January 2024

Sailing Today

Sailing Today is the magazine for hands on cruising sailors

Sailing Today2 min read
Skipper’s View
WELCOME TO THE first issue of 2024 - even though the vagaries of magazine publishing mean that you'll likely be leafing through it in 2023. This is our annual green issue and, as such, we are looking at the various ways in which we can make our sport
Sailing Today1 min read
Sailing Today
EDITORIAL EDITOR Sam Jefferson 020 3943 9261 sam.jefferson@chelseamagazines.com ART & PRODUCTION EDITOR Gareth Lloyd Jones WRITER AND SUB EDITOR Sue Pelling PUBLISHING CONSULTANT Martin Nott PUBLISHER Simon Temlett simon.temlett@chelseamagazine
Sailing Today1 min read
Rough and Ready
This dramatic shot of the Ocean 50 trimaran Realites taken just after the start of the Transat Jacques Vabre off Le Havre sums up the tempestuous start to this transatlantic race. Battered by multiple storms, most of the fleet was obliged to stop in
Sailing Today5 min read
Ebb And Flow
Storms Ciaran and Domingos lashed the Atlantic coast in late October and wrought havoc on the carefully laid plans of the race organisers responsible for ensuring a clean start for the biannual Transat Jacques Vabre. These two brutal storms delayed t
Sailing Today1 min read
Spot On
The 100ft Leopard 3 powers away from the island of Stromboli on her way to line honours in October’s Rolex Middle Sea Race. The event was packed with drama. Overall winner the 93ft Bullitt, and second placed 33ft Red Ruby, were separated by only 24 s
Sailing Today4 min read
An Electrifying Issue
Anew industry wide report on de carbonising the marine industry has delivered an intriguing verdict. But behind all the Jargon, what does it actually mean? In November International Commission of Marine Industry Associations (ICOMIA) released a repor
Sailing Today3 min read
Paul Heiney
So there I was, sitting in the cockpit, nose in a cup of coffee and this miserable bloke shuffles along the pontoon. I know this sounds like the beginning of a bad joke, but wait – it gets serious. “Sorry to bother you, mate,” he says, “but can you l
Sailing Today2 min read
New Boats
French manufacturer Neel is the only mass producer of big, bluewater trimarans and the launch of the new 52 further bolsters that range. This is a big boat that offers the possibility of six double cabins if you so wish plus a huge cockpit/saloon are
Sailing Today6 min read
Tom Cunliffe
Last summer I was in Denmark when a forecast for a heavy westerly gale came through on the internet. Over there, it’s generally safe to rely on five days warning for this type of event. People start talking about it in good time. “Going to blow like
Sailing Today4 min read
Andy Rice
Two more diverse winners of the Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards it would be hard to imagine. Tom Slingsby won the men’s category after guiding his AustraliaSailGP to a third consecutive title, ensuring he is still the only skipper to have won t
Sailing Today8 min read
The Race To The Top
This year is promising to be a big year in sailing, with three headline events in our sport taking place: The Olympics, swiftly followed by the 37th America’s Cup and then the start of the Vendée Globe in November. Throughout the year, we will once a
Sailing Today11 min read
West Country Wonderland
We always plan our summer cruise for the month of June, the main reason being the marinas and anchorages heading west tend to be less busy, making for a more relaxed cruise rather than the scramble for berths in July/August. The middle of May saw a c
Sailing Today10 min read
Into The Wild
It was a simple plan. To sail from Scotland to Greenland via Iceland, and possibly the Faroes, so that the Wild Bunch, my climbers from previous expeditions to west Greenland, could climb a new route in east Greenland. It was not so simple in executi
Sailing Today6 min read
Another Green World
The adoption by the UK Government of the premise of reaching Net Zero by 2050 has raised some eyebrows among sceptics. This is an ambitious policy whereby the amount of human-caused emissions of greenhouse gases are balanced by their removal out of t
Sailing Today11 min read
Vive la Green Revolution!
In 2021 I was invited to test an all-new bluewater catamaran, the Windelo 50. There is nothing unusual about this; there are an awful lot of catamarans launched these days. Some go on to great things while others wither on the vine. Given that Windel
Sailing Today7 min read
Cape Crusader
Hosted by the Royal Yacht Squadron, the inaugural Cape 31 Europeans were won by Russell Peters and his team on board Fanatic. It was an impressive win in an event that attracted 22 entries – including from Ireland and the Netherlands. That this was t
Sailing Today10 min read
She’s Electric?
When the world’s biggest boat builder begins turning to electric powered boats, you know that change is afoot. Earlier this year, Groupe Beneteau pledged to offer ‘alternative propulsion’ on its entire product range by 2030, ranging from hybrid to pu
Sailing Today5 min read
Royal Quays Marina
Since boatfolk marina group took over the reins from Quay Marinas in 2019, the already highly popular 350-berth Royal Quays Marina facility continues to make its mark and is now considered one of the east coast’s most highly desirable locations for v
Sailing Today8 min read
Poetry In Motion
In my formative years I was taken to the cinema to watch the Dead Poets Society featuring the late Robin Williams. The film had a profound effect on me not least because I was told it was a comedy and emerged from the cinema in tears. In addition to
Sailing Today9 min read
Faking It
Wild teak is now so hard to get hold of that even some hardened fitters are moving away from the wood. And the quality of farmed teak is distinctly suspect, according to Chris Groves of Eco Marine Deck in Plymouth. “It is grown faster than wild teak,
Sailing Today7 min read
Pause For Thought
The Atlantic Rally for Cruisers truly is a phenomena. Every year it seems to get bigger as more and more sailors dreaming of escape finally grasp the nettle and head out into the big blue, following in the path of Christopher Columbus in search of ad
Sailing Today6 min read
The World’s Most Beautiful Dead-end
Fifty miles up the coast from Vancouver, just off a marine highway that in summer is busy with cruisers heading to and from popular Desolation Sound, is a maze of islands and channels that caught the attention of Captain George Vancouver in 1792. He
Sailing Today5 min read
Holiday highlights 2024
Those cold, blustery, damp days that are upon us as we reach the midway point of winter in the northern hemisphere act as a perfect reminder to check out what’s on offer for that dream sailing holiday for the forthcoming season. With new destinations
Sailing Today2 min read
Three Of The Best
Timeless good looks by Peter Norlin and Jens Ostman grace the Sweden Yachts 50, Paper Moon, exuding 90’s glamour. She has recently undergone a nautical makeover, with almost every aspect receiving an update, yet she retains her classic charm. Major u
Sailing Today3 min read
Jess Lloyd-Mostyn
I remember lightning storms on summer holidays in the Mediterranean when I was a child. The sky was alive with bright, crackling white fire, and the soundtrack of thunderclaps gave me goosebumps. It seemed so foreign and strange to me, so wild and me

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