What the heck are boat shoes?

Owning a boat, like owning an RV or a motorcycle, is a lifestyle.  Set aside the constant care and many seasonal procedures involved with owning a boat and get down to the grinding surface of it all.  When you own a boat, despite what it takes to maintain and manage the vessel, there is a quiet disposition connected with the lifestyle of being a boater.  As if, on some level, you made a silent pact with the sea to not just respect her but to represent her.  You see, there is a dress code for owning a boat and it goes polo tee, docker khakis and slick shades with stylish lanyards.  Of course this is just a silly stereotype made from 80's films about regatta races to save rec centers, but somewhere down the line that actually became a prominent design for the way a boater should dress.  One accessory that a boater should wear regardless of how they feel about this style is boat shoes.

Boat shoes are literally designed for walking the wet decks of a boat, or ship, or yacht.  Out of all the stylized fashion fads and popular trending attire that associates with such water themed brands as Nautica, Bass or Sebago, only the boat shoe is the clothing option that had any practical value to it.  Yes, life-jackets are essential and should always be warn while on a boat, but that's just proper safety, not necessarily an outfit option. You put your cloths on and then your life jacket, you're not going to wear it on shore or to a party.  Boat shoes, however, have been somewhat popularized since the 80's.  They look like leather moccasins spliced with  dress shoes, but in a good way.  Even if they do look silly to some, they have an actual, practical use to them; preventing the wearer from slipping when wet.  How this works is actually somewhat simple.

The shoes are cut and laced together with leather to be resistant against water.  While this is not a necessarily life changing feature, it is nice to note that boating shoes will keep your feet significantly more dry than sneakers or boats would.  The true revolution of the shoes comes from the soles of the shoes.  The soles are created in a siping pattern, which means they are carved with many small, ribbed strips running across.  This is for extra traction on slippery or icy surfaces and what better place to apply this added quality than on a boat, where you're surrounded with water.  In 1935, the inventor of these shoes, Paul Sperry, had observed his dog's ability to run easily on ice and graded his shoes to mimic the dog's paw.  Since then, boating shoes have become a smart option for the nautical enthusiastic out there.

Sneakers don't provide enough surface in their often rigid and complex cut-out soles.  With sandals or shoes that may be worn and have a tread-less sole will have too much flat surface.  This makes it actually worst for slipping because smooth surfaces create less friction or resistance from one another.  Add in some water for lubricating the exchange and you're not just sliding or slipping or losing your balance, you're going to be feet up and falling on your back before you realize what has happened.  Granted most boat decks are layered with a spray on sandpaper sort of coating that works in  a similar way to the soles of boat shoes, but having the shoes is reduces your risk of injury significantly and therefore is the only boat themed attire with any actual purpose.  The shirts aren't that bad though.

Tyler Baker; OSM Writer

Top Ten : Famous Ships from Hollywood Part II

There is something to be said about a good aquatic voyage.  A man can learn a lot about who he is during such a journey.  The sailor life, the seven seas, a simple case of nautical nuance.  That is what boating is really about.  The freedom to be one with nature and to do so surrounded by boundless blue.  Hollywood has a sweet spot for such visual aesthetics.  The camera crashing in on a sweeping overhead angle as a hard wood pirate ship plows through a wake of water.  We all have our favorite films about the open ocean and in each of these films, there is one key character that never says a word.  The ship.  In honor of these inanimate watercraft vessels, we've picked our favorite ten ships throughout the history of cinema.

