Credit Where Due

While preparing review articles I often get some help from manufactures and vendors. To defend our objectivity we avoid giving citation to those that have helped. However, in many cases these were just good folks, helping out, with no dog in the fight. I no particular order....

Atlantic Rigging, Deale, MD. Some new and old line for testing, and some antidotal expereince.
When asked about the occational practice of powerwashing lines, in their words, "some customers would rather replace a rope because it's dirty than because it needs it."

Canvas Conection, Deale MD. Some advise and some scraps for testing.
They built a new enclsure for me. Best price, on-time delivery, installed on the boat.

New England Ropes. Some new line for laundry testing and lab services (breaking line that we had exposed to bleach).
They actually replaced the first 100-foot donation with another 100-feet of line, after the washer destroyed the first samples. I think they were glad enough that we would publish proper washing instructions and relieve them of some complants.


Potomac Sailmakers, Alexandria, VA. Some advise and some scraps for testing.
I've been taking sails there over the years, for additional reef points, restitching, and UV covers. Always a pleasure to deal with and always timely.

Herrington Harbor North.
Though too pricy for me to keep my boat there, I have used it as my DIY yard for years, as their hauling and dry storage rates are reasonable and they are very DIY freindly. Have they ever made a mistake, over 25 years? Yes. But I've never seen them hesitate for 10 seconds in making it right. When selling my last boat there were 2 tasks (carrying the deck a short distance and lifting the mast onto the trailer) that were made reasonable by 10 minutes help of a travel lift crew; no bill. They've brought me extention cords when I was placed too far from power. They've moved the boat for me when they realized I might get spray from washing operations and I was painting. Once I hit a submerged dredge pipe that had drift out into the channel, damaging my dagger board. They only asked where my boat was. They hauled it, repaired it (and invited me to come review the repairs and offered a survey), and returned it in a few weeks.