Safer Sailing: Add Leg Loops to Your Harness
Recent fatalities involving racing sailors raised a long-simmering concern weve had regarding the harness and tether design, and the shortcomings of current design when used aboard boats that cruise at double-digit speeds. Although these harness and tethers might keep a sailor from going overboard, the impact loads transmitted via the harness and tether can exceed what the human body can endure (see Building a Custom Safety Tether, PS December 2017).
Rethinking MOB Prevention
Man overboard gear standards are behind the times because the sample size is tiny and the facts surrounding an accident are often clouded and disguised by difficult circumstances. But fixing this is pretty simple; piggyback on standards that have been developed for climbing and industry. The following are just some of the steps that a sailor can take to improve his chances of staying on board.
The Pros and Cons of Cockpit Foot Braces
The sensation that you are about to slide to leeward is familiar to most small-boat sailors. But that slip-sliding-away feeling isn’t reserved to small...
Identifying Fishing Vessels and Right of Way
One of the most common right-of-way situations that a sailing boat will encounter will involve fishing boats, so it is important to be aware...
Collision Avoidance Confusion
The Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972 (COLREGs) cover the rules of navigation and lights and shapes that sailors...
Gearing Up for Hurricane Season
My old home island of Guam got whacked by a Supertyphoon Mawar on Wednesday. Power is still out, so still no word from friends....
PS Advisor: Complacency and the Experienced Sailor
The past few years have made it clear that age and experience doesn’t necessarily translate into safety on the water. In fact, a number...
Rhumb Lines: Eight Bells for Charley Morgan
Legendary sailor and yacht designer Charley Morgan passed away on January 6, 2023. He was 93 years old. Outspoken, self-assured, indefatigable, Charley was all...
Rhumb Lines: Seamanship, Not Size, Is What Counts
Years ago, one of my first assignments as a sailing editor was to join the famous sailor and yacht designer Steve Dashew and his...
Rhumb Lines: The Saddest Story I Ever Heard
The familiar opening sentence to Ford Madox Ford’s classic “The Good Soldier” in the headline above could easily apply to “The Boy Who Fell...
Catalina 25 Sailboat Tour
This Catalina 25 review also explains the important differences between the swing keel, fixed fin keel and wing keel versions, along with the standard...
Latest Sailboat Reviews
Gemini 31/3000 Used Boat Review
The funny thing about the Gemini is that it's an old design. Ken Shaw drew the lines in 1969. There's nothing particularly contemporary about it. However, by painting the cabin sides black (Euro styling), adding a swept-back fiberglass "pilothouse" and gradually adding length to the full-bodied hulls, the Gemini has always looked like she belonged with her contemporaries, whether that was the 1980s or 1990s.
