I am an admirer of the late William F. Buckley Jr.  Buckley was a man of politics, not as a practitioner, but as an acerbic commentator in his magazine and syndicated newspaper columns and

Call me Ishmael.  I can relate to Moby-Dick’s narrator because I too have tales to tell of creatures tormenting sailors at sea. I’ve never been threatened by a whale trying to bite my leg o

Kudos to the crew. They were stellar in this year’s Chicago Mackinac Race. In fact, they were stellar before the race started.  They managed to be alert and engaged as I delivered a homily th

It has been said that whenever two sailboats are sailing near each other on the same course, it’s a race. The saying probably exaggerates the competitive nature of sailors. Still, who among us has

It is a bond that has linked sailors from time immemorial, bringing us joy and sorrow, triumph and tragedy, marked by hubris and humility, angst and obsession, success and failure, all with egalitaria

Who’s the most famous sailor of all time? A few candidates in random order: Ferdinand Magellan, first circumnavigator. Joshua Slocum, first solo circumnavigator. James Cook, explorer, pioneering

Inventions hailed as some of the greatest gifts to mankind since a Mesopotamian genius made the first wheel in 3500 BC don’t always stand the test of time. The Segway comes to mind, speaking of whee

An Aussie friend and I made a pact. He would get me a berth in the Sydney Hobart race and I would do the same for him in the Chicago Mackinac race. We didn’t put this in writing, but even though th

George Washington slept here.” That boast is painted or carved on antiqued signs on dozens of ancient houses in the state of New York. (It has been said that our first president really slept around.

What does an industrial-looking metal contraption that uses a wind vane to steer sailboats have in common with women’s silk underwear? Read on. This magazine was born in 1966 and the half century-p

A friend finally threw in the towel after more than 12 excruciating hours in a doublehanded race sailed in a windless void so persistent that 80% of the fleet dropped out. He and his mate furled

This magazine has reached another milestone, or waypoint if you wish, and that requires a genuflection at the altar of technology. Technology has taken SAILING to the point where, on its 55th anniver

I have nothing against the decadently plush accommodations flaunted by many of today’s monohulled and multihulled cruising boats. In fact, I am delighted to sail in their laps of luxury when cr

New ESCAPE 75. First customer is TNZ.” That was the headline above two photos that appeared on a Facebook page last fall. One of the pictures was of the just-launched 75-foot Team New Zealand Ameri

Here’s a tip for productive use of that surplus time made available by pandemic protocols: Dive into your repository of disused sailing clutter and excavate your old loran receiver. You might need i

We used to publish “green issues” of SAILING. The theme of these special issues was protecting the water and air in which we sail. A cover line on the 2011 green issue read: “Save the sea: What

It’s blowing like stink. It’s blowing a hooley. It’s blowing dogs off chains. Anyway you want to say it, the breeze is up. The world and its waters are getting windier.  Increases in t

I’m not qualified to fly an F-16 at Mach 2 (or any other speed) or climb El Capitan solo without a rope (or any other way), so I’ve had to find other outlets for occasional doses of adrenaline. On