years I have suffered from anxiety about if I would be able to be secure in my desired anchorage for the night and could still enjoy snorkel stops along the way. Arriving at my overnight anchorage before noon is not my preferred solution.

As an Econ major 50 years ago, I suggest everyone remember that this is a situation where demand is exceeding supply, If the number of mooring balls were always greater than the number of charterers desiring to use that anchorage, end of discussion. Maybe when BEYC, Saba, etc. come back, things will change.

Well it seems BB is good way for you to keep your anxiety down, but for most of us it’s just another restriction getting up early to make a BB reservation that suits the BB owners who don’t have to deal with the hassle.
We can’t just sail into an anchorage and find a nice spot to moor, everything is dependent on a reservation made at day break.
I’ll stick to the old way until it’s been replaced by the Politically Correct crowd.

+1 and


I wonder if the BB owners have to join in on the lottery when they are down in the islands?

They do control the app. Right?

Maybe someone from BB will chime in. Its my understanding that they are regulars down in the BVI

If by most you mean a couple of people on this forum then I’d agree with you

Alec, I only know 1 or 2 people that like BB. Most of those that I know are not speaking up. Just because they are not vocal means nothing.

I understand that Moorings sunsail does not like it.

I don’t think captain J is in favour.

There are many more.

I know of other charter operators that don’t like BB.

Alec, it’s a lot more than a couple. You don’t help your credibility by minimizing the number of critics. Doing so is akin to critics questioning your motives. I assume that you created BB with the best intentions, and I’m sure the criticism is unpleasant, but it’s coming from a lot more than two people.

Actually , If it’s only a few people as you say on this forum then you have nothing to worry about.
I’m sure the charter companies are ecstatic over BB and maybe they’ll dedicate it as a public holiday

I've been down twice since the introduction of BB, not used it yet, and not had to as the FCFS balls worked just fine. I am heading down again in mid June for a week. The growth of the offering does concern me given that it seems to limit my options not expand them. Frankly the last thing I want to do on vacation is schedule a ball for the night. If I want to schedule an overnight spot I'll take an alongside berth - for the rest of the time I'd rather show up, and if there are no options I'll move on. Given the assumption from Alec, who I assume is in part responsible for BB, that no dissenting voices is a voice of support I thought I should clarify that my silence should not be taken as support. I didn't think that a change was needed, and I don't think that a change that jacks up the cost of overnight mooring uneccessarily is welcome.

I shouldn’t have made my last statement. Let me clarify. There are way more than a couple of people that don’t like BoatyBall. And I fully understand that most of the people on this forum don’t have the fondest feelings for BoatyBall. I completely understand why and I enjoy the feedback. Believe it or not this site has probably helped us the most in determining what our plans are for the future. I also don’t take a lack of criticism to indicate support either. My statement was based in part on the number of critics present on this forum and the amount of positive feedback we’ve received elsewhere. I greatly appreciate the feedback from this site, but this forum isn’t exactly representative of the majority of the charter market in the BVI. I understand that we have our critics and our supporters among this site and elsewhere; my point was simply to counter the claim that the majority of boaters dislike BoatyBall.

I don't really care for BB either. However - since they are sold out by 7:01 I would have to say there is demand for what they are offering. The fact that some people are unhappy about BB and perhaps even very vocal about it has not dampened the demand whatsoever. Each person can choose what he/she want's to do when they captain their boat - BB, FCFS, anchor or get a slip somewhere. I don't see how reserving a BB is fundamentally different than getting a slip reservation. Take for example Leverick. They own the BB moorings and they own the slips. If you want them you make a reservation for them. I'm not sure beating up on the boaty ball setup is where you should be spending your considerable effort. Let Leverick know how you feel instead. And when the North Sound finally bounces back and has more balls to offer - assuming they don't all become BB - take your business elsewhere and each time you do let Leverick (or some other spot - I don't mean to pick on Leverick) know you didn't come to dinner because you can't stand their mooring reservation system. BB has virtually no skin in the this game - if noone used BB they wouldn't feel much pain. But the establishment that owns the balls surely would. You can gripe all you want - BB has more business than they can possibly handle right now.