Horst and Margret Wogatzke, "Schwan", L: 41', D: 4'7"

For over 16 years we have been cruising with our sailing vessel "Schwan" throughout the European waters: The Baltic Sea, North Sea, Bay of Biscay the Mediterranean with Tunisia, Malta, Greece and so on. As many sailors, so did we have the dream to cruise the waters of the Bahamas, the Caribbean or North America. That is why we well prepared our boat, lately installed a folding prop and an A/C, ready to cross on our own keel. But then it turned out differently. An experienced American sailor questioned us: "Why would you like being shaken from the big wakes, having no fresh food, you may even get bored being so many weeks at sea, get your boat loaded on top of a freighter and take it the easy way"! We thought about it and after investigating we found: 'United Yacht Transport', a company which ships pleasure boats to places like Mallorca/Spain, Florida, The Caribbean, Mexico and Tahiti on a regular schedule. Then everything spun fast. We sailed from Sibari/Southern Italy, passing the islands of Sicily and Sardinia to the Balearics. Super Serrant 4 Palma de Mallorca, 6.9.96 Sept. 5. 96 Palma de Mallorca, we sail (drive into) our "Schwan" with standing masts into the 'Super Servant 4', a carrier which is at this moment submerged about 16 feet below sea level. This freighter is designed especially for transporting motor- and sailing vessels. It flies the Dutch national flag, L: 186 yards, W: 37 yards. The captain and 9 crewmembers are Dutch, besides there are 10 Philippinos for the deck work. The load is complete with 4 sailing- and 12 huge motor vessels. As soon as the water is pumped out of the freighter's tanks, the various steel cradles for the pleasure boats are being welded to the carrier's deck. The boats are lashed with strong belts and sewage pipes are attached. We are provided with fresh water and electrical connections, so we will have the convenience of our own freezer and air conditioning. After 2 days of loading and installing we begin our 4446 nm of Atlantic crossing to Port Everglades/Ft.Lauderdale/Florida, which will take 16 days. Our first stop is Gibraltar to fill up with 550 tons of heavy oil. We hear of a problem. The captain's tank instrument shows 10% less than the seller's bill! Soon an independent expert is called to arbitrate the case…. And we thought only the pleasure boaters were ripped off as we experienced in Greece and Italy….

'The Swim-In' for the Piggybacking The crewmembers of the pleasure boaters, so called 'Riders' sleep aboard their own boats. There is a limit of 1 person per boat. (Exceptions may be possible). 2 lounges with bar, TV, Videos, books and games are at our disposal. The fare includes full hot breakfast, lunch and dinner tastefully prepared by the experienced Dutch chef. We are allowed to visit the bridge and all other rooms at any time, very interesting the guided engine room tour. Everything is electronically monitored. The amount of spare parts, eventually needed, rises up to 2.000.000 U$ After having spend the first night on board, all the riders share one opinion: "What a convenience… no responsibility for the own boat, equipments, crew, food, navigation, night shifts etc. etc". Soon we feel integrated in the board routine. We take advantage of the time for preparing our boat for the different sailing region in having the bottom coated. This job is willingly done by the Philippinos who are glad to transfer home a few more dollars. With great pleasure we discover a big vise, lathe and welding machine. There is no time to get bored! Super Servant 4 runs with 11-13 knots between 36° + 26° N and makes a day's run of 310nm. Although we are in the middle of the hurricane season, we encountered the strongest wind in the Alboran/Gibraltar region and not in the Atlantic. Very exciting to watch the cloud formations: mostly huge cumulus which seem to explode some times, but besides some tropical rain showers, nothing unusual happened. The prevailing winds came out of W - SW 10-20 kn, water temperature in the lower 80s. Time passes by very quickly. The crew and the riders are doing fine and we enjoy the wonderful BBQ evenings together. Sept. 23.1996 we arrive Port Everglades/Ft.Lauderdale. Our decision to cross the Atlantic the 'piggyback' way, comfortable, fast and stress free - we did not regret. Relaxed we are looking forward to explore new exciting territories crossing the water. For more details contact: United Yacht Transport 1535 SE 17. Street Causeway, Suite 200 Ft. Lauderdale, Fl. 33316 Tel. 954/525-8707, Fax 954/525-8711 Internet: http://www.dockwise.com/

Letzte Änderung / Last change: Dienstag, 28. Dezember 2004