Personal Gear & Apparel

Enter the Keen Shoe

In our ongoing quest to discover optimal personal gear, we think this California company is on to something with its hybrid sandal-shoe.

LED Flashlights

The SureFire L1 Lumamax and the Tektite Expedition Star take Best Buy honors. Incandescents may not pale in comparison, but they're fading fast.

Binoculars: 7×50, Waterproof, With Compasses

Optical acuity was very good across the board, but the devil's in the details. Steiner and Fujinon are still superb - at great cost. West Marine and Nikon share Best Buy honors.

Foul Weather Jackets

The Henri Lloyd Rapid Coastal takes top honors among the coastal jackets, followed by the Best Buy, Ronstan's Inshore. Of the offshore jackets tested, we liked the Gill Atlantic best.

Glove Up!

There's a big market these days for "exam" gloves—the kind that used to be reserved for doctors and dentists, but are now used...

Compact Binoculars

For onboard back-ups and excursions ashore, a set of good compact binox are almost required. Nikon fielded a strong team—their Mountaineers are a Best Buy. But the race is also to the Swift.

LED Lights: Low-Power, Long Life

The revolution continues. LEDs serve a growing range of uses on board.

Marine Watches

Casio's Sea Pathfinder 40 gets top honors for functionality, readability, and price - but it's not for the slim-wristed. Higher-quality watches lack some functions we like.

Seaboots Under $100

You should be able to keep your feet warm, dry, and on deck for a reasonable price—and you can.

Cold-Weather Gloves

In freezing temperatures we field-tested 12 pairs of cold-weather gloves from different sports to see which ones keep hands warmest, yet still offer a bit of dexterity.

Why This $1M+ Sailboat Might Be The Best Bluewater Cruiser in...

The Bluewater 56 is one of the most misunderstood offshore cruisers in the sailing world — and today we’re diving deep into what makes...

Latest Sailboat Review

Rethinking Sailboat Structure

When it comes to describing a sailboats most valuable attribute, its surprising how varied opinions can be. Staying afloat should be our first priority, and although you seldom read or hear much about it at boat shows, the structural elements that hold a sailboat together are an all-important consideration.