Picture This: Deck Work ALWAYS Beats Desk Work!
Deck work ALWAYS beats desk work! (photo by K. Walters)
Posts
What Racing Taught Me About Sailing
"I have learned for the first time that the fastest yacht does not win the race." - Charles Nicholson (British yacht designer) I learned to sail through simple trial and (mostly) error* on our first sailboat and while crewing during the local Wednesday night races and a few longer distance races. The racing was fun and often exciting, but I was there for instructional gain. I was raised a boater, so I felt I knew some basic seamenship, yet sailing seemed technical and more involved than most of the boating I had done previously. I'm pretty sure I shared the common misconception that sailing was overly difficult. My experiences while racing did little to dispel the misconception. Whether doing laps around the cans on a short 0.5 mile course or crossing Lake Michigan during the Queen's Cup, we were constantly trimming sails by adjusting the cars, fiddling with the backstay, messing with the topping lift, tweaking the vang, and easing the outhaul only to then ti
A Great Freeze in the Great Lakes
Just how cold has it been in the Great Lakes this winter? Cold enough that I'm actually blogging about ice instead of telling sailing stories. And cold enough to produce more ice coverage over the inland seas than has been seen in the last 20 years. Believe it or not, that's good news for Great Lakes sailors who were ailing during last summer's historic low water levels. As of the beginning of 2014, Great Lakes water levels were still about one foot below average despite the above average rainfall last summer. The above average ice on the Great Lakes this winter should translate to reduced water loss from evaporation and allow water levels to continue recovering. Great Lakes ice cover for February 12, 2014 (White is actually open water, while grays/blacks are ice) The all-time record for total ice coverage on the Great Lakes was set in 1979 when 94.7% of the lakes were covered. The record low ice year was 2002 when just 9.5% of the Great Lakes surface was
Roses are red, boat shoes are blue...
...We like them and think you will too! Check out these new women's Felucca Lace shoes from Sebago . Nautical, don't ya think? Ok, so I won't even pretend to have the good tastes to make a blog post about fashion, but I will pass these along as a recommendation for a Valentine's gift to the sailing female in your life. Here's what you need to know: The leather is VERY soft. The stitching is built to last (These might even hold up on a man's foot, just sayin'!). They run about a half size large, so order small if you want a pair. The soles are of the non-marking slip-resistant variety. They come in a variety of fun and funky colors, so no excuses for having the same look as someone else on your dock or deck! Get 'em here on Amazon from $35-$95 , depending on price and color. >> Don't forget to visit SFLF's Gear Review page for more sailing gear reviews/tests. <<