Tabla de contenidos para June 2017 en SAIL

My partner, Je , and I needed crew for a two- to three-week sail down the Mexican coast of Baja California on our new-tous Antares 44i catamaran, El Gato, so we put an ad in one of our local sailing publications. We received some promising letters of introduction, but thanks to social media, I was able to delve a little deeper. For example, Bettina was a bikini-clad European bombshell whose motto was, “No clothes? No problem.” Delete. Dolph, a chain-smoking ex-military sergeant, “suggested” that he serve as co-captain. Alexa and Damien were allergic to dogs, could we just not bring them? Nope, nope, nopety-nope. Six weeks before our departure date, we received a response from a couple that seemed a comfortable fit. We spoke at length to Jim and Jess,…

If one thing has become evident in Olympic sailing, it’s that experience counts. No longer can a sailor decide to throw his or her hat into the ring a couple of years in advance of the next Games and hope to medal. Olympic sailing is now a full-time job, with highly professional campaigns spanning multiple Olympiads—especially abroad where teams o en receive substantial government support. Unfortunately, despite its long history of Olympic success, the United States has been slow to join the rest of the world in elevating its game to this whole new level. However, it looks like that may be changing. Not only did the US Sailing Team recently institute a new “pipeline” under the leadership of former director Josh Adams, whereby it nurtures those same young sailors…

We called it quits at midnight, about 20 miles north of the Dry Tortugas. For Russ Hoadley, owner of the Catalina 425 Blue Heron, and his crew, the rst St. Petersburg- Habana race in 58 years was over. Since late a ernoon we’d been inching down the Florida coast in what was usually more or less the right direction, south, but sometimes north, east or west, depending on the whims of the ckle zephyrs that whispered coyly and then melted away without so much as a teasing sigh to ll our sails. Kite up, kite down: genoa down, reacher up. And vice-versa. So it went. Around us, the lights of some of the other 70-odd boats in the 284-mile race, which had started the day before on February 28, glowed…

Sometimes I get lucky. When I stepped aboard Beneteau’s new agship, I was the rst journalist (from anywhere) to examine and sail hull #1 of the new “Oceanis Yacht” line. The word “yacht” has been added to designate Oceanis models 60 and over. It’s a bold new direction for the French builder, which is now reaching beyond pure production boats to luxury-oriented mini-superyachts. DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION The design rm of Berret Racoupeau, a longtime Beneteau collaborator, drew this model from scratch. Beneteau then leveraged its relationship with Pierreangelo Adreani (who has worked extensively on the company’s powerboats) to add some aesthetic touches. The resulting boat is sleek, with a pro le accented by a black hull stripe that hides a dozen dark windows. The high topsides permit a low-pro le…

hen Alexander Cochran ordered the 135ft steel schooner Westward from the board of Nathaniel Herreshoff in 1909, he had no notion his vision would bring together an eclectic bunch of sailors to race in the Eastern Caribbean over a century later. Under the command of legendary Scottish Captain Charlie Barr, Westward swept across the Atlantic in 1910 to take 11 firsts in 11 starts against the finest opposition Europe could produce, including the all-conquering Royal Yacht Britannia and the German Kaiser’s Nordstern. Ninety years to the day aft er the launch of Westward, a perfect replica came down the ways at the Van der Graaf Shipyard in Holland. Her name was Eleonora. Like Westward before her, Eleonora was created to race, but, apart from gatherings of classics, competition is hard…

It is fairly miraculous how appetites are sharpened while sailing. I have conducted experiments and can tell you it isn’t simply a question of being afloat. A meal aboard a powerboat tastes pretty much the same as a meal ashore and, among other things, is normally just as easy to prepare. On a sailboat, however, things tend to get more existential. I remember, for example, watching slack-jawed as a boat I’d agreed to crew on in the Sydney-Hobart Race was being provisioned. I saw box aft er box of loaves of plain white bread being loaded aboard and finally had to give the skipper a poke. “Is that all we’re eating?” “Of course not!” he scowled and pointed at the smaller boxes coming on aft er the bread. These were…

Jeremy Davis is one of the head forecasters at Weather Routing Inc. (WRI), based in Glens Falls, New York, where he’s worked for the past 17 years. We recently caught up with Davis to learn more about his passion for weather, climate change and more. How would you describe your job to a nonsailor? We have a very unique role as meteorologists— our goals are to get our clients from port A to port B as safely and quickly as possible, and to minimize risk. Is there going to be rough weather? Can we avoid potentially damaging situations? Can you delay, can you go sooner, can you go faster, go slower, can you pull in? That’s our real strategy. Can you explain the difference between weather forecasting and weather routing?…

When I started sailing 40 years ago, all I had was a leadline: no depthsounder, no electricity, in fact, but I managed (with a little luck) to cruise from Europe to the Caribbean, through the Panama Canal and on to the Pacific islands. I cannot tell you how much easier that would have been had we been able to see under the surface 100 yards ahead—as is now possible with Garmin’s new PS51TH transducer, which turns a Garmin plotter into a forward-looking echosounder. In the box with the transducer is a rugged stainless steel through-hull fitting, the same size as other Garmin transducers. For a oneday test, it was simple to swap out the standard transducer for the forward-looking one, but for permanent installation, you’ll need to lift the boat…

