A Head-Turning Shoal-Draft Cruiser. Issue 135: Nov/Dec 2020 Lake Mendota, just north of Madison, Wisconsin, is my home water; it’s also where the late, great Buddy Melges sailed. Wide and deep, it’s a...
A Canadian Classic with a Racing Pedigree Issue 140: Sept/Oct 2021 As I walked down the dock at the Ludington Yacht Club, racers milled about, flags snapped in the breeze, and halyards clanged ...
A well-planned economy cruiser Issue 148: Jan/Feb 2023 Rich and Carolyn Sutorius of St. Charles, Missouri, sailed a Seafarer 26, Manana, for more than 30 years. We reviewed the boat in the July/August...
A Solid CCA-Style Centerboard Racer/Cruiser Issue 143: March/April 2022 John Geraci may not have known Pearson Yachts’ history when he learned how to sail in 1969 on a Pearson Commander, but he ...
A solid though somewhat stately cruiser Issue 117: Nov/Dec 2017 Pearson Yachts set off in a new direction in the 1970s. After the company’s founders, Clint and Everett Pearson, left in the mid-19...
…and Two More Performance Cruisers. Issue 138: May/June 2021 I assumed the Passport 42 would be a Bob Perry design, an assumption further reinforced when I saw she had a Valiant 40-style canoe s...
Checking All the Boxes Issue 138: May/June 2021 After only a few dates, Scott Voltz and Connie Bunyer knew two things: They liked each other, and they liked sailing. Well…Scott knew he loved sailing; ...
A trio of Pearson 36-1 owners compares notes on their boats, refits, and wide-ranging sailing. Issue 137: March/April 2021 In 1972, Pearson Yachts began producing the P36-1, designed by William Shaw. ...
…and Two More CCA-Onspired Classics Issue 137: March/April 2021 Carl Alberg developed a design aesthetic based on the Cruising Club of America (CCA) yachts of the 1950s and ’60s, and he never re...
A Classic Full-Keel Beauty Issue 137: March/April 2021 Laurie Knight’s lifelong dream has been to own and sail her own boat, something she hopes all women will realize isn’t as hard as it looks and is...
This 1970s family cruiser offers a fair turn of speed Pearson Yachts was one of the most respected builders during its long run from 1956 to 1988 or thereabouts (under ownership by an investment firm,...
…and Two More Lift-Keel Performers Issue 135: Nov/Dec 2020 Everyone knows that deep draft improves sailing performance but restricts cruising options. The ability to reduce draft would certainly...
…and Two More Freestanding-Rigged, Solid Sailers. Issue 134: Sept/Oct 2020 Looking for boats to compare to the Nonsuch 36, the obvious commonality has to be the freestanding rig. That cer...
A fast, Big Catboat Whose Watchword is Simplicity. Issue 134: Sept/Oct 2020 Wendy and Frank Glanznig were beating up Lake Huron’s Georgian Bay in a CS30 sloop, tacking hard upwind with rails un...
A variety of factors contributed to the end of yacht design’s golden age. Issue 133: July/Aug 2020 I recently finished reading Dick Carter’s autobiography, Dick Carter: Yacht Designer in the Gol...
… and Two More Performance-Influenced Cruisers Issue 133: July/Aug 2020 In the late 1960s and early ’70s, boats designated as “cruising yachts” tended to follow the Colin Archer/William Atkin model of...
An inspired, tough, seakindly cruiser Issue 133: July/Aug 2020 In the mid-1970s, naval architect William “Bill” Ion Belton Crealock entered a sailboat magazine’s boat design contest. Though already a ...
…and Two More Bright, Solid Cruising Performers Issue 131: March/April 2020 The late powerboat designer Tom Fexas once published a provocative article entitled “Sailing Is Silly” in which...
A Raised-Saloon Cruiser for Two Issue 131: March/April 2020 For 14 years, Rosie and Carl Anderson sailed their Bombay Clipper 31 throughout the coastal waters of western Florida. But after an e...
Freestanding rigs offer an intriguing comparison to traditional, stayed masts. Issue 134: Sept/Oct 2020 In 1985, when I joined the office of Mark Ellis Design, Mark took me sailing aboard a Nonsuch 30...
A Traditional Masterpiece Issue 129: Nov/Dec 2019 Styled by builder Cecil Lang after William Atkin’s classic Tally Ho Major, the Cape George 38 is a traditional cutter with a counter transom, fairly f...
Affordable and innovative, these five boats were multihull game-changers. Issue 129: Nov/Dec 2019 Anyone who’s read this magazine for a while can appreciate how deep and broad the roots of monohull sa...
… And Two Other Interpretations of Timeless Cutter Design Issue 129: Nov/Dec 2019 It is relatively easy to assign a time or decade to the design of most production fiberglass sailboats. That’s particu...
A true racer/cruiser from the world’s largest boatbuilder Issue 128: Sept/Oct 2019 Beneteau is arguably one of the oldest and most successful boatbuilders in the world. The French company traces its r...
…and a couple North American racer/cruisers Issue 128: Sept/Oct 2019 The 1980s were a transformative period in the sailboat industry in North America. After years of incredible expansion in the ...
The Valiant 32 was designed by Bob Perry as a smaller version of the successful Valiant 40. In the 1970s, a 30- to 35-foot boat was considered the optimum-size boat for a cruising couple. In response ...
People may be impressed by a millionaire’s rocketship, but “ooohs” and “aaahs” are saved for the classic. A British author once wrote, in effect, that you can go away for...
Whether constructed of steel or aluminum, metal yachts deserve a second look In the 1960s and early 1970s we rarely saw metal yachts in North American waters. Steel yachts had been built in Holland an...
The rig Americans made their own is still “scooning” after 300 years It’s not discreet to say this, but I’ve been having an affair, and I’m not ashamed to admit it. It...
Ted Brewer reviews the ins and outs and ups and downs of keel design The purpose of a keel, fin, or centerboard is to provide resistance to making leeway; in effect, to keep the yacht from sliding sid...
