What is it? Real time boat monitoring that allows remote checking of a vessel’s status and essential systems. Who is it for? Any owner who wants to know how their…
Yachting World
Sailing Greenland: An ice-bound voyage through Prince Christian Sound
“Can you see a way through?” Perched on the spreaders, binoculars in hand, Magnus shook his head. “It looks like it’s completely blocked with ice,” he replied. Down in the…
New Fastnet course: How the changes will affect this offshore classic
Discovering that the Rolex Fastnet Race will finish in Cherbourg for 2021 and 2023, I was initially very open minded about the change, although it always seems a risky move…
When is the best time to sail away? The 9 key X factors to consider
I spend much of my time chatting with aspiring bluewater cruisers at boat shows and the seminars we organise, about all aspects of ‘living the dream’. Some have a well…
Sailing Alaska: A family adventure around the blissfully remote Admiralty Island
Standing on the bow of our borrowed 36ft steel cutter, I watched as my four children paddled the inflatable kayak through the iceberg-laden water. The sea had been busy with…
Tidal streams: How to predict them and use them to your advantage
Whether racing or cruising, our first thoughts are always: ‘What is the tide doing?’ When I grew up sailing in Scotland, leaving anchorages before dawn to catch a tide was…
Yacht shipping: How to prepare your boat for a trip on a transporter ship
Bypassing seasonal weather restrictions and being able to relocate quickly are among the factors making yacht shipping more popular than ever. Cargo ships cruise well in excess of the speeds…
March 2020
This month’s issue features a full test of Amel Yachts’ new flagship, the Amel 60, plus the European Yacht of the Year judges crown the best new models for 2020.…
The inside story of Greta Thunberg’s upwind Atlantic crossing on La Vagabonde
The sky flashed a blinding white light and a spark came down just a few hundred metres to port. We were going fast, and getting faster: that kind of fast…
Road to the America’s Cup podcast: What can sailing simulators teach us?
The reason is simple: every other means of performance evaluation has been neutered – or, at the very least, significantly hampered – by the Protocol, which bans tow-tank and wind…
Sailing Hawaii: A leisurely cruise around these picture-perfect volcanic islands
We started our Pacific voyage on board Distant Drummer, our 45ft Liberty cutter-rigged sloop, from Wellington, New Zealand, in June, 2015, bound ultimately for North America and the Pacific Northwest.…
Staysails: 5 tips on using them to turbocharge your boat speed
As Mike Sanderson points out, staysails are hardly a new idea. The old clipper ships used to use multiple staysails. However, the past five years have seen staysails become a…
5 expert sailing tips: How to win a yacht racing protest
You spend so much time and money honing your craft as a sailor, making the boat go faster… and then it can all blow up with a protest. In the…
Spirit Yachts: Inside the British yard behind some of the world’s most beautiful boats
For more than 25 years Spirit Yachts has been melting the hearts of yachtsmen with its distinctive range of wood epoxy modern classics. In that time the company has built…
Caribbean sailing tips: Chris Doyle on making the most of your time there
Chris Doyle’s is a name familiar to all Caribbean cruisers, as the author of best-selling cruising guides of the region. Having explored the Caribbean for more than 40 years, there…
Invisible Hand: This Pac 52 racer sees the TP52 class return to its offshore roots
The original Transpac 52 Class (TP52) left an indelible mark on US west coast sailing, but the few that were left racing in California represented a wide range of vintages…
5 racing tips: How to win when the weather forecast goes wrong
Will Oxley is nothing if not meticulous in his preparation. Which is why he wouldn’t panic too much if the weather forecasts were inconclusive, or proved to be completely wrong.…
Solo Atlantic sailing: Lessons learned en-route to Madeira
It was just before midnight in the eastern fringes of the Atlantic Ocean, about 130 miles south-west of Cape Finisterre. To my right I could see an ominous wall of…
Sailing round Britain with the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust: The magic of Moonspray
Despite a significant drop in the breeze, our arrival at Canning Dock in Liverpool coincided with a four-knot cross-tide to make things particularly interesting. Our yacht Moonspray ferry-glided confidently towards…
Selling your boat in the Pacific: How to get full price after an ocean adventure
Buying a boat, sailing across the Atlantic and then exploring the Pacific, before selling it for the purchase price in New Zealand or Australia sounds like a dream come true.…