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2022 July 1 - 12:00 am

Let’s get to the bottom of sailing’s big problem

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

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2022 June 1 - 12:00 am

Gone for a century, but still a rock-star sailor

By Bill Schanen

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

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2022 April 1 - 12:00 am

The genoa is dead, long live the jib

By Bill Schanen

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

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2022 March 1 - 12:00 am

It’s rough out there, perfect for living the seafaring ethic

By Bill Schanen

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

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2022 January 1 - 12:00 am

The first man to sail around the world with thousands of kids

By Bill Schanen

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.

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2021 November 1 - 12:00 am

The invention that made sailing safety cool

By Bill Schanen

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

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2021 October 1 - 12:00 am

Sails are our engine, the wind is our fuel

By Bill Schanen

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

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2021 September 1 - 12:00 am

How low tech carried SAILING into a high tech world

By Bill Schanen

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

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2021 July 1 - 12:00 am

Why even sleepless at anchor, I dream of chain

By Bill Schanen

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

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2021 June 1 - 12:00 am

We’ve seen the America’s Cup winner before—25 years ago

By Bill Schanen

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

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2021 April 1 - 12:00 am

How dare they threaten sailors’ navigation nirvana?

By Bill Schanen

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

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2021 March 1 - 12:00 am

What is that 900-foot high monster doing in our backyard?

By Bill Schanen

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

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2021 January 1 - 12:00 am

A new age of sail is coming, bold Jack Tars need not apply

By Bill Schanen

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

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2020 November 1 - 12:00 am

On my honor, I will not be a jerk on the starting line

By Bill Schanen

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

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2020 October 1 - 12:00 am

Consult Samuel Johnson before you name your boat

By Bill Schanen

While being mildly entertained reading a novel titled “North of Havana,” one of Randy Wayne White’s water-based Florida capers, I bumped into this profound observation by the author: “It’s o

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2020 September 1 - 12:00 am

Think you can escape the pandemic on a sailboat? Good luck.

By Bill Schanen

When the coronavirus started taking over the dry-land world, I started planning my escape. It would be on sailboat, of course. The First Mate and I would depart these troubled sho

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2020 July 1 - 12:00 am

Rare birds and sweet sailers in a megafleet of has-beens

By Bill Schanen

I never could get the hang of birdwatching, which is all about seeing and identifying avians and making copious notes about the sightings in something called a life list. I did once manage to rec

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2020 June 1 - 12:00 am

The joys of symmetry in an obsolete downwind sail

By Bill Schanen

I came across an old photograph the other day and was carried away by a wave of nostalgia. It was a photo of a person engaged in spinnaker flying. I don’t mean flying a spinnaker, as in settin

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2020 May 1 - 12:00 am

Sailing breaks free of the math that has held it back for centuries

By Bill Schanen

I remember my distress when I was introduced to Old Devil Hull Speed. I was just getting into offshore racing, working at being a semi-competent bowman, and I was gung-ho for speed. I read every

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2020 April 1 - 12:00 am

Sailing fashion tacks damply to the dark side

By Bill Schanen

Folks who enter the rustic confines of our family’s beach cottage are greeted by a small display of sailing heirlooms including a color photograph of me at a barely-adult age along with two older, m

Perry on Design

Carrying on the tradition of Nautor Swan, this cruiser takes a modern twist

This cruiser has plenty of options for comfortable family cruising

A svelte cruising cat that has performance front and center

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