Here is our pick for 5-1:

5.  Acheron; Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

Many, many people will have no idea this film starring Russel Crowe ever existed, but most critics will tell you that it is one of the greatest films ever to fail in the history of cinema.  A lack of marketing is primarily to blame, but Master and Commander was a brilliant piece of work with a steady story and strong performances all around.  The HMS Surprise is captained by Russel Crowes' Captain "Lucky Jack" Aubrey.  He is a sensitive and wise captain who cares for his crew, but makes tough decision without hesitation.  Throw in a mutton-chopped Paul Bettany performing an old world autopsy and a visit to the Galapagos islands and the movie really kept you involved for it's 2 hour plus screen time.  The  Surprise is not our pick, however, it is the Acheron that we chose for number 5.  The Acheron, in the film, was a French battleship that plagued the English during the Napoleonic Wars (when the film is set).  It is a fast and elusive ship with a cunning captain and crew.  Captain Aubrey is tasked with the mission to destroy the Acheron at all costs and so the film plays out with tit-for-tat nautical battles between Crowe's crew and the mysterious Acheron.  Several times, the Acheron ambushes the Surprise and forces Crowe to continually evade and develop new strategies to not just survive, but win.  The Acheron is a ghost of a ship, always plagued by it's ambiguity and amazing ability to arrive anywhere Lucky Jack happens to be.  The back and forth between the two is the reason this film carries so much weight and the reason we have it where it is at five.

4.  Benthic Explorer; The Abyss


The Abyss was the kind of movie that explored not just the physical deep sea depths of the ocean, but the deep of human emotions.  Excitement, paranoia, fear, joy, pain, each emotion compartmentalized and condensed into a two and a half hour film.  Enter James Cameron, who developed the premise of the film from a deep sea lecture he went to when he was 17 and you have our pick for the number 4 most famous ship ever.  While there was a few ships from the film, the Benthic Explorer was the one we remember.  It survived a hurricane attack (somewhat) while Michael Beihn's team decided to muck around below with water faeries.  Yeah, it get's confusing, but in a good way.  Most people don't realize it, but The Abyss was the first film to ever use water effects CGI in a film.  The film was an amazingly powerful film and was built around the Benthic Explorer, unlike some of our other picks that show up occasionally or at the end (Orca and Acheron).  Without the Benthic Explorer, there is no story here.  When the film hit theaters, it struck audiences in a powerful way.  Where Cameron previously had people afraid of the unknown with Aliens, here he gave them something more personal.  Sure, these "NTIs" might appear to be creepy water testicles out to murder, but looking closer through the eyes of the characters, we learned the truth of the deep blue below.

3.  The Black Pearl; Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of The Black Pearl


You knew it had to show up somewhere, because in less than a decade The Black Pearl has taken over pop culture and it's ever imaginatively thrifty captain has become one of the most recognized and celebrated characters in the history of film.  We all know the name Captain Jack Sparrow because the quick handed, constantly opportunistic pirate is the kind of character only Johnny Depp could master.  His love affair with The Black Pearl constantly leads him down the wrong path, but somehow he makes it out ahead every time. The reason we like the Pearl is because of it's history.  Not just a pirate ship owned by a rum-drunk mad man, but it also housed a ghostly curse and battled squid-face Davy Jones and his mythical Flying Dutchman without sinking.  In terms of ship statistics, The Pearl has arguably the best numbers on the list.  She's swift, strong and everyone seems to either knows her or wants to possess her.  It's hard to say that the future us will look back at the early 2000's and remember all the fads that faded as new ones set in.  We believe, however, that Captain Jack and The Black Pearl will resonate with human culture far after the series is dead and set adrift (as they are currently gearing up for Pirates 5).

2.  HMS Bounty; Mutiny on the Bounty

We had a tough time picking our list because of the great films and vessels that have graced film screens for decades.  One that was almost indisputable was the HMS Bounty from the 1935 film, Mutiny on the Bounty.  The film, starring Clark Gable and Charles Laughton, won the Academy Award for Best Picture that year and stands as the last film to ever win Best Picture, but lose in ever other category (lost soundly to John Ford's The Informer). It was this way because the film was so brilliantly portrayed and the story, based of the real life mutiny of the same ship, basically told itself.  The HMS Bounty was captained by a cruel, abusive man, William Bligh.  Laughton's rendition of Bligh earned him an Oscar nomination and rightly so.  He was a bad, bad mamma jamma.  The mutiny on-board The Bounty symbolized many things.  Freedom, honor, self confidence, but mostly justice and repercussions for hard behavior.  What is amazing about the Bounty is that it was actually built for the film and when you see it on screen, the detail is something to behold.  It is our number two.

