Boat Systems
Diesel Reliability for Ocean Passages: Filtration, Cooling, and Spares
Most offshore engine failures are fuel failures. Here’s the layered defence cruisers actually run.
Gear & Electronics
Hydrovane vs Monitor: Choosing a Wind Vane for Shorthanded Passages
Auxiliary rudder or servo-pendulum? The mechanical difference drives every other tradeoff.
Safety
Heavy Weather Tactics: Heaving-To, Running Off, and When to Deploy a Drogue
If you sail far enough, eventually the weather wins a round. The question is not whether you'll meet conditions that exceed the comfortable envelope — it'
Seamanship
Night Watch Routines for Offshore Passages: Systems That Keep Crews Sharp
Ask a dozen offshore sailors about night watch and you'll get twelve different systems. That's not a problem — the best watch schedule is the
Anchoring
Choosing Ground Tackle for Bluewater Cruising: A Practical Guide to Getting It Right
Nothing ends a good cruise faster than a dragged anchor at 0300. Your ground tackle is the single most important piece of safety equipment on a bluewater cruising
bluewater
Twin Gennakers with Structured Luffs: A New Era for Shorthanded Downwind Cruising
For the past three decades, downwind sailing on a cruising boat has meant choosing between compromise options. A symmetric spinnaker gives you maximum projected area but requires a
bluewater
Pure 42 Review: Why This Alloy Cruiser Is the New Benchmark for Bluewater Cruising
The arrival of the Pure 42 on the European bluewater scene isn't just another boat launch — it's a statement about where serious offshore cruising
bluewater
Antigua Bermuda Race 2026 Returns: The Springtime Offshore Classic Is Back
After a two-year pause, the Antigua Bermuda Race is back on the calendar — and it returns with the kind of restless enthusiasm you hear in a crew
Seamanship
Shorthanded Spinnaker Handling: A Cruiser Playbook for Flying a Chute with Two Hands (or One)
Flying a spinnaker shorthanded — whether with your partner across the Atlantic or solo on a coastal hop — is one of those pieces of seamanship that has two versions.
liveaboard
Offshore Refrigeration for Cruisers: Sizing, Architecture, and the Upgrades That Actually Pay Back
Refrigeration is the single biggest DC load on most liveaboard cruising sailboats, and getting it right is the difference between an electrical system that hums along in the
Seamanship
The Pre-Passage Rig Check: A Deck-to-Masthead Audit That Catches Failures Before They Find You
The rig is the one system on a bluewater boat that almost never fails politely. A bilge pump dies quietly; a rig failure tends to arrive in a
race-coverage
SailGP Bermuda 2026: What to Expect When the F50s Hit the Great Sound May 9–10
In less than three weeks, the F50 catamarans of SailGP will tear across the Great Sound for the 2026 Bermuda Sail Grand Prix on May 9–10. This