Inside Practical Sailor

My post last week on storing batteries for winter prompted a couple comments and letters on solar panels, so I thought I'd point out some of our past articles on the topic that can be found online at www.practical-sailor.com. It is a timely project for me, since our upcoming project testing one of the new sonic-pulse antifouling devices will require a solar panel. According to the device's maker, Smart Antifouling, the unit draws about .08 amps, which means will want to put a small 5-watt solar panel on our Cape Dory 25 test boat, Skimmer, which typically lies on a mooring.

This months report on satellite communication devices focuses on existing technology, so it does not dig into one of the more controversial satcomm topics of the moment: a proposal by the upstart wireless company Lightsquared to provide a combined satellite and land-based broadband service that will reach remote areas of the United States where broadband is not yet available. While the idea of giving everyone the ability to stream reruns of "The Simpsons" at lightning speed seems noble, Lightsquareds $14 billion plan does so at the expense of GPS-based navigation systems-the kind that land you safely at OHare.

Will Swagel, the engaging publisher of Sitka, Alaskas classified ad circular, The Sitka Soup (motto: Hearty Ingredients-Tasty Leftovers-A Dash of Silliness), has given the Christmas poem The Night Before Christmas, an Alaskan twist. Illustrated by former fisherman and local Sitka artist and musician Colin Herforth, "The Bight Before Christmas" replaces reindeer with coho, hootchies, and humpies - and a glossary that explains what all of these are. It also introduces the bellyfish, which according to Swagel is a made-up word because we needed a rhyme for jellyfish.

At the top of Tewes preferred list is a Fein Multimaster 250Q, a plug-in variable speed right-angle oscillating tool that accepts a carbide-tipped saw blade, wide array of triangular-shaped sanding pads and host of other cutting, scraping, and filing gizmos. The lock-and-load quick attachment process and the long throw of the oscillation cycle makes it a very efficient cutter, sander, or scraper.

As Moores Law insinuates itself into the sea, and the idea of a remote-controlled world cruise seems less sensational than steering by the stars, it is hard for some of us to avoid feeling nostalgic. As the last of the sextant-only sailors move into their retirement years, a new type of cruising tale is emerging-the maritime memoire. It's debatable whether the movement is a rebellion against the new wave of digitographic sailors or simply the result of too many old salts with too much time on their hands. Whatever their origins may be, these mildly self-indulgent sea stories offer a fun look back at a simpler time when young around-the-world voyagers didnt want or need a sponsor, and GPS navigation was years in the future.

Some among our small group of less-hurried cruisers seethed quietly-mostly to themselves-that this rally business was a bad idea. Herding people in wagon-trains made sense long ago on land-but at sea?

The channel can be pretty tight at low tide, the Admiral said before leaving me the keys. Or something like that. I was half-listening at the time. Ha! Like we were going to run aground with five depthsounders pinging away and Bill and I, with our thousands of miles under the keel, aboard. (We do not mention the many forgettable groundings.)

After much persistent and gentle prodding of management, Practical Sailor converted to Macs last year. So, like millions around the world who rely on Apple magic to make it through the workday-not to mention our iPad-fueled weekends on the water-we were deeply saddened by the loss of Steve Jobs, the genius behind Apple Inc. who died Oct. 5. One of the items of interest revealed in Walter Isaacsons biography of Jobs was that he had been been involved in the design of his custom 245-foot megayacht to be built by Feadship in the Netherlands.

Weve been getting several e-mails from readers asking us what we think they should do with their recently purchased Rocna anchors in light of our report. Because every situation is different, and not all anchors are suspected of being below the published standards, we would recommend that anyone questioning the quality or construction of their Rocna anchor contact Canada Metals Pacific or their Rocna anchor retailer to discuss their options.

Putting together next months issue (November), I was struck by the stark contrast between our cover story on the Marshall 22, a no-frills catboat based on an iconic 19th-century design, and the cover story from the September issue, featuring Brad Van Liews Eco 60, Le Penguoin, bristling with all the latest technology used in the Velux Around the World Ocean Race. …