Those of us who go afloat expose ourselves to a lot of ultraviolet (UV) radiation – even on cloudy days in northern Europe. We all know that too much UV…
Best EPIRB: 5 emergency beacons for leisure sailors
Do you regularly cruise or race out of sight of land? If the answer is yes, one of the best Epirb is an absolutely essential bit of kit to have…
The best downwind sails: Options explained by over 200 experienced sailors
Downwind sailing is any cruising sailor’s dream. The thought of days, or even weeks, of reliable following tradewind pushing you across an ocean with just a warm apparent breeze over…
Great Seamanship: Sailing across Europe in a 10ft dinghy
When the Great Seamanship column put out to sea 20 years ago, the extracts were drawn from classic sailing literature, much of it written before World War II. As years…
54-knot winds severely deplete 2024 Round the Island Race fleet
Competitors in today’s 2024 Round the Island Race, an annual 50-mile circumnavigation of the Isle of Wight, faced one of the most severe conditions in years with gusts of over…
Alinghi Red Bull Racing suffer catastrophic mast failure
America’s Cup team, Alinghi Red Bull Racing, suffered a catastrophic failure of their mast on Thursday 13 June 2024 while training on their AC75 in in Barcelona, all crew are…
Watch: Emirates Team New Zealand’s America’s Cup boat innovations
The 37th America’s Cup in Barcelona this autumn is getting ever closer, something marked by all teams launching the boat upon which they will compete for the ultimate trophy in…
What to look for in the best handheld VHF marine radio
Your burning questions answered about Handheld VHF marine radios Unless you eat sleep and breath all things marine communications and safety like I do, then you might be correct in…
‘Should we identify more with our youthful selves to drive motivation?’ – Nikki Henderson
As a team that is much younger than the rest of the competition, what superpower does that give you? That’s the question I asked of a group of teenagers this…
Hutting 46 first look: stands out from the crowd
This long distance aluminium cruising yacht is intended to stand out from the crowd. This Dutch yard, founded in 1975 by Tjerk Hutting, has a strong reputation for its 40-50ft…
The switch to electric will reduce emissions, but what will we do with all the old batteries?
Rushing to wean ourselves off fossil fuels it seems we’re building another problem for the future. What do we do with the new batteries we’re now installing once they’ve reached…
Best sailing watches: 16 options for racing and cruising
The best sailing watches can offer a multitude of functions, from MOB alerts to tidal calculations and large faced race count down timers. And yet still there’s utter simplicity of…
Saffier SL 46 first look: larger yacht from new larger yard
Saffier Yachts has grown to become the established name in luxury daysailers, particularly over the last decade or so. The family-owned Dutch yard has secured this market sector with its…
British Vendée Globe hopeful Sam Goodchild dismasted in transat race
Sam Goodchild, one of the leading contenders for this autumn’s Vendée Globe solo around the world race, has dismasted on his IMOCA 60 Vulnerable (formerly For The Planet) while racing…
The 12 stunning superyachts set to race one another this summer
Palma is arguably the greatest place to arrange a sailing event in Europe. Why? Reliability. It boasts a wonderfully consistent warm seabreeze in the summer and there is easy access…
World’s coolest yachts: Initiatives-Coeur 3
Sam Davies’ entry in the 2020 Vendée Globe was Initiatives-Coeur 3, a well-proven Verdier-VPLP design (ex Foncia/Banque Populaire/Maître CoQ III) that had been reoptimised with second generation foils fitted –…
Best handheld VHF marine radio: 8 feature-rich options for your boat
Significant improvements in a number of areas in recent years have seen the best handheld VHF marine radio move from being purely portable communications devices to something altogether more useful.…
Top 15 Best Marine Binoculars for navigation and pilotage – tried and tested
I can sit gazing through binoculars for hours. From looking at the local baby seals when on anchor or trying to find my way using old fashioned naviguesswork. If I…
Kraken 44 first look: Another serious cruiser from Kraken
It’s no secret that Kraken Yachts has been planning new models to join its existing range of serious cruising yachts. A 58 is launching imminently, while more details are emerging…
5 expert tips: Jack Bouttell on repairing your boat mid-ocean
In the 50-year history of The Ocean Race (ex-Whitbread/Volvo), Leg 3 of the 2023 edition from Cape Town, South Africa through the Southern Ocean to Itajaí, Brazil, was the longest…