What have boat designs lost in the quest for windward performance? Has a century of yacht racing corrupted our ability to design safe, all-around cruisers? How do you quantify a yacht’s comfort ...
Tinkering WW II veterans and refined husband-and-wife teams dominate the literature of cruising’s post-war golden age. These pioneers proved that small boats could safely cross oceans, serve as ...
Eric and Susan Hiscock’s cruising books are manuals for aspirations and ideals as much as technical manuals for world cruising. Whether we splice our own wire rope, repair our own sails, or navi...
In the 1950s, just before the widespread production of fiberglass boats triggered the developments that have made boating accessible to anyone, Patrick and June Ellam delivered yachts along the Atlant...
How can a boat sail faster than the wind? What is the most efficient hull shape? Why does a tall, skinny Marconi point better than an old gaffer? The aptly titled Evolution of Modern Sailboat Design e...
HISTORICAL REVIEW Readers of this magazine generally agree on the virtues of small boats, modest budgets, and sailing trips that may start out less ambitious than Cape Horn voyages. Seamanship, simpli...
How much time will you sacrifice by sailing at a more comfortable angle to the wind? Why does that gust of wind “come from the side” when you thought you were close-hauled? Would you like ...
Your boating library may include Chapman’s for general rules and seamanship, Eric and Susan Hiscock for practical instruction, Don Casey for maintenance, Bowditch for navigation, maybe even Tris...
Popular histories such as Dava Sobel’s Longitude illustrate the drama of Europe’s ascendancy in the Age of Discovery. Governments sponsored inventions and universities, new measurement too...