1. RMS Titanic; Titanic

Somehow, James Cameron managed to make this list twice.  It's hard to eliminate the world's biggest ship of all time from the list here, especially when you consider that the film not only won eleven Oscars (including Best Picture) but it grossed an obscene $1.8 billion.  At the time it was the highest grossing film ever, but would later lose to James Cameron himself with 2009's Avatar.  While I personally might not want to admit that I enjoyed watching the film, Titanic is the kind of movie that builds on a human story and then rips everything apart when the ship starts to sink.  The true story of the RMS Titanic, which sunk due to an iceberg slicing through it's many hulls, is an amazingly tragic one on it's own.  Put some Hollywood spin on it and a little Kate and Leo and we have ourselves the first ever romance turned disaster blockbuster.  This also mark a return for Cameron to the deep sea roots he had in 1989 with The Abyss.  We've picked the Titanic as the number one, not because it grossed more than the others or because it won the awards, but because it is a real story of a real ship.  Everyone knows how the Titanic, on it's one and only voyage, clipped an ice buoy and clung to the bottom of the ocean, but many never understood what had happened and who it happened to.  Granted, the whole Jack Dawson story line is extra fictional, but Cameron sewed the real historical passengers in with his story.  Bottom line, this is the only film where a whole hour of the film is a boat sinking.  An hour of a boat sinking and it worked!  That's props.  Putting all that aside, though, we have to pay respect to the CGI and designs of the Titanic.  It's elegant and breathtaking.  Even as it splits in two and slugs under the surface, we couldn't help but be blown away by how it all happened.

Honorable Mentions:

U.S.S. Caine; Caine Mutiny
Andrea Gail; The Perfect Storm
Albatross; White Squall
The Inferno; The Goonies

La Amistad; Amistad
Hispaniola; Treasure Island


Tyler Baker; OSM Writer

Top Ten : Famous Ships from Hollywood Part I

There is something to be said about a good aquatic voyage.  A man can learn a lot about who he is during such a journey.  The sailor life, the seven seas, a simple case of nautical nuance.  That is what boating is really about.  The freedom to be one with nature and to do so surrounded by boundless blue.  Hollywood has a sweet spot for such visual aesthetics.  The camera crashing in on a sweeping overhead angle as a hard wood pirate ship plows through a wake of water.  We all have our favorite films about the open ocean and in each of these films, there is one key character that never says a word.  The ship.  In honor of these inanimate watercraft vessels, we've picked our favorite ten ships throughout the history of cinema.

Here is our pick for 10-6:

10. The Belafonte; Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou

We know many of you will not know this beat up, past-her-prime boat, but The Belafonte was the pride and joy of Bill Murray's manic, sometimes stoned Captain Steve Zissou in Wes Anderson's Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou.  The reason we ranked this vessel over such other selections as that ship from Perfect Storm (Andrea Gail) is because of it's imperfection and how that played on the tone of the film.  Here is a ship that should have been retired for a decade, where the power constantly shorted out and all the equipment was thirty years out dated, but still kept cutting through the waves.  It was an extension of it's Captain, who has found himself in a rut emotionally and over-the-hill professionally.  As disheveled and archaic as Murray was, The Belafonte was his mirror image.  Let's not forget the crazy eyed shootout between Captain Zissou and his infinitely loaded pistol and a boat of Filipino pirates with AKs and machetes.  The Belafonte is a darling vessel with a crew of misfit all wearing matching red knitted caps and powder blue short shorts. It's our choice for number 10.

