Sailing Today

What better way to escape the winter blues than with a quick bit of shameless escapism to the Greek island of Zante (or Zakynthos if you prefer). Navagio Bay - frequently referred to as Smugglers or Shipwreck Bay is an iconic part of the lanscape of

The Royal Ocean Racing Club’s Transatlantic Race was going down to a photo finish as we went to press, after the 100ft monohull Comanche smashed the course record by more than two days (above right). Her crew faced a tense wait, following their seven

The Cruising Association has upgraded its CAptain’s Mate app, offering information on pilotage, anchorages and much more, in 6,500 locations in more than 70 countries. Available on iOS and Android, once downloaded the app works with no internet conne

BoatLife Live, the new boat show taking place at the NEC in Birmingham, is set to open its doors over the weekend of 17-20 February. There will be more than 100 boats on display, plenty of kit for racing and cruising sailors, as well as a wealth of t

Top dinghy photographer Tim Olin captured the expressions of helm Harry George and crew Ralph Cawthorne, as the young team raced their 420 in the Datchet Flyer in December, part of the thriving Seldén SailJuice Winter Series. Among the competitors ov

Dee Caffari and Shirley Robertson have officially announced plans to team up and race double-handed for the 2022 season. The formidable partnership between two of Britain’s most decorated female sailors sees them race in the UK Double-Handed Offshore

Sailing authorities were celebrating after the Government confirmed that the controversial Returned Goods Relief rule would be waived. The RYA said it was “outstanding news for UK recreational boat owners”. From 1 January 2022, legislation will be br

Plans are in place for a summertime Hui in celebration of the life of James Wharram, who died aged 96 on 14 December. A large fleet of Wharram catamarans is expected to gather with other boats in Falmouth. Meanwhile the business itself, James Wharra

The stopovers have been revealed for The Ocean Race, which will visit nine cities over six months, with leg one starting from Alicante on 15 January 2023. The 14th edition of the round-the-world race will see for the first time the IMOCA fleet joinin

The British Sailing Team’s Tokyo 2020 stars were recognised in the New Year Honours List for services to sailing. Hannah Mills was made an OBE after winning gold in the women’s 470 class in Japan last summer, becoming the most successful female Olymp

There was a dramatic crash at the start of SailGP Sydney, between Sir Ben Ainslie’s Great Britain team and Japan. Nobody was seriously injured in the high speed incident but Ainslie admitted afterwards there was now scant chance of his crew winning t

Covid was not the problem; no wind was. But it was still a busy summer. Initially, the plan was to introduce Steve, my new co-owner of my boat, Dodo’s Delight, to ocean sailing. At first we were aiming for the Faroes, an open sea crossing of some thr

Spanish boatbuilder Sarch has been surprising everyone in recent years with its selection of trailerable, relatively affordable fast cruisers. Perhaps the most surprising of all is their latest offering, the S8 which, although only 26’ long and trail

The 76th edition of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race saw 88 boats set off on Boxing Day, with both professional and amateur crews competing in this iconic 628nm offshore. A highlight in the southern hemisphere, the annual race is organised by the C

Will 2022 be the year we finally get back on track? I recall the 2020 RYA Dinghy Show being the first time I felt the need to be elbow-bumping, and we’re closing on the 2022 edition of the Show very soon, set to take place in Farnborough for the firs

I try hard to be good, I really do. I’m not convinced that much of my effort is going to save the planet in any meaningful way, but I do it anyway because I want to do the right thing. I’m just back from a chilly five minutes standing by our rubbish

The next Vendée Globe may still be two years off, but skippers are already making their intentions clear as the number of new IMOCAs in-build hits double figures Count up and there are no fewer than 12 new IMOCAs being built for the next Vendée Globe

The year 1886 was some time ago I think we can all agree and, in fairness, it seems to have been a fairly unassuming year as far as world history goes. In the events of note column you could probably point to Sigmund Freud setting up his first practi

I liked this boat very much; it was easily driven in the light, shifty winds and was easy on the helm later in the test when the wind piped up and we started experimenting with trying to snap the spinnaker pole by sailing too high. In addition, the q

