Sail Far Live Free

One of the most iconic long-distance sailors and pioneer of the cruising life, Bernard Moitessier, once said: “I am a citizen of the most beautiful nation on earth. A nation whose laws are harsh yet simple, a nation that never cheats, which is immense and without borders, where life is lived in the present. In this limitless nation, this nation of wind, light and peace, there is no other ruler besides the sea.” I think a thread of Moitessier’s thoughts about living a life as a citizen of the sea is woven into all of those who have been bitten by the cruising bug. And as such, the cruising community populates the nation of the sea. This week that nation mourns for the tragic loss of four fellow cruisers. By now you’ve probably heard about the sailing vessel Quest, Jean and Scott Adam (owners) and Phyllis Macay and Bob Riggle (guests aboard Quest). These four Americans had their lives needlessly taken from them after being held hostage on their sailboat by pirates. I’m definitely not...

I’m not a winter person, never have been.  The water is just too hard in the winter, as you can see in the pictures below.   And while old Lake Michigan herself seems a foreboding February mistress to this sailor, she still entices me with her beauty.   I can’t deny the attractiveness of ice, snow and sand piled up to form magnificent shoreline scenery.    

The middle of a sailor’s winter here in the Great Lakes is marked by the occurrence of the Strictly Sail show in Chicago at the end of January. Chicago is the perfect host for such a show, with frozen Lake Michigan as a backdrop, skyscrapers creating one the world’s best skylines and deep dish pizza to feed your hunger. The show itself gives you something to look forward to after the holidays are over and helps you ease into your spring maintenance, repairs and upgrades for the coming sailing season. As the nation’s largest indoor all-sailboat show, there’s literally something there for every kind of sailor. Best In Show: Tartan 4300 While many of my favorite bluewater sailboat builders such as Pacific Seacraft, Valiant and Tayana were not at the show, the Tartan 4300 appealed very well to my salty sensibilities. I have nothing against the higher volume production boat builders like Catalina, Beneteau, Jeanneau and Hunter but you immediately notice a different feel when you step aboa...