This is the web site of Roger J. Jones and XO (The Wonder Cat.) We are spending Roger’s retirement and XO’s life living aboard the Sailing Yacht Reboot, a Catalina 42 Mark II sailboat. We live aboard full time and travel around the world as the notion strikes us. This web site contains information about us. It is not updated frequently. For an up to date chronology of our travels and adventures see our blog at the link above.
Selecting a name for a boat is a personal decision. I spent my civilian career in Information Technology. That suggested a boat name with a link to that career. I also wanted something unique. I once owned a boat named Zephyr – along with a couple of thousand other people who owned Zephyrs. I rejected the chronology conceit: Reboot, Reboot II, etc. My current boat is actually the second Reboot.
How to style: Sailboat Reboot, Sailing Vessel Reboot, Sailing Yacht Reboot? In the United States most sailboats are Sailing Vessels (s/v), in the rest of the world they are Sailing Yachts. In case you are curious big power boats are known in the UK as “gin palaces”, in the United States (by sail boaters) as “stink pots.” Really big yachts are Super-Yachts or Mega-Yachts. Styling Reboot as a Sailing Yacht is therefore, in my humble opinion, not putting on airs and graces.
By tradition the person in charge of a private boat or military vessel is the “Captain.” In the commercial shipping industry that person is the “Master.” I am twice a Captain: once because of my relationship to Reboot, once by Act of the Congress of the United States. The Congress was kind enough to also make me officially a “Gentleman.” It is a gesture of respect to call the Captain of any boat “Captain” even if you know their name and are close friends. (When sitting around the bar with lots of Captains, the proper stylization is Captain (name) as in Captain Roger (or Ron, once of the best boating movies ever.)
People who work on boats are “crew.” Notice that they don’t even get to have their title capitalized. On big boats there are other frequent titles: First Mate or Executive Officer (for the second in command), Engineer, Watch Commander, etc.
A personal gripe of mine is men who style their wives or significant others as “Admiral.” In my thirty year Navy career I worked with a lot of Admirals (and a few Generals.) I consider the title to be one of great respect and earned by exemplary military service. Just as I will refer to you as Captain if you are in fact the Captain of a boat, I would expect any Admiral on your boat to have earned the title with skill and experience rather than gender. My preference is that you don’t call your wife Admiral in my presence unless she has earned it via a military career.