Equipment Outfitters

One of the important skills to master if you plan to cruise from one area to another is anchoring. While there is no one anchor or method that will cover all situations, the basics of anchoring so that your boat doesn’t drag or endanger other boats are fairly straightforward. Anchoring requires some practice. Do anchoring exercises so that you are proficient enough to anchor in the dark if you ever need to. Read the rest of this entry »

When you anchor in a narrow channel or in a crowded anchorage where the wind or current is likely to change, use two anchors as shown. The combination will reduce the swinging diameter of your boat and keep you from being pushed ashore when the wind or current changes direction. Be sure that the swinging diameter of your boat does not interfere with other anchored boats or with passage through the channel. Read the rest of this entry »

While storms generally affect large portions of an area and are usually forecast in advance, the powerboat skipper should be aware of two conditions that can affect his well-being and safety on a more local scale: fog and squalls. Since these weather conditions can be isolated and very localized, they may be unannounced on VHF weather forecasts. The best way to cope with them is to anticipate their arrival. Read the rest of this entry »

Simply having emergency equipment on board your boat is not enough. Both you and your entire crew must know exactly where each item is located and how to use it. Even an item as seemingly simple as a life jacket can be difficult to don in a crisis, and there is never time to read the instructions in an emergency. Regular practice sessions can save lives. Read the rest of this entry »

In many cases, if a member of your crew falls overboard it is not a life-threatening situation since the boat is maneuverable and it is relatively easy to get the person back on board. But the energy-sapping effects of cold water, the difficulty of swimming with soggy clothing or the possibility of injury could turn the situation serious. The swimmer should be retrieved as quickly as possible. Read the rest of this entry »

Going aground can result from operating in shallow water or from leaving your boat on a beach when the tide is going out. The situation is often nothing more than a minor annoyance and an embarrassment since it is usually easy to push the boat off or float it free when the tide rises. Nevertheless, after a grounding you should inspect both the hull and the engine carefully for even minor damage.

What to do when you Aground

1. Shut off the engine immediately.
2. Tilt the drive unit upwards. Check the propeller for damage.
3. Attempt to refloat.
4. Obtain help to refloat. Read the rest of this entry »

Sound is used to signal intent or action between vessels. While the Inland Rules and the International Rules are generally similar, sound signals under Inland Rules for head-on, crossing and overtaking situations are signals of intent, whereas under International Rules they signal an action taking place. The most common Inland signals are illustrated below. Read the rest of this entry »

Land Sailing began hundreds of years ago in China when it was discovered that the power of the wind could be harnessed to make tasks like plowing and moving objects easier. Many historians believe the Chinese were the first to attempt to harness the wind for purposes of transportation, though there is reportedly evidence that the ancient Egyptians may have beaten them to it.

Modern land yachts are capable of attaining speeds approaching 100mph (160 kph)—the world record is 95.5 mph. Many modern land yachts are designed to swap out their wheels in the winter for ice blades. Ice yachts, with less friction to inhibit their speed, are now exceeding 150 mph (240 kph). Land and ice sailing designs are generally limited to modern three-wheel machines. There are some other approaches to land and ice sailing, such as skateboard-like systems employing either wheels or blades mounted to windsurfer rigs. These systems do not reach the velocities of their larger counterparts, but are none-the-less exciting and challenging to sail. Read the rest of this entry »

Once down at the bottom of the mountain, what do you do next? It wasn’t long before boarders realized that adding a windsurfing- style sailing rig to their board would allow them to sail back up the slopes, without needing a lift or hike. All they needed was wind direction from the side or directly up the slope of the terrain. Directly uphill is preferable, as it has the added advantage of making it easy to sail down again, but a side wind is good for speed.

Snowboarders who are boardsailors and boardsailors who are snowboarders, can easily find enough stuff to put together a wind snowboard. In fact, any long snowboard will do the trick. Snowboard sailing doesn‘t require sails as large as boardsailing, because small sails and short booms are the most controllable, particularly on hard- packed snow. Read the rest of this entry »

The hydrofoil, a wing that creates lift in water, is not new, and hydrofoils are commonly used on powerboats today. They are even used on sailboats to minimize resistance and set speed records, which is itself an extreme endeavor. However, it wasn’t until 1989 that a hydrofoil attached to a chair became commercially available for athletes seeking a new tow-behind water challenge.

The air chair, as it has become known, was designed by a couple of friends on the Colorado River, one of whom was the co- creator of the kneeboard (a waterski that the rider kneels on) and a hot dog waterski pioneer, Mike Murphy. Murphy’s friend Bob Wooley became fascinated with the concept of riding a performance hydrofoil, and after several months of experimentation attached the foil to a “sit ski,” a seated version of a waterski. Read the rest of this entry »

Water nourishes, and brings death. We are not naturally built to survive in it, but we are drawn to its many possibilities for extreme sports.