Bali Catamarans is creating quite a lot of buzz in the sailing community with its unique layouts and chameleon convertibility. But there is more to the new Bali 4.0 than just novelty. It’s also a real sailboat. DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION Bali’s parent company, Catana, builds the Bali 4.0 using a vacuumbagged, foam-cored sandwich in La Rochelle, France. This is a strong, lightweight way to mold a hull, and since there is no wood in the laminate, it will not rot. The solid foredeck also serves as a structural member, and is built of box sections and kept light in weight. The nacelle below the foredeck should deflect waves and reduce slamming. The interior joinery is Alpi, an Italian composite material made of thin African woods laminated together with an attractive…

Mount Desert Island 44.3924° N, 68.3021° W By Tom Egan All the qualities that make Maine a great cruising destination can be found on Mount Desert Island. Whether your cruising style requires a shorepower hookup and fine dining ashore, quaint working harbors with moorings, lobster rolls and colorful waterfront characters, or an anchorage in pristine natural surroundings with hiking and eagle spotting opportunities, MDI has it all. Approaching by sea you will be awed by MDI’s mountainous terrain. West Coast readers may scoff , but at 1,529ft , Cadillac Mountain is the highest mountain on the East Coast of the United States. It was this vegetationless glacier-scrubbed rocky dome that inspired Samuel de Champlain to call tthis place “Isles des Monts Desert” in 1604. Though it’s technically an island, you…

As part of the continuing resurgence of the class that was once synonymous with the America’s Cup, the world’s increasingly vibrant 12-Meter fleet will be at the heart of what is being called “MetreFest”—a regatta set to take place in Newport, Rhode Island, June 9-11 that will feature the 6, 8 and 2.4 Meter classes as well. Metrefest will, in turn, serve as the starting point for what is being called the “Road to the Worlds,” a series of regattas culminating in a 2019 12-Meter World Championship regatta set to run in Newport as part of the New York Yacht Club’s 175th anniversary celebration. “The goal is to encourage more participation by existing 12-Meter owners and to provide an exciting competitive and social program,” says regatta chairman Peter Gerard. “Like…

In the world of dedicated bluewater cruising boats, Amel’s turnkey cruisers have won a strong and devoted following. The French builder doesn’t release new models very o en, which is why it’s a pleasure to see the renderings of the new Amel 50. is center cockpit boat is bound to raise some eyebrows among traditionalists, though. It is a sloop, not a ketch, and its twin rudders, blu bow and slight reverse sheer signify a new look, if not a new direction, for Amel. Why did the mizzen get the boot? As designer Olivier Racoupeau acknowledges, modern powered winches and push-button furling make it so easy to handle a sloop rig that the prime reason for a split rig—ease of handling— has become redundant. The hull form is designed for…

IT’S AN AXIOM Raymarine’s newest line of multifunction displays come equipped with the company’s proprietary Lighthouse 3 operating system, quad core processors and RealVision 3D sonar capability. The 7in, 9in and 12in Axiom MFDs are super-fast all-glass units that will slot handily into the spaces left by the older Raymarine equipment they’ll be replacing. They have full Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity and support all other Raymarine equipment, including instruments, FLIR thermal cameras, radar and audio. You can choose between a variety of charting applications including Navionics, C-Map and Raymarine’s own Lighthouse charts. From $650. Raymarine, raymarine.com LET THERE BE LIGHT Summer evenings in crowded anchorages or mooring fields are part and parcel of the coastal cruising life, and there is always some activity after dark as stragglers arrive or cruisers…

Water intrusion is the real destroyer. The bond between skin and core can be restored, but not if the core is wet. Saturated plywood quickly delaminates, losing all function. Similarly, despite claims to the contrary, balsa also rots. True, it resists for a while, but in the constant presence of moisture, decay is inevitable. Whatever the core material, trapped water also exerts a hydraulic pressure that will further damage the core and bond. If a boat experiences freezing temperatures, the expansion of the water becoming ice also does damage. How does the water get in? The tiniest skin breach from impact will jet in moisture, with the crushing force of the impact typically having left an inviting void between skin and core. Even undamaged fiberglass is not 100 percent impermeable,…

I am a snorkeling snob, having been fortunate enough to swim in waters around the globe, breathing through a plastic tube, watching the underwater world go by. Some places like Cozumel, I’ve visited by plane. Others, I’ve reached by simply jumping on a charter boat that carried me to secret and not-so-secret spots where I could while away an aft ernoon in watery glory. There’s a reason why snorkeling gear is ubiquitous on charter boats. Just about everyone wants to see what’s below the waterline, and it just wouldn’t be a vacation without taking a dip. Here are some of my favorite spots that are on the very beaten path of most charter companies, easily reached and much enjoyed. BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS Beautiful beaches, plentiful bars and steady tradewinds define…