Portsmouth to Brighton - Too Much for The First Trip?

[v6had]

Hi All

I’m in the final stages of securing a used Ribeye A600 from Portsmouth, however it does not come with a trailer, therefore my plan would be to motor back to Brighton Marina from Portsmouth.

This would be my first Rib / Boat purchase hence I have a little apprehension about this trip in the first place. I don’t want to bite off more than I can chew.

I was hoping that some people in the forum would have done this journey and could tell me whether this is achievable in a new boat with limited boating experience in this country.

Thanks in advance

[Dry Run]

I can't comment on your journey, but would be tempted to ask what you intend to do with a 6m Ribeye from Brighton Marina? I'm biased of course, but would it not make more sense to base your boat in the Solent area? Driving from Horsham to the Solent area would give you a fantastic array of destinations - both on the South Coast and the IOW. Just saying

[Brian]

It's about 50 miles or so.
Should be do-able.
Piggin' boring though. Give Selsey Bill a wide berth.

Oh, and pick a fine day!

[v6had]

@Dry Run - Absolutely fair comment, my intentions initially are to get as much use out of the boat in the evenings and weekend as possible and in order to do so Brighton made sense. Maybe after a year of ownership I would to move it down to Portsmouth for some more exciting scenery and options. But to begin with I’m just looking for time on the water with friends and family.

[John Kennett]

I’ve done it a few times. It’s pretty straightforward but quite committing for a first trip and probably not ideal for a shake down in a new boat.

How much boating experience have you got? It might be worth leaving the boat in Portsmouth for a few weeks before heading over to Brighton, and doing some less ambitious trips to start with.

[Dry Run]

Originally Posted by v6had

@Dry Run - Absolutely fair comment, my intentions initially are to get as much use out of the boat in the evenings and weekend as possible and in order to do so Brighton made sense. Maybe after a year of ownership I would to move it down to Portsmouth for some more exciting scenery and options. But to begin with I’m just looking for time on the water with friends and family.

Good thinking - have fun

[Poly]

I wouldn’t take a new boat on that trip. I would want to get used to the boat with a few shorter 10-15 mile trips with easy “bail out” options if say an engine alarm comes on or all the electrics go off after going over a wake. (Both have happened to me on shakedowns with boats that seemed to be working fine before hand - both were easy fixes but not if rolling around at sea).

If it was me, I’d arrange with the marina where it is to keep it there for a week, use it there the first weekend and then make the trip the following weekend once you’ve got used to the boat and being back on the water.

[nick miller]

Lots of places to bail out to, Chichester, littlehampton, shoreham just pick a nice day with a rising tide.