[thedog]

But how many people know how to plot and follow a course using Dead Reckoning, chart, dividers, pencil and compass anymore? I had to learn it when I was 10, 'cuz my Navy officer grandfather taught me to do so to cross the Stream.

How many of you can?

ignorance is no excuse, trust a gps or any machine and it will let you down sooner or later.
used to run and fish 80 miles back in the late 70's and early 80's with a compass and paper machine.
funny story, two years ago, I was running home from an offshore trip in my big boat, wind came up other than forcast so I beat feet. hit the inlet around 1 am. there is a sportfish boat just outside the inlet big boat 60ft +, he is on the radio with the coast guard channel 16
his gps quit working, he had the gaul. to hail the coast guard on 16 and ask them what the compass heading to the hudson canyon was. he had no clue, yet was about to run 80 miles in the dark to reach a fishing destination and did not know the compass heading to take. should be common sense information but he did not know
then last year the state made it mandatory that any boater running in salt water had to take a boater test and class, do you know that on the test there is no reference to a compass, heading, buoy colors nothing, just info about no wakes and jetski's , absolutly nothing about how to read a chart, call for help, plot a course nothing.