We live in a society where people put great store in the idea of perfection especially where sailboats are concerned. I mean, who would not like to have the perfect boat? So, what makes a boat perfect? Does anyone out there have a list of the required bits that makes a boat perfect? My problem …
I’ve always liked Colvin’s junk rig boats as they were in a sorta/kinda evolutionary step that never really made the jump to the next stage and, as a result, have a lot to tell us about sailboat design. Someone has an idea for a boat or rig and designs a sailboat based on that idea. …
Maybe the best thing about doing a VolksCruiser is that by its very nature, it’s a minimum-impact exercise. A smaller boat and budget go a long way to lessen one’s impact on the local environment. The less negative impact the better. Having lived in and around cruising areas I’ve been in the front row to …
Back in the dark ages, when I was living on a CAL 20, I went to a lecture by Herman Daly who really blew my mind with his thoughts on economic growth. Sadly. he passed away recently. I mention this here because his take on economics has a whole lot to do with my thoughts …
Truth is, I never feel very comfortable with the concept of rules and there’s a line from a book I read in high school that has stuck with me even though I no longer remember the name of the book or author who wrote it… “Rules and regulations are just stop signs on the roads …
well, of course, there are always going to be some exceptions… Read More »
Is it just me or am I the only one who’s noticed the somewhat alarming fact that you can now buy cans of gas for your outboard for $7.99 a quart? While I get the whole ethanol is bad for outboards and suchlike, the idea that we’re reduced to buying gas for more than I …
I’m pretty sure this is not exactly an example of progress… Read More »
Tad Roberts has a new design in the works which, I expect, I’ll be telling you a lot more about in the next week or so, but for the moment, I’d just like to point out something important about it and boats in general… Speed: 6.5 knots with 15HP outboard, 9 knots with 40HP A …
The other day while avoiding some needful sanding of fiberglass I found myself intrigued by one of those never ending threads on a forum about sailboat gear… As usual, someone popped up and stated categorically that if something costs more it’s better and the old chestnut “you get what you pay for” is a stone …
There are times when reading the yachting press (in those rare times when my scum sucking zinio app actually works) that I feel that we’re not looking at boats anymore but some crazed rendering of the “Blind men and an elephant” sort… A while back when I was talking about the Columbia 26, a lot …
