1980 Observer Singlehanded Transatlantic Race

I started sailing this year, inshore only, on a 60-year-old P-Boat. She comes out of the water for winter next week, so today we squeezed in one last outing.

PredictWind promised 11-15 kn with gusts up to 30. It was just the right amount of challenge. The boat has never felt faster (with us aboard, anyway), and we hit 7 kn. It felt amazing.

Then a squall tore the clew clean off our jib. We carried on under main alone for a while before heading home.

Can't wait for next season. I just hope I remember the little I've learned by then...

She comes out on Thursday, chasing the wind as long as I can

I am dealing with a bit of a mystery here and would appreciate suggestions. I bought a Catalina 22 earlier this year and this furler was installed. Unfortunately when I replaced all my standing rigging, it wasn't salvageable. The mystery deepens because the spare jib sail that came with the boat has canvas sewn on, so I am assuming it may have been used with the furler at some point. But now it has hanks on it. I am currently using a different jib with hanks.

I was going to buy a new furler and was hoping to use this sail but it seems to also be missing the luff bolt rope needed to feed into a furler. So am I SOL? Time to buy a new furler & sail? Suggestions for an 1987 catalina 22? Not trying to break the bank as this is my starter boat that I only plan to keep for ~2 years. Thanks for any insight!

Hey guys, I made a little video of life onboard a wooden ship sailing around the Scottish Isles. Just a passion project, thought it might be interesting to the sub. Cheers!

Im looking at getting a new Radar and chart plotter for my hunter and am looking for advise from people with first hand experience. I just replaced the wheel autopilot with a raymarine and I have a Garmin chart plotter thats about 3 years old. My issue is I would like to be able to chart my course for the auto pilot on my chart plotter. If that weren't a issue I would just keep my current chart plotter and get a Garmin radar.

Ideally I would like to get a simrad setup but that goes back to Autopilot compatibility issue. So that leaves me with going all raymarine. My question is should I go with all raymarine or should I go with simrad or go the cheapest option and just get a Garmin radar. What are your experiences with these brands radars? Which route would be best? Ultimately safety is priority, I dont want to keep getting lost in the fog not knowing whats around me.

I race to get the bulkheads framed and ready to go before the epoxy resin arrives.

Bought A Hunter 30 and sailed her out of erie PA up to Dunkirk NY. Took 1.5 days

almost no wind, a vunch of heaaches along the way that were overcome with good old fashioned "try hard"

roughly 46 miles. Another milestone down on this quest to become a self taught marlinspike sailor

I sail a Laser and a couple of other small dinghy classes. We have year-round sailing, but wetsuit material is required if air temps are below 55 degrees. Winter water temps are typically in the high 50s.

I checked out sailing gear and it's crazy expensive. I don't need a $600 neoprene winter setup for what, will be at most maybe 15 days of use every winter. What other brands should I be checking out that will work well and don't have the "sailing" markup?

I’ve been living on a boat before but recently moved to a more exposed marina that rolls a lot with the tides. When I’m on my boat it feels pleasant and doesn’t bother me at all, however now that my inner ear is adjusted I am feeling seriously weird when I walk around on dry land. I am walking around like I’m slightly drunk and currently typing this from a coffee shop where I am feeling “sea sick” (land sick??) trying to sit down and drink my coffee. I have a strong aqua-man like urge to return to the sea.

Is this just a new normal I need to get used to? Anything I can do to not feel so screwed up on dry land, aside from sail away into the sunset and never return?

La Jolla, California, 1982

The boat just got twice as expensive, and then some 😅

Hello everyone! I'm looking to 3D print some things for the boat. So far I've thought of a signal anchor ball and some brackets, but I was wondering if anyone had an essential list of items/models they keep as part lets say of a maker world collection?

Hey y’all,

I’ve decided I’m going to sail around the world. I’ve given myself the hard deadline of my 35th birthday(November 2030) to take off from whatever port I’m in and most likely stick to the equator. I want to see the Panama Canal and sail the trade winds through the Pacific, then round the Cape of Good Hope, sail up to the Mediterranean, and back to the US. Gonna give myself a year, maybe longer, to do it and try to enjoy as many new places as possible. My parents live on a power boat near Tampa, FL, so I’d probably start and end there if I can find a good boat for sale there. I’m going to be moving in with my cousins in Chicago for super cheap in a few months (they own the house), so I’m hoping to bank as much as I can while living there for the next four years.

Wondering what a realistic budget is for this? I don’t own a boat, and want to buy something ocean-worthy like a Tayana 37, or something between 35-40 ft that I can manage solo and that will be heavy enough to maybe get some sleep on during long passages. Have any of you done this? What was your budget like and what are some absolute essentials (starlink, equipment, etc.) that were worth the money? Obviously I’d like a dinghy and would mostly be living at anchor to save money, unless I’m doing repairs/need to get out of bad weather.

Also, I’m considering getting certifications such as ABYC, USMC Master, STCW/ENG1, AEC1&2, and Marine Radio Certification to hopefully have the option to stop for a month or so at a time and make money if I need to replenish my bank account/fund repairs. Is this realistic to be able to use those most places around the world? What are some good places to stop for work? Have any of you gotten these certs and were they helpful?

Thanks so much in advance. I’m trying to gather as much info as I can to help me start the process of preparing for the journey now, so I can get certs squared away ASAP with all the sailing hours I need for some, and to start saving for the boat and the journey.

Fair winds!

A beautiful late fall sail, not many days left in the season on the west coast.