Tickets are now on sale for the various different seminars comprising TrawlerFest-Bay Bridge at Kent Island on the Chesapeake, including a signature diesel engine course with two of the nation’s finest instructors on the topic. The event is scheduled to take place Sept. 26-30.
Nearby Annapolis is known as the “Sailing Capital of the United States.” Even though the event is called TrawlerFest and is being brought to you by SAIL’s sister publication PassageMaker magazine, most of the seminars are “propulsion agnostic.” That is, their lessons apply equally to sailors as well as power cruisers.
The two-day seminar is not the only diesel engine course for boaters in the country, but it is the only diesel course for boaters taught by SAIL Technical Editor Nigel Calder and veteran boatbuilder and yard operator Steve Zimmerman. Calder’s status is such that when he makes an observation about engine performance, the engine manufacturers themselves pay attention.
(Zimmerman recently starred in our first online education course “Marine Diesel Maintenance & Troubleshooting.”)
This two-day session, “Everything You Need to Know About Diesel Engines,” combines classroom time with hands-on engine time in the shop. It combines theory and practical troubleshooting instruction, and it does so with a touch of humor to keep things lively. Attendees will receive a certificate of completion that in some cases may help save some money on their boat insurance.
It is also worthy of note that unlike most other engine instructors both Calder and Zimmerman are veteran cruisers, who bring this perspective to the curriculum. Before you sign on to any other diesel course, ask the organizers how many years of long-distance cruising its instructors have done.
Other perennial favorites include “Boat Buyers Survival Guide,” “Guns & Governments,” “Boat Handling” and “The Great Loop,” which feature TrawlerFest’s signature interactive team-teach approach. But there are always new topics and new instructors for our regular topics.
There are 28 seminars altogether. The diesel seminar is the longest course offering at roughly 16 hours. Another is the equivalent of one eight-hour day. Seven are 3 1/2 -4 hours, and 19 are short courses, at two-hours. All the technical seminars provide attendees with certificates of completion.
The best value is to purchase a VIP pass, which allows entry into any and all of the seminars (except the diesel and “Hands-On Boat Handling” seminars) for a set price. The VIP pass also includes admission to the attendant in-water TrawlerFest Boat Show and evening social events.
August 2017