9.  The Poseidon; Poseidon Adventure

We want to forget Kurt Russel's remake of the Gene Hackman classic, The Poseidon Adventure, because frankly it was an unnecessary reinterpretation for the age of smash mouth cinema (big budgets and short worded scripts).  Instead, let's focus on the 1972 version.  How could we not see what was bound to happen with the SS Poseidon, an old cruise liner on it's last voyage before retiring forever in a scrapyard?  The film worked well as an inspiration for James Cameron's Titanic while boasting an amazing cast during the golden age of the 70's.  It's The Towering Inferno in the middle of the ocean and it added new meaning to the phrase, "abandon ship."  The thing that stuck was how the characters came from different walks, brought together by their trip to New York City, but forced to rely on one another to survive.  Plus, the SS Poseidon has one of the most killer names a ship could possibly have (God of the Sea, anyone?).

8.  The Red October; The Hunt For Red October 

The Hunt For Red October was an extremely red movie to say the least.  Most will remember the movie as the first film to portray the famous Jack Ryan character from the Tom Clancy novels.  With Alec Baldwin and Sean Connery at the helm, Red October was a fantastic film with a strong plot.  The Red October, an undetectable submarine captained by James Bond himself, made for an amazingly suspenseful film.  No one really knew what was going to happen (that didn't read the novel) and that made it one of the best novel to film adaptions ever.  Red October is our number 8.

7.  Nautilus; 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea

Red October may be the quietest submarine under the surface of the sea, but only one sub has the cajones to battle a giant killer squid.  That's the Nautilus and it is our pick for number 7.  The most advanced piece of underwater equipment ever made, the Nautilus was home to one of the most decisive and famed captains of all time; Captain Nemo.  Jules Verne never wrote a more complex character.  Nemo was stern and composed on the outside, but filled with a vengeful fury within.  While Captain Nemo has been portrayed in several adaptions and films, the original 1954 Disney film was the first true fantasy film in our book.  It had the right amount of colors and excitement, mixed in with great acting from Kurt Douglas and James Mason.  It also is the primary source for a strange phenomenon known as Steampunk (steam based sub-genre of sci-fi).  The Nautilus has stood as one of the defining ships in cinema for almost sixty years.

6.  The Orca; Jaws

When people think about the ocean, they often associate it with sharks.  When people think of sharks, they think about one shark that had a taste for human blood...Jaws!  Jaws, the 1975 blockbuster hit directed by the ever eternal Steven Spielberg, changed a great many things.  It changed how a thriller film represented itself (with building tension, false alarms and close calls), but more than that, it changed how we looked at sharks forever.  What was so great about Jaws, besides the direction and the amazing acting from Richard Dreyfuss, Robert Shaw and Roy Scheider, is how aware and unsuspecting Jaws was.  One minute you could be splashing about treading water and the next, you're swallowing screams underwater while the mad killer shark sucks you down into the depths and gobbles you up.  In that film, The Orca was Robert Shaw's small fishing boat that they used to face-off against Jaws when the time came.  We love the screen time this boat got, because every scene with it was either a humanized conversation that carried weight or a carnivorous battle between man and toothy beast.  When the three heroes salted the water around the Orca with chum and they watched as Jaws' fin circled around them, it was truly heart arresting.  Of course, Jaws had to ruin everything by flopping onto the deck and sinking The Orca, but no one could deny the sick enjoyment that came as Brody tossed the scuba tank into Jaws' mouth and blew him to bits with a keen shot from a rifle.  The Orca is easily our number 6.

That's it for now.  Check in with us later this week when we will bring you the top five!

Tyler Baker; OSM Writer

Celebrity Yachts : Steven Spielberg and the Seven Seas

Celebrities have a strange hold over the American culture.  They are the national equivalent to royalty and it's hard to say we don't put the likes of actors and sports stars on a pedestal.  Maybe it's the allure of their abilities or their Adonis-like appearances, but something about everything they do has the population slurping up pulp tabloid reality like it was a Daniel Day Lewis milkshake.  Let's be honest, it's not healthy to idolize the rich and famous for their obvious gap from working class America, but it is devilishly fun to partake in the mayhem and gossip that surrounds the foundation of celebrity status.  They have it all and seeing what they do with that plays like a twisted fairy tale packed with paparazzi brawls and wardrobe malfunctions.  Besides, seeing how the better half lives is something to inspire us hard working mortals or at very least, give us something to converse about.

