1/2 price breakfast promotion for Nov08

[Low Light Mike]

As part of the Flugel-Horn Foundation's commitment to promote healthy eating among British Columbians, I am pleased to announce that BC Ferries will be offering the Smart-Start breakfast sandwich for 1/2-price, for the month of November 2008.

(This offer only applies to weekday morning sailings on the Queen of Richmond, and is 1 item per customer).

Because I intend to pay BC Ferries the funding needed for this, I thought it was OK to announce that BC Ferries would be doing this, even without me first asking BC Ferries about the matter. In fact, I don't intend to ask them. My announcing this sale here on this fine forum is good enough notice.

After all, Mr. Hahn says that this type of wag-the-dog maneuver is simply a sale. And we all know that BC Ferries likes to make sales.

So, I expect BC Ferries to be ready to adjust the sale-price of the Smart-Start sandwich (but only in the Q-Richmond's coastal-cafe) by November 1st. I think that I've given them enough time to comply with my citizen's order.

I love being a customer; it gives me such power.

ps: feel free to announce your own customer-orders in this here thread. BC Ferries likes these things, because it's really just a customer order, and they love customers.

[Northern Exploration]

Any sign of the Triple O going on sale for the rest of the day? As long as the Queen of Richmond cooks stop using Miracle Whip instead of real mayonaise.

[Hardy]

I was under the DISTINCT impression that the Queen of Richmond had NOT been 'Coastalized' ... did she go in for a refit? I thought she still had the original DW-carpet and the old teal-ish chairs?

[Mike C]

To all regular members:

I am pleased to announce that all West Coast Ferries Voyagers will be covering the costs of select sailings on major routes this year. All sailings these occur on, we will be paying for 40% of your fare! These sailings will be clearly marked COASTSAVER Sailings, both on the BC Ferries website and on this one.

In addition, we will be cutting the fares up to 33% to the month of January, AND implementing the previously canceled sailings.

Just one more way us Voyagers want to make your experience to be different!

[WettCoast]

Oct 25, 2008 19:56:04 GMT -8 Hardy said:

I was under the DISTINCT impression that the Queen of Richmond had NOT been 'Coastalized' ... did she go in for a refit? I thought she still had the original DW-carpet and the old teal-ish chairs?

The refit was done last winter, or perhaps the year before, at VMD

[Scott]

Speaking of refits, should we petition the government for improved service for the Earls Cove - Saltery Bay route starting in the summer of 2010? This would require a mid-life refit on the Island sky beginning in January 2009 that would include stretching the vessel, expanding passenger amenities, increasing vehicle capacity, and installing brand new state-of-the-art fuel efficient engines.

[Mill Bay]

Oct 25, 2008 22:54:42 GMT -8 Scott said:

and installing brand new state-of-the-art fuel efficient engines.

Are these going to be like the brand new state-of-the-art fuel efficient engines that the Coastals have that were reputed to be more energy efficient than the older ferries, combined with an advanced, specially designed hull form, which are now rumored to burn even more fuel than the inefficient, out-dated, low-tech C-Class? Of course, half of that is because BCFerries apparently seems to have a problem with spending few extra pennies for variable speed electric motors, so the drive motors are always howling at a high-speed just absorbing all that extra fuel cost.

If we're going to be talking special orders and requests for nostalgia, then I'd like to reassert my desire that all new intermediate vessels be styled as replicas of the Queen of Sidney and Tsawwassen. The hull shape isn't really that bad, and they were easy and simply to operate and not too bad on fuel. Of course, with newer engines and drive systems, they can probably reduce the fuel burn quite a bit. And they can be built from the keel up to incorporate all the modern safety features that Transport Canada dreams up, yet still retain the same physical appearance above the cardeck as the old Sidney twins.

I've never understood why any new ship always has to be so different... what's wrong with using a proven design that works (AND LOOKS) well, with a few necessary modifications...? The Sidney class were proven to be easy to build (back when the governments still supported shipyard labor instead of fighting with them... now it would cost more, of course, simply because any new shipbuilding connected to BCFerries seems to be a grudge match). They were economical and easy to operate (as long as you didn't beat them to death) and they were able to last for a long time and still run reliably.

Look at the history of this obsession with new ship designs for BCFerries. Most notably you have the Capilano with her engine issues that went on forever. Then, the Skeena Queen which works well, but has a flare for air pollution (but at least she is a design that's already been tested, why not use her?). Now the Coastals, which it seems may have suffered from excessive positive publicity and may not be all they were proclaimed to be. And then, the Island Sky, which certainly isn't what it's suppposed to be, let alone what it was claimed to be. A few successes, or designs that can at least be made to work with a lot of effort, but nothing to really do any sky-writing over.

And all the while, the old ships kept sailing on back and forth, in their fuel-expensive, under-maintained states, so what is so wrong with them if they've proven themselves thus far? What's the obsession with designing superships and spaceships that seem to at least be gas-oholics and, at the most, even a degree hydrophobic, as the Island Sky took forever to hit the open water. Now, I know that the Sidney class originally went through months of see trials, but after that, they built seven more ships with little issue and simply shoved them into the water and onto the route ;D. It seems that the problem with the new ship designs is too much time is spent on computers and high-technology rather than an architect with a sharp pencil and a pair of engines coupled directly to two propeller shafts.

So I think, Flugel, that your idea of taking customers orders, is something that should be considered more seriously. At least then, we could have a fresh, new Queen of Tsawwassen II, complete with a full cafeteria, debuting on the Jervis Inlet instead of the Queen of Lego, from a galaxy far, far away, featuring plastic starfleet rations in her 'snack-bar'.

[kerryssi]

New designs.....not based on reality... ego driven as each manager wants to make his mark. The one with the biggest ferry wins! Practicality is not a consideration. If it were there would be about 3 basic designs and they would all be diesel electric.

[kerryssi]

I did not want this generally known but I secretly work for the Campbell government. I have knowledge that there are plans afoot to privatize the bridges in Vancouver. Since you all seem like nice people here I can make you an offer that is too good to miss. Through my inside contacts in the government I can get you in on the ground floor. Just think of all the tolls you could collect! Because they are using the privatization of B.C. Ferries as a model the whole operation will be shrouded in secrecy. You will be exempt from all public scrutiny and may never be sued. You will be exempt from the freedom of information act, and in fact, from all B.C. legislation. You can raise the tolls at will, shut the bridge down or reduce it to single lane traffic on your whim. Any interested parties meet me behind the Legislature buildings at midnight the night after next. Bring large amounts of cash.
Sincerely
Upay Meoff