Water ninety percent of our body made of it. Two-thirds of the planet covered by it. It is the most inhospitable the earth’s elements for survival, yet without it, life would c indeed all life began in the water, as modern theories of evolution suggest, perhaps this explains why we attracted to it, and why being in or near it fosters a sense of synergy welcomes us through some ethereal sense of belonging, and we respond seeking to find any way we can to have fun in and on it. For as tong a has been human life, there have been opportunities for sport in the water. Read the rest of this entry »

Swimming into the deepest reaches of the ocean is a feat that many divers have experienced to a degree. Some may go below 200 feet (60m), others deeper. All would be lost without the air they bring with them. There is a special breed of diver who can go deeper than most, without air tanks. These freedivers have pushed the limits of unassisted breathing dives to below 400 feet.

Tofreedive to depths of even 50 feet (15m) is an unsettling prospect for all but the strongest swimmers. To dive much deeper requires holding a breath for minutes. In fact, the world’s best freedivers hold their breath for periods that rival many marine mammals. Read the rest of this entry »

Maintaining control

Boards also vary in rocker (the amount the bottom curves from the tip to tail of the board). Rocker placement varies from board to board, and on each board. Boards with more rocker in the tail will be slower but more maneuverable, while boards with less tail rocker will plane quicker and go faster. Each board designer places rocker in different places determined by the performance desired, and each boardsailor prefers a different feel and shape.

Early “short” board designs looked more like surfboards than today’s top shapes. Board buoyancy is measured by volume, so less volume means less floatation. Designers shift the volume around in their boards, placing more or less in the tip or tail dramatically effects performance. Short boards started out with massive amounts of volume in the tail. One early design by top boardsailor Ken Winner actually had a hump though the middle of the rear deck of the board, and a pointy front. Designers gradually reduced the volume in the back of the boards, moving it forward under the mast base. Read the rest of this entry »

Since it was first introduced to readers in a 1965 edition of Popular Science magazine, boardsailing has developed into one of the most visible and incredible of extreme sports. There is hardly a person alive who hasn’t seen an athlete hurtling across the water or jumping into the sky on a wind-powered board.

The sailboard was invented by California surfer and businessman Hoyle Schweitzer and aeronautical engineer Jim Drake. Schweitzer reportedly conceived of the idea of putting a sail on a surfboard while Drake created the articulating sail rig that made the concept feasible. The two promptly applied for, and were granted, patents on their design and began the company that would be known worldwide as Windsurfer. For quite a while, the sport was known as “windsurfing,” but because of trademark litigation, the growing industry renamed their sport “boardsailing.” Either name is acceptable. Read the rest of this entry »

Swimming long distances for sport is a challenge that only the most fit and determined extreme athletes pursue. Its roots can be traced back to1875 when Captain Matthew Webb became the first swimmer to cross the English Channel. Since then, crossing the channel has been one of the more defining feats of long distance, or open water, swimming. Open water is the appropriate term, since races and crossings are never held in a pool that would be too easy and lacking danger.

Open Water Swimming races are held globally, and were included in many of the early Olympic Games. Course lengths are usually 5, 10, 15, or 25 kilometers (3-15.5 miles) and require several hours to complete. The courses are set between two points on any large body of water. Some races require athletes to do several laps to complete a given distance, while others may consist of one very long lap. Read the rest of this entry »

Singlehanded racing is the aquatic version of marathon running, where the skipper has to draw from resources deep within himself for the endurance and stamina necessary to sail 30 days or more alone at sea. Unlike the marathon runner, whose most important equipment is his shoes, a singlehanded sailor’s equipment is a sailboat often as large as 60 feet (18m) and its accompanying systems—and it all has to be maintained continuously.

JOSHUA SLOCUM is considered the grandfather of singlehanded sailors. Between 1895 and 1898, Slocum singlehandedly circumnavigated the globe in a wooden boat, making several stops along the way. Another 69 years elapsed before Francis Chichester completed a one-stop, singlehanded circumnavigation. Then, in 1969, Robin Knox- Johnston completed the first non-stop, singlehanded circumnavigation to win the Golden Globe Challenge. Read the rest of this entry »

Offshore sailboat racing has two distinct disciplines. At one end of the spectrum is singlehanded sailing, where a solitary skipper puts his sailing knowledge, navigational expertise, will—even his life—on the line. At the other is crewed sailing, where crews between 12-20 sailors, specializing in particular tasks, rely upon one another as a team in the quest for victory.

Among the greatest races in the world in crewed racing is the Whitbread Round the World Race. Dubbed the “ultimate ocean race,” it was the first of its kind, with origins dating back to 1973. Read the rest of this entry »