LOA: 12.15m (39’10”) LWL: 11.00m (36’1”) Beam: 3.95m (13’) Draught: 2.15m (7’1”) Displacement: 8,700kg (19,200lb) Base price (ex VAT): £283,000 Sailaway: £309,000 Builder: linjett.se ■

It’s obvious that when you do a job a number of times, it gets easier. A one-off task that might take me a day can often be knocked off in an hour by a professional. Partly, this is down to his ‘can-do’ attitude. ‘Some idiot has manufactured this. He

After a virtual event in 2022, the RYA Dinghy & Watersports Show, presented by Suzuki, takes place at its new venue of Farnborough International Exhibition Centre over the weekend of 26-27 February. With room to expand and include new exhibitors, the

Founded on a #RockUpAndRace ethos, the British Sailing League has gathered real momentum since it was first rolled out in 2016. Originating from a partnership between the RYA and the Royal Thames YC, the idea was first conceived to promote interclub

Good news at last for hard-pressed yacht owners: the vertiginous rise in boat insurance premiums over recent years looks to be levelling off somewhat. With annual increases topping 25 per cent for some yachts, there had been howls of protest from boa

2021’s British Keelboat League culminated in a grand final weekend, hosted by Poole YC, which saw teams thoroughly tested, sailing around 20 races each in a mixed bag of conditions. After two and a half days of intense racing, it was the Royal Thames

A national youth education and maritime charity, UKSA’s centre in Cowes has long been an Isle of Wight landmark. Quite literally tens of thousands of young people have passed through the gates to take part in watersports courses and professional mari

Sailing is not a sport for everyone, but it is definitely a sport for anyone. Regardless of your height, weight, fitness, age and experience there is a boat out there for you, or perhaps several! We are so lucky in sailing that we are indeed spoilt f

Douglas is the capital of the Isle of Man and a bustling port that provides the main means on and off the island. Cruise ships, visiting tourists and goods all come ashore here, and with it’s marina, it is often the first port of call for visiting sa

This Torpedo Pirata watch from Cuervo y Sobrinos celebrates the “rebellious and romantic side of the buccaneers” of the Caribbean, with its parts “clearly reminiscent of the brazenness of the great pirates”. The company says: “The case is in the shap

Back in 2018 French manufacturer Beneteau acquired Slovenian boatbuilder Seascape in order to develop a new First line of sportier Beneteaus and I felt a little sad. Seascape was a really clever boatbuilder who had clearly put their all into developi

Hull length: 7,99m (26’3’’) Beam: 2,54m (8’4’’) Draft: 1.7m Light displacement: 1,700kg Engine: Yanmar 15hp Mainsail: 20 m2 Jib: 17.3m2 Price: €66,600 (exc VAT) Contact: beneteau.com ■

2015 build with signature Discovery flag blue hull livery and a stunning maple interior. She has lots of subtle updates and improvements over her earlier benchmark blue water cruising sisters including flush hatches and an open saloon layout. Very hi

Bob Shepton’s adventures are well documented – not least in this very magazine. It’s fair to say that the affable retired chaplain and Tilman style sailor, mountaineer and general adventurer is closing in on national treasure status. Many readers wil

These days we all know Herman Meliville for his somewhat weighty tome, Moby Dick, which charts the familiar story of man meets whale, loses leg, becomes obsessed with whale… you get the picture. Yet Melville’s masterpiece was only a real hit after th

I’ve sailed the North River, the Ant and the Thurne, I’ve known them both wild and still, but the best sight of all’s when we make the last turn, and there’s old Davy’s mill. John Helsdon Despite starting at sea level with the sea less than 3km t

A transatlantic of a more relaxed kind (compared to the RORC Transat, above) left Gran Canaria in January, bound for Saint Lucia. The ‘ARC January 2022’ set sail from Las Palmas for the first time, with an eclectic fleet of yachts and multihulls incl

Well no actually. From spontaneous pot-lucks to rallies, race crews to drinks at the bar after, those of us involved in sailing know first-hand just what a friendly and welcoming world the cruising community truly is. And no practice exemplifies this

FEBRUARY IS GENERALLY the moment when it dawns on you that if you want to go sailing next summer, you'd better at least go and look at your boat, establish it still exists and plan a few odd jobs. I recall when I had my boat in the UK that this preli