I look at what the boat is, what it has been through, and what that means for whoever is about to own it. A survey is an act of understanding.
Well. So, this is me on top of the keel of my boat, which I bought to refit and sail away but I ended up cutting to pieces with my own two hands. In short, I would call it a perfect plan and a terrible execution.
I bought that sweet south African boat even if it had all the red flags in this world. Mistake number one. Then I had it transported over land, an even worse mistake. Then, I worked on the boat in my spare time for two, three, or four years. Never sailed it a single day, till was clear for my sanity and my wallet that I have to cut it loose… literally.
Could that dreadful picture have been avoided? I dunno. At the time, I had a lot of enthusiasm, and little knowledge.
Maybe, if I had had a surveyor who understood what the boat was and what it had been through, understood what the boat could do. I needed a survey to continue the project. Find one in a short time was difficult and expensive. The guy who showed up came from the automotive industry, which can be great, but with no understanding of what a sailboat is, what the reasons for the system are, the organization of the system — he just told me its market value. Maybe I would not listen to him even if he had told me all the right thing. Or maybe now I would have a boat.
I survey sailboats. Condition and value, pre-purchase, insurance, damage.
