In late July two giant trimarans, Banque Populaire 5 and Groupama 3, set out from Ambrose Light off New York, their bows aimed for Lizard Point on England’s southwest coast, both bent on breaking the fully crewed west-to-east Transatlantic record. The record, set by Franck Cammas on Groupama 3 in 2007, was 4 days, 3 hours, 57 minutes and 54 seconds, a pace so quick that both teams needed a
On 4 September, Alain Thbaults hydrofoiling trimaran, LHydroptre, became the fastest sailboat on the planet, rifling off two impressive feats in the same day in Frances La Seyne sur Mer. First, the flying tri registered an average speed of 48.72 knots over a distance of one nautical mile; then it fired off an average pace of 51.36 knots over a distance of 500 meters. Even more
On the East Coast, West Coast, and Gulf Coast…on the Great Lakes and all the little lakes and rivers, too—most American sailors have been wooed at one point or another by the siren call of an occasional low-stress, mid-week race. (OK, perhaps it was the skipper’s promise of beer and burgers afterwards.) These informal “beer-can chases” are a great way to break up the
On the East Coast, West Coast, and Gulf Coast…on the Great Lakes and all the little lakes and rivers, toomost American sailors have been wooed at one point or another by the siren call of an occasional low-stress, mid-week race. (OK, perhaps it was the skippers promise of beer and burgers afterwards.) These informal beer-can chases are a great way to break up the
On the East Coast, West Coast, and Gulf Coast…on the Great Lakes and all the little lakes and rivers, toomost American sailors have been wooed at one point or another by the siren call of an occasional low-stress, mid-week race. (OK, perhaps it was the skippers promise of beer and burgers afterwards.) These informal beer-can chases are a great way to break up the
Hunter Ratliff wants nothing more than to feel the weight of a gold medal around his neck. To stand on the podium, national anthem blaring, knowing his success came from no one but himself. But its going to take a while to get there.Last November, Hunter, now 25, embarked on an Olympic campaign for his 470 sailboat. He and his crew, Topher Williams, spend their days building what Ratliff
So there we were last Friday evening, sitting on the rail of Tom Hills magnificent new Reichel/Pugh 75 Titan XV during the 2009 Ida Lewis Distance Race off Newport, Rhode Island, happily munching on carrots and hummus, when a curious thing happened: a torrent of saltwater exploded over everybody seated at the back of the sled. It happened so suddenly that all I could
When kids grow up sailing on the Charles River in Boston, its easy for them to assume that the breadth of their sport stops there. Thats why, every summer, Bostons Community Boating Inc. (CBI) brings in a fleet of sailing stars to crew for their outstanding students in the annual Kids Sail the Stars event. The formula is simple: the most dedicated junior sailors are the
While the Volvo Ocean Race has been dominating sailing headlines this year, there’s an unofficial circumnavigation “race” taking place: The contest to become the youngest person to circle the globe. At only 17 and 16 years old respectively, Zac Sunderland (USA) and Mike Perham (UK) are vying for a place in the pantheon of sailing world-record holders David Dicks, Jesse Martin,
In the current economic climate, its no surprise that that potential sponsors are balking at the prospect of ponying up the $50-60 million needed to fund a first-rate Volvo Ocean Race (VOR) campaign. The VOR itself has been working to reduce costs, as they recognize that sponsors only get their full value if there are plenty of boats competing.So far, changes include a
In early 2019, the 52ft steel expedition vessel Bagheera celebrated her 10th birthday. During that time, and in the years since, she has carried my
At the upcoming Trawlerfest Baltimore, set for Sept. 29-Oct. 3, veteran mariners Rudy and Jill Sechez will look at the ins and outs of cruising
Spurred on, no doubt, by the continuing extraordinary demand for sailboats of all sizes, the catamaran industry has made a point of not letting the
It was a simple craigslist ad that started all the rumpus. A guy named Milo in Belfast, Maine listed a well-worn 1969 Tripp 29 sloop
An hour after midnight on a bitingly cold day this past February, English sailor Pip Hare crossed the finish line of the Vendée Globe. After
Pitch black in a narrow, unlit canal, my only two points of reference were a pair of red and green navigational buoys half a mile
Vacationing and good eats go hand-in-hand, and when you’re on a boat everything just tastes better. Maybe it’s the fresh air or the appetite you
Sailing is a remarkably safe activity, despite the potentially dangerous environment in which it takes place. This is undoubtedly due to the safety-conscious attitude of
At the upcoming Trawlerfest Baltimore, set for Sept. 29-Oct. 3, Steve Zimmerman, founder and president of the Zimmerman Marine line of marinas, will offer tips
