The myth that one-design racing produces cut-throat competition doesn’t apply to these classic classes. Head to any of the winter circuit regattas, weeknight races or even the national and world championships and you will find a atmosphere that is more like a family reunion than hard-core battle. Built on the philosophy that sailing is better with friends, and that lending a hand with tuning or rigging tips, these one-design classes are bringing new sailors into the sport with “more-the-merrier” attitudes. 

Features  19 Modern day Spanish Armada          Rollicking sailing, sublime beaches and  new friendships are found on a flotilla charter off Mallorca

There’s a freedom that comes with trailerable boats, whether dinghies, small keelboats or powerboats. Your next adventure is just a highway away. But first you have to get there. But that’s not to

Features  24 To Land’s End in a little boat One man’s quest to sail around every offshore lighthouse in Britain leads to big adventures in little boats 36 Touch of class One-design clas

In October 2015, the Nathanael Herreshoff-designed New York 40 Marilee was brought to the custom boatyard French and Webb in Belfast, Maine, for what was supposed to be a minor rebuild. It was discove

When Terri and Thomas Sand first started dating in 2013, they didn’t know it would lead to a new love, not just for each other but for sailing. Since then, the couple has made a five-year plan that is taking them from learn to sail classes to sailing off on a world cruise on their brand new cruising catamaran. 

What a thrill it brought, pressing my face against a hazy plexiglass airplane window, and seeing whitecaps scattered on the sea from 29,000 feet. Following last year’s tragic season of storms in the Caribbean, I was flying to the British Virgin Islands for the Spring Regatta, which has been bringing sailors to Tortola and the surrounding islands since 1972. As the flight descended through the tropical sky, I began to see the telling signs of destruction. Hundreds of homes were without roofs and scores of boats were askew and aground. But this isn’t a story about destruction. It’s a story about revival, and how sailors are helping bring that about.

In the moments after you realize you have run your boat aground, it’s best to take a deep breath and recite The First Rule of Holes: “When you’re in one, stop digging.” Many of the steps you a

Take a classLenny Shabes photo If you already sail, you might think that your ship has sailed as far as classes go. But learn-to-sail classes are just the tip of the iceberg. Most sailing schools

Just as the Volvo Ocean Race fleet nears the finish line July 1, having zoomed around the world aboard high-tech 65-footers at speeds often exceeding 30 knots, sending high-tech drone video updates of every thrilling moment, 19 solo sailors will leave Les Sables d’Olonne, France, for a nonstop circumnavigation race aboard 30-footers retro-outfitted, meaning no GPS, satellite weather, watermakers, AIS, radars, chartplotters, instruments, autopilots, digital watches or even iPods. These hardy skippers in the Golden Globe Race are going old school on the 50th anniversary of the inaugural race in 1968.

Features  Going old school The Golden Globe skippers are circumnavigating just as Robin Knox-Johnston did 50 years ago How to be a better sailorYou know how to sail, here’s how to 

There was never any doubt that the tragic story of Donald Crowhurst would have to be included in my book about madness at sea. Of all the stories I researched, it’s the one that has caught the publi

Features  Descent into madness Donald Crowhurst’s story is making it to the big screen in The Mercy 6 things every sailor should know Don’t head out to sea without knowing what t

It was a typical race day on Chesapeake Bay’s Miles River. The wind started out at 12 knots, gusting to 16. But of the 11 Chesapeake log canoes that left the dock at the Miles River Yacht Club for a

1 How  your life jacket worksSpinlock created a life jacket with an integrated harness and several other safety functions specifically for sailors in the Volvo Ocean Race, but it is available to

The silence made my ears ring. No electronic chirps, no roar of jets overhead, no sounds except the softly lapping waves on the sturdy wooden hull and the whisper of wind in the sails. An occasional s

A boom violently crashing across a cockpit can be deadly, toss a crewmember overboard or cause serious damage, so it’s worth making an effort to prevent it from happening whenever possible.&nbs

The Moorings 4800 rides at anchor.Susan Colby photo Sailing French Polynesia is the stuff dreams are made of. We had Laura, a marine biologist, who dreamed of exploring the sea life and coral gar