…and Two More Tradition-Inspired Cutters Issue 146: Sept/Oct 2022 The Bristol Channel Cutter (BCC) is a classic example of the cutter type, which traditionally referred to the whole boat, not just the...
A Pert British Cruising Catamaran Issue 145: July/Aug 2022 Forty-some years ago, empty-nesters Richard and Sheila Olin sold their business in Chicago, and with their two daughters in college, boarded ...
A 28-Foot, Go-Anywhere Masterpiece Issue 146: Sept/Oct 2022 Like many sailors, Bill and Cathy Norrie had dreams of sailing the warm waters of the temperate oceans, particularly when winter snows beat ...
…and Two More Pilothouse-Type Cruisers Issue 147: Nov/Dec 2022 The Nauticat 40 represents a direction in yacht design that leans much more to creature comfort than to offshore performance. Despite tha...
A Stout Little Ship With Some S&S Sailability Issue 147: Nov/Dec 2022 David Chambers was about 13 years old when he first saw a Nauticat. His dad had taken him along to Anacortes, Washington, to l...
… and two more mid-’80s designs Issue 148: Jan/Feb 2023 The 1987 Hunter 33.5 predated my arrival as chief designer at Hunter in 1992, but was still in production until 1994. It was then replaced...
A small, handsome double-ender with offshore potential Issue 149: March/April 2023 The 1970s was a transitional period in sailboat design, as CCA (Cruising Club of America) rules that had guided desig...
A quick racer/cruiser from Canada Issue 150: May/June 2023 When Jack and Marilyn Williams moved west from their home province of Ontario in 1977, settling near Victoria on Vancouver Island, one of the...
What the numbers can tell you about boat performance, comfort, and stability Issue 151: July/Aug 2023 Yacht designers make many calculations in their work that help define the final shape and performa...
A modern racer-cruiser with two helms Issue 151: July/Aug 2023 This 2013 Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 379 was less than 10 years old at the time of my review, providing a great opportunity to look at some of ...
A bluewater cruiser in a small package Issue 152: Nov/Dec 2023 I was singlehanding on our Islander Bahama 30 on a spectacular fall afternoon, whitecaps dancing on the blue waters of Plumper Sound in t...
A pert little catboat for daysailing and napping Issue 153: Nov/Dec 2023 Bob Ryan, 75, handed me his business card at Dock on the Bay Marina on Longboat Key, Florida. Below his name was his occupation...
A fast and comfortable racer-cruiser that has stood the test of time Issue 154: Jan/Feb 2024 While on vacation in Mexico, Debbie Bulk dreamed of a better way to see local village life away from the re...
The little boat that could Issue 155: March/April 2024 In an era of increasingly bigger boats, sometimes it’s the smaller vessels that steal the show — like our beloved Fatty Knees 8 dinghy. Despite i...
A Sleek Racer/Cruiser From the Mid-’80s Issue 155: March/April 2024 Jan Bednarski was introduced to the world of water sports by his father near the prairie city of Edmonton, Alberta. Over the y...
A stout double-ender for cruising I’ve heard that New England sailors have seawater running through their veins and after meeting Margaret Pesaturo, I would say it’s true. Her grandparents were boatbu...
Graveyard of the Pacific: Shipwreck and Survival on America’s Deadliest Waterway by Randall Sullivan There are many North American inlets out there that at times can be difficult, even dangerous. I on...
The Deepest Map: The High-Stakes Race to Chart the World’s Oceans by Laura Trethewey Sailors don’t use “maps” for navigating, we use charts. So why review a book called The Deepest Map? The short answ...
Readers who enjoyed Bert Vermeer’s review of the Vancouver 27 in the September/October 2023 issue of Good Old Boat will get a kick out of best-selling author Donald Hamilton’s Cruises with Kathleen: M...
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...
This is not a sailing story. As a matter of fact, there are only three scenes that occur aboard sailing ships — all epic, which makes it a worthwhile read for sailors. From start to finish, Hold Fast ...
Memoir of a Sailor’s Voyage in a Bygone Era San Juan, Puerto Rico. My husband Tom and I and our crew member sit at outside tables in the old city. We have cold drinks before us and she is lookin...
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 ...
This first-person narrative will not, contrary to the title, actually teach you how to build a boat. Rather, Jonathan Gornall tells the tale of his personal quest to construct a traditional clinker-bu...
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...
It is a tale oft told, a bright and promising voyage of brave young people who sail off to conquer terra incognita, well equipped and well led, only to be taught cruel and tragic lessons by the extrem...
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...
This is a remarkable story of one couple’s 17-year, 40,000-mile adventure that chronicles their sail from British Columbia to Lake Ontario the long way around. That is, heading west via French Polynes...
The subtitle of this new book is enticing: “The fine art of selecting a great boat, outfitting it, living aboard, and cruising it on a minimal budget.” If you find this resonates with your adventure g...
