Inside Practical Sailor

I received a message regarding surveying a 1980 CS 36: “I bought a sailboat with two friends and need a survey,” the WhatsApp message...

I often ask myself the point of all the effort and expense of owning a well-aged sailboat. This usually happens after I crack a...

Manufacturers will recommend returning damaged foul weather gear for evaluation, and in some cases there may be remedies under warranty. On the other hand,...

Like most sailors, you’ve probably seen many articles and books about knots. You’ve probably also seen the hundreds, if not thousands, of social media...

In my opinion, 2025 was a weird year for the sailboat buying and selling world. We saw listings pile up, price cuts, motivated seller...

La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec is a unique, solo, multi-stage annual racing format created in 1970 by Jean-Louis Guillemard and Jean-Michel Barrault. In 2025, for...

There’s nothing worse than getting or giving yet another ugly sweater or never-to-be-worn tie. Why not try up-cycling old boat parts to give new...

One of my biggest mistakes in life was waiting so long to sail the Great Lakes.

2025 has not been a good year for U.S. sailboat manufacturing. Com Pac Yachts closed its doors in May and, as explained in this...

How frequently do you bother removing spreader boots and taping to check the condition of the spreaders and rigging? No matter how well the spreader ends are protected, and whether you use ready-made vinyl spreader boots or conventional rigging tape, water will get through to the fittings inside. On a boat used in salt water, the atmosphere's corrosive nature can cause rapid disintegration of aluminum fittings (nevermind the fact that the spreaders might be 25 feet or more off the water). The thorough taping job you did on the spreader ends may actually accelerate the problem by holding in water.