Hey Steve,

It's more of a reflection of what's actually driving most boats these days, than anything else...

As Maine Sail mentioned, I don't know how you hold a course in thick visibility, in a flat calm, without a compass... Although a heading line/pointer on a chartplotter can work pretty well - that's the only electronic means that I can imagine steering by over a prolonged period - as long as the plotter is working, of course...

The pic below would appear to indicate the importance Hallberg-Rassy places on a steering compass today... The size of that thing, and the placement of it so distant from the helm on their new 64, would probably render it pretty difficult to read, at least for me...

Oh, well... At least this thread has served as a reminder to me, that it's probably time I removed the spare tire from my Subaru, since I've never had to use it yet... (grin)

best regards,

Jon