Should read Blade F15 & 11/12ths

Agreed, let's drop it a half point.

I dunno Dave, smaller boat with same crew weight would indicate a HIGHER DPN is required.

How does crew weight factor in when there is no min crew weight? Now if the F15 class rules have a min crew weight then you might have a point. A 15 foot must be lighter than a 16 foot boat, right? Half point sounds fair.

The point of rules is to generate as large and fair a playing field as possible.

IMO... crew weight adjustments should not be applied to single handed boats. Most of them can have sails built to their weight.

Its better to set a minimum and maximum wind speed for single handed class racing and do away with crew weight mins for single handers.

If you have a crew min of 140 lbs 110% of weight would put you at 154 lbs for a ratings break... Silly!

I was just goofing around with Terry. I have no desire to get into a serious discussion about hapdicap racing, it always turns into a giant cluster F!@# and I still see very little value in it.

Sorry Ding, didn't mean to get you embroiled in an F16 - F15 brew-ha-ha...

... but now that I think of it ... you do seem to find yourself in the middle fairly often. You should get an F15 and be taken seriously!

I called and left a message for Lisa Carpenter (Clearwater, not Tallahasee). Her boss, Stephanie Lillico, called me back and quoted the same thing. When I suggested that the law seemed to have changed she read the current statute, saw that her DMV book was outdated, and said she will ask Tallahasee for an updated policy based on the current statute and will call me back.

I don't mean to bring Johnny Law down on our heads. The Sheriff and FWC officers seem to know of the new requirement and have threatened to write tickets. Given that our boats are sitting ducks on the beach, maybe we ought to be ready to register rather than get several tickets. We could all just say we are John Doe and get a ticket in that name. Charmin.

The really difficult issue remains unresolved. To get registered you have to have a title. Getting a title on an older (not new) boat is MUCH harder to do. The court order route seems to be the only way and that process is REALLY ugly.

Here's a link to instructions for getting a title via court order.

well that was a fun read.... i still have no clue what to do.

Dave, you sold me a stolen, unregiterable, untitleable boat. the least you could have done was give me a piece of your wife's b-day cake when i saw you at the Japanese restaurant the other night....

Here's a change in the law that REALLY sucks. Once they force us to register with the state and they know where you live, the local county "may impose" an an ADDITIONAL fee. Hopefully nobody at the courthouse is reading the new laws.

FL Statute 328.66

"328.66 County and municipality optional registration fee.--

(1) Any county may impose an annual registration fee on vessels registered, operated, used, or stored on the waters of this state within its jurisdiction. This fee shall be 50 percent of the applicable state registration fee."

and whats the reg fee (state)? at this point.. i dont care if i have to pay, i just want to be legal and not worry about driving home and getting pulled over for not having numbes on my boat, or worse ...


Robi, can you make me some Hobie15 &11/12ths stickers for my 18.5' boat? (kidding)

Actually, that would be pretty funny. If they weren't too expensive they might buy us some time. "Hobie 15" Who would know the difference?

I can see that the Sheriff deputies will soon need a new hanger on their utility belts to hold a Glok tape measure. I guess a fixed tape of 16 feet would be enough.

Andrew,
Per 328.72:
Class 1--16 feet or more and less than 26 feet in length: $28.75 for each 12-month period registered.

By the time this is done we'll know the statutes better than the legislators!

Great, thanks... i am soooo willing to pay that... but i know i am in for a huge fight to get a title


no doubt.. i usually love arm chair lawyering.. but not this time... this is more important than just about everything else in my life to me...

I believe this is simpler than you folks are making it, although it certainly is a PITA.


<<<Section 319.23(3)(a)(2)(c), Florida Statutes, reads: “If the vehicle is an ancient or antique vehicle as defined in s. 320.086, F.S., the application shall be accompanied by a certificate of title; a bill of sale and a registration; or a bill of sale and an affidavit by the owner defending the title from all claims. The bill of sale must contain a complete vehicle description to include the vehicle identification or engine number, year make, color, selling price, and signatures of the seller and purchaser.” >>>


Having spent a lot of time in the DMV line, often with "unusual" paperwork issues, I learned that you never go without having an answer for every question.

All they really want is for you to have some sort of paper trail as to where you got the boat and how much you paid. Obviously, an MSO or title solves that issue along with a bill of sale stating the price and describing the property.

In lieu of these, an affidavit (as stated in the staute) is probably sufficient. In Florida, this should be notarized.

Since you know where you got your boat, the logical first step is to go back to the seller for a statement. He should also know where he got the boat, and so forth.

This is called a verifiable chain of ownership. It should state each owner in succession, back to the selling dealer, along with their last known address and phone number.

Hopefully there weren't too many owners.

If the selling dealer is still in business, he MAY be willing to make a statement for your affidavit.

You can also work the ownership chain from the dealer end if you can get the manufacturer to tell you where the boat was first delivered.

Once you have the chain reconstructed, sign it in front of a notary and that is your affidavit.

The more detail you can provide, the better.

You will have to pay the sales tax in any case, and the title fee.

I just want to say thank you, Jack, for having the title and sending it to me!

Nice try, Jack. However, your citings are from Title XXIII about motor vehicles and do not apply to vessels (Title XXIV). I could find nothing in XXIV about antique vessels.

Since Andrew's boat is a '95 or maybe '98 it would be hard to call it antique, anyway.
Personally, I'm a '53 and don't think of myself as antique (but my kids do).

OK- Brain trust and Hobie 15.99 foot owners..... Now what do the 18 foot boat racers do? Continue with Jennifer's idea?

Change the measurement system so an 18 would instead be called a 15 36/12ths...