Around Newport, Rhode Island, the area is steeped in sailing history. In the 18th Century whaling fleets sailed out of Nantucket, 60 miles to the east, navigating treacherous sandbanks and…
Yachting World
How a square top mainsail helped superyacht Sarissa take off
Upgrading horsepower always gets the boys excited. So, when the decision came to upgrade Sarissa’s pinhead mainsail to an aggressive square-top, the project was approached with considerable enthusiasm. Sarissa, a…
10 practical tips for perfect downwind sailing in the Tropics
Between the tropics of Cancer and Capricorn lie the tradewind belts, separated by the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) known to many sailors as the Doldrums. The extent of the tropics…
Skip Novak: Volvo Ocean Race CEO Mark Turner is off to a very strong start
I was very pleased to see the new course for the next Volvo Ocean Race. Looking at the map graphic, the course line is once again more or less a…
Solo skipper Sam Davies on why panic is the worst response to a man overboard emergency
It looks as though either a trimmer or the bowman has gone to leeward to check the trim or sheet leads for the headsail and potentially the impending spinnaker hoist.…
How do you provision for a crew for three weeks or more at sea?
Food can be almost an obsession on board a yacht at sea. The days revolve around mealtimes as much as watches and are usually the times when everyone wakes up…
Weather expert Chris Tibbs on how to predict and cope with fog at sea
Radar and AIS help to make navigating in fog safer, but it is still an unnerving experience to sail in visibility of less than 1,000m. Foghorns are hard to pinpoint…
A racer’s life: EF Education in the 1997-98 Whitbread round the world race
It’s hard to believe that almost 20 years have elapsed since the Swedish EF team of two boats took on the Whitbread Round the World Race in 1997-98, writes Tom…
Wolfhound: marine artist Stephen Dews reveals his brand new schooner
Recognised as one of the world’s leading marine artists, whose subjects range from the Battle of Trafalgar to the modern day J Class and America’s Cup, Steven Dews recently launched…
British sailor David Cowper navigates ‘world’s most difficult sea route’ for first time since discovery in 1822
British sailor and explorer David Cowper has successfully transited one of the most difficult routes of the North West Passage, the Hecla and Fury Straits. On 27 August, accompanied by…
Coastal Chile: uncovering the truth behind a mass whale stranding
The Golfo de Penas is a long way from anywhere. It is one of the major barriers to safe navigation along the already formidable coastline of southern Chile. The Taitao…
Dee Caffari finds out the hard way why Three Peaks Race is one of the world’s greatest endurance races
We were heading into the shore and just past Bear Grylls’s island, Saint Tudwal’s Island West, when the tacking duel commenced, writes Dee Caffari aboard Team Caffari/Sail 4 Cancer. Each…
‘Force Unlucky’ mid-Atlantic: surviving a truly ferocious winter gale
Today’s sailing world is well stocked with sponsored heroes, performing remarkable feats in the cause of being fastest on some great endeavour, writes Tom Cunliffe. John Kretschmer is a different…
Get out of that! What to do when your spinnaker snags a racing mark
It looks a rather pleasant day on the Solent with 15 knots and sun, and crews are enjoying what they probably believe is a decent race. However, as can be…
Skip Novak: Big city venues reduce the America’s Cup World Series to a crapshoot
When I read about Ben Ainslie’s frustration in sailing underneath New York City (literally) in the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series in May, and knowing that Chicago was coming…
What is a Spanish Plume? Thunderstorms, lightning and downdrafts explained
Earlier this summer we saw considerable thunderstorm activity over the UK and Europe, resulting in flooding and some serious injuries. In the UK and North West Europe the occurrence of…
How do you escape a traffic jam? Top tips from Olympic Gold-medallist Giles Scott
Anyone who has ever had the delight of taking part in the Round the Island Race will understand how common it is to end up in a situation like this.…
A winter cruise to Morocco and a rare glimpse into another world
Sandy, straight and with few deep water ports, the Atlantic coast of Morocco stretches for almost 1,000 miles down the coast of Africa from the Strait of Gibraltar to the…
Keeping safe for ocean cruising – it’s an attitude of mind, says Chris Tibbs
Safety is as much a state of mind as it is the equipment we have on board; it does not take us long to identify which is a safely-run yacht…
Skip Novak finds superyacht regattas are not for the faint-hearted
Superyacht regattas are not really my cup of tea. The last time I did one was in 2001 aboard Timoneer during the America’s Cup Jubilee in Cowes, with my former…