Questionable advice
- Thread starter Husky77
- Start date
When people refer to the waterfront, they are talking about the area where the fleet of offshore sailing and power vessels are berthed at KP. It is also home to the intercollegiate dinghy and crew programs. The waterfront is a "non regimental" portion of the campus. That does't mean plebes can do whatever they want there, but it is a less intense environment than the rest of the campus. That can make it an attractive place for them to spend time. I suppose the risk is that it will take time away from academics which is first and foremost why you are there. Spending a lot of time there will also probably not lead you to be perceived as very "regimental" if that is your thing. If you really enjoy sailing or power boating and spending time with other people who do, it would be silly to not take advantage of it. It would be equally as silly to go down there if you don't enjoy those things just to avoid being around the regiment. All things in moderation. Academics first though as that is the quickest way to get the boot.
Agreed. . . now, I did join the sailing team for the first quarter of Plebe year and I have to say that it helped. By the spring, I wandered away from the waterfront and joined the Rugby Club and found that it served me even better. . . after I graduated, too. . . .
Row2020
Member
- Joined
- Dec 28, 2015
- Messages
- 264
I am particularly curious about what particular "warning" there might be? DS hopes to be rowing for KP next year. (still on hold) On his overnight he worked out with the team and had breakfast with them. He enjoyed it immensely. Our first introduction to KP was the waterfront director. He was extremely welcoming and knowledgeable and IMO an excellent ambassador for KP. Waterfront was a positive game changer for DS.
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2009
- Messages
- 1,456
Do what you find fulfilling. You get out of KP what you put into it and doing what someone else liked won’t mean much to you or help you much.
The waterfront definitely has advantages for just being a Plebe as KPEng said. At least in my day it was generally more relaxed and class rates didn’t apply. We used to go from academic buildings to the barracks via the waterfront a lot because you didn’t have to do the plebe stuff along the way. No running or marching in section, I think we still saluted M/N officers but can’t recall for sure.
One of my few regrets of KP is that I wish I had spent more time at the waterfront. Making good use of the various boats and teams can give you a very broad experience base beyond what you would get from just sea year. As more and more graduates go into inland and offshore jobs vs. deep sea, the waterfront experience would be invaluable in my view. I’m not the USCG but I believe that it could be possible for an engineer to parlay his/her waterfront experience into a 100t Masters License.
The waterfront definitely has advantages for just being a Plebe as KPEng said. At least in my day it was generally more relaxed and class rates didn’t apply. We used to go from academic buildings to the barracks via the waterfront a lot because you didn’t have to do the plebe stuff along the way. No running or marching in section, I think we still saluted M/N officers but can’t recall for sure.
One of my few regrets of KP is that I wish I had spent more time at the waterfront. Making good use of the various boats and teams can give you a very broad experience base beyond what you would get from just sea year. As more and more graduates go into inland and offshore jobs vs. deep sea, the waterfront experience would be invaluable in my view. I’m not the USCG but I believe that it could be possible for an engineer to parlay his/her waterfront experience into a 100t Masters License.
If you are going to go to KP chances are good that your career will involve ships and the sea. The KP waterfront is a unique environment that allows you to relax, have fun, play with some amazing boats, and learn an amazing amount about being a better mariner. If you want to be the best football player you can be it is best to practice every day. If you want to be the best mariner you can be guess what - practice every day - and that is what you can do at the waterfront. As a Kings Pointer you are a mariner- better to be the best.
I do have a biased opinion about the KP Waterfront, but as a captain of a ship I find that good mates and engineers can come from any academy or KP program, but I am more likely to turn over the conn of the ship to a KP sailor than anyone else.
I do have a biased opinion about the KP Waterfront, but as a captain of a ship I find that good mates and engineers can come from any academy or KP program, but I am more likely to turn over the conn of the ship to a KP sailor than anyone else.
beyond
10-Year Member
- Joined
- Dec 8, 2010
- Messages
- 577
KP has it's own cliques like high school. If you ask a football player they might hate on the waterfront, and a waterfront member might remind you that the football team has winning seasons about as often as Coach Toop needs hair cuts (...get it, he's going bald).
I was big into the KP waterfront. It gave me more opportunities to take charge of a whole verity of vessels, bump elbows with the elite at all kinds of yacht clubs (...including the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club), and become a much more proficient mariner. It is an experience and a network I wouldn't trade for the world. The responsibility will come quickly, it'll be a whole lot of fun, and it'll make that first watch as a third mate a lot less intimidating.
I was big into the KP waterfront. It gave me more opportunities to take charge of a whole verity of vessels, bump elbows with the elite at all kinds of yacht clubs (...including the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club), and become a much more proficient mariner. It is an experience and a network I wouldn't trade for the world. The responsibility will come quickly, it'll be a whole lot of fun, and it'll make that first watch as a third mate a lot less intimidating.
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2009
- Messages
- 1,456
DeepSea and Beyond ... blowboaters 
At least the days of crew gerbils are gone I'm assuming. That was always comical to watch.
At least the days of crew gerbils are gone I'm assuming. That was always comical to watch.
interesting most of the 1/C who are big on waterfront now are actually engineering majors. One of the engineers said, "Being on the waterfront gives me an opportunity to fool around with deck stuff when I want to and get back to business as an engineer after." That said, I'm a deck major and don't care much for the waterfront.