A contrast on the water

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While on a recent visit to my old home town of Poole, I watched two boats pass under the lifting bridge that connects Poole to Hamworthy. The boats in question were a Sunseeker yacht and an RLNI lifeboat. Sunseeker and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution both have their Headquarters in Poole, and there is a Sunseeker yard right next door to the RLNI base, which is why the two boats were passing under the bridge together. But it struck me that there was a huge contrast on display here. If you want to buy a Sunseeker yacht, like this one, you will get no change out of three million pounds - possibly much more. Lifeboats can also cost millions to buy and equip. However, a Sunseekeer owner will be super-rich, and used to swanning around the world displaying his wealth everywhere he or she goes. Lifeboats are manned by unpaid volunteers and funded entirely from voluntary contributions - the RLNI gets no financial government assistance. Should a millionaire on a Sunseekeer yacht get into trouble within the coastal waters of Great Britain or Ireland, it will be a lifeboat manned by volunteers that will come to his rescue and save his life. That was why this picture struck me as presenting an interesting contrast!