That said, we over here at One Stop Motors wanted to incorporate the concept of celebrity in with our boating blog.  Since yachts are a big part of lush living and celebrities like to max out luxury, it seemed only fitting that we start providing our readers with a look into celebrity yachts.  You'll never see vessels as gaudy and extravagant as these and for good reason, they're really expensive.  Today, we'll look into one of the newer yachts on the block and one that belongs to perhaps the truest living legend of cinema; Steven Spielberg.

Steven Spielberg commissioned the brilliant boat designers at Oceanco to build him a super yacht.  At a staggering $200 million, the Seven Seas is more than just a yacht; it's a nautical command center.  Forget what you know about the easy life, because when you can put up the budget for your last two films (Tin Tin at $130 million and War Horse at $70), you know you're not only a success story, but the downright definition of the term.  Well, being in Hollywood for almost fifty years and consistently directing some of the most compelling films in the history of cinema, Spielberg has truly earned his money.  Us regular people, however, couldn't consider spending $2,000 on a boat, let alone $200 million.  Spielberg did, though, and it is impressive.

The Seven Seas is docked at a private dock in the Cayman-Islands.  At 282 feet the mega-yacht was built with a navy hull and can reportedly handle well in rough waters at a speed of 20 knots (26 mph).  That might seem slow, but who really cares if you're on a floating mechanical island with a 15-foot glass infinity pool, that's wall doubles as a film screen.  The yacht holds 26 crew and 12 guests comfortably.  It is fully equipped with a gym and a helipad.  He has another cinema on-board as well.  It is the kind of creation only someone as inspirational as Spielberg could imagine.  Mr. Spielberg even has his own personal owner's deck with a larger than life master stateroom and a Jacuzzi.

One look at this bad, bad boy, you're jaw will drop.  I know mine did.  It just goes to show that while a man might not be invulnerable, but his bank account can certainly get close.  At a net work of $3.0 billion (according to Forbes), Steven Spielberg is definitely in a league of his own.  We can't say he didn't earn it.  If you'd like to see pictures of the Seven Seas, follow this link.  Keep in mind, it might break your heart ever so slightly.

Tyler Baker; OSM Writer

A tribute to the U.S.S. Arizona

The tragic attack on Pearl Harbor in the winter of 1941 was a heartbreaking event in the history of America.  To most who lived during this trying time, it will go down as the day the nation stopped and to us not old enough to remember, we are reminded of the sacrifices made on that day with every glance of freedom we still see today.  Wednesday marked the 70th anniversary of this devastating day where so many American Naval officers lost their lives.  For seven men, this marked the final year of a seventy year tribute.

The U.S.S. Arizona was bombed on the morning of December 7th, 1941.  At the time there was 1,400 crewmen on board.  Of this 1,400, 1,177 of them lost their lives as the Arizona sunk to the bottom of Pearl Harbor.  Yesterday, seven of her survivors gathered at the site of the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial, the exact spot where she remains beneath the now calm waters, to honor their fallen brothers and sisters.  These seven men make up most of what is left of the U.S.S. Arizona  Reunion Association, an organization created in 1976 for those who had survived that horrific attack.  Seventy years later, they still remember and they traveled from all over the country to be with their fallen comrades for the last time.  You see, after the year ends, the U.S.S. Arizona Reunion Association will disband.

Due to the age and dwendling number of it's members, the association has decided to disband.  Perhaps for the first time, we realize how long this momentous episode of American history has truly been.  Since then, America has never been the same.  In fact, that fated day changed the entire world since it is widely regarded as the powder keg that pushed the U.S. into World War II.  Some argue that without the attack on Pearl Harbor and the sinking of the U.S.S. Arizona, America might not have ever entered the war.  No matter how you see it, such a price as the 2,402 Americans who gave their lives in the pursuit of duty and the protection of our nation will always be too high a price to pay.  As the survivors of the U.S.S. Arizona gathered to honor their brothers and sisters, for them it is a price they still pay today.

As survivor Edward Wentzlaff recalled in an interview for Khon 2, a local Hawaiian network, most of what was lost was as good as family to him.  "I spent three and a half years on-board ship, and I knew most, a good share of the crew.  And I lost all of the best friends I ever had in my life," said Wentzlaff, who also stated that he plans to be buried in the wreckage of the Arizona with his shipmates.

John Delmar Anderson, another U.S.S. Arizona survivor, told a riveting story of what he remember.  "Said I'm not leaving, my brother is still on board.  I'm going to find him.  If we can find these people, I can find him.  But I couldn't find him in the fire and the explosions," he said.  Each of these men had similar experiences and real stories to tell about that day.

One can't help but feel when these fearless soldiers have all gone, there will be no one left to tell these stories to the next generations, that they might understand the severity of the sacrifice on December 7th.  Stories and tales that must be told and an event that should never be forgotten.  It is always in these situations, when America is faced with incredible sorrow and loss, that we see what her colors are made from and how her people persevere.

Tyler Baker; OSM Writer

( Source : Khon2.com )

A few friendly tips on reading nautical charts

Boating navigation is more about attention to detail than anything else.  Sure, it requires a certain amount of understanding and a good deal of education on the hows and whats, but when it comes down to it, even the most knowledgeable chart reader can overlook the most minor of details.  For those of us not tuned to the chart reading channel, one look at a nautical chart could inspire that sinking feeling of confusion mixed in with discourage.  That is why, One Stop Motors wants to help with the basics to reading a nautical chart.  After this, you'll be a regular conquistador, comfortably gliding the glistening waters of your local waterway.

The first thing one should do when looking over a nautical chart is to not panic.  It is daunting, the way the map is covered in grid lines and more numbers than a multiplication table.  The purpose of all these numbers is to show depth.  If the number is on land, then that is most likely the height of the land mass.  For water, it is the depth from the surface to the bottom.  This is the most important thing to know as the depth of the water might be too shallow for larger boats.  If you have one, you won't be powering through a small, shallow channel because if you're boat hits the bottom of the waterway, you are not going to like what happens next (think Titanic).  You will notice how waters closer to shore have smaller numbers and the further out the deeper it gets.

Most charts will have some sort of topographic scale for identifying depth or rather the drop offs in depth.  When a number goes from 50 to 80 all the sudden, you'll see a line somewhere between where the bottom tappers down.  These lines are generally dotted or dashed and unlike the latitude or longitude lines that run strait, they will run in wavy stretches.  This will be how you can identify sandbars and serious depth differentials.  Again, if you're bringing a big boat into the shore, you'll need to know if you are about to hit a much shallower area and if that deepness is safe for your hull.

When it comes to detail, nautical charts work well in displaying any obstacles that may be in the way of your course.  For example, if you're travelling through a channel or a river and a bridge is up ahead, a nautical chart will have the bridge displayed with it's height and length.  Now you'll know if it is feasible to cross under it or if you need to find a new course.  Generally, nautical charts help in identifying where you are on your present course.  If you see a small island just off the coast and match that with your chart, you'll have a good idea of your own location.

Keeping your charts up to date will allow you to account for any sort of recent activity or additions.  Using a chart, however, has become somewhat of a dead art since the evolution of navigational technology.  Now, with a good navigational system, the leg work in planning a course is calculated for you.  Plug and play as they say.  Still, having a chart on-board is essential in the event of a navigation malfunction.  The last thing you want is to be stranded off coast with a dead navi system and no nautical chart.  However unlikely this is, it can happen.  Hence the lesson.

Tyler Baker; OSM Writer

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