Sail Far Live Free

"Wherever you go, no matter the weather, always bring your own sunshine." - Anthony J. D'Angelo ...or at least bring a good all-weather jacket.  Zhik's Kiama jacket is just the ticket for most of the sailing that I do here on the Great Lakes. It's design is simple, and I mean that in a very good way. There aren't a ton of panels sewn together or several colors competing for you attention. Instead, the Kiama offers a clean look and a fit that's comfortable. Even in simplicity, this jacket is more than just a shell to fend off the wind and repel rain and spray. It's got a certain heft to it that adds just the right amount of warmth and insulation. Zhik says it's designed for inshore sailing in mild to moderate cool conditions, but I'm inclined to think it can handle more and will even make a really functional winter ski coat so long as you add a medium weight base layer. Regardless of how it's used, movement isn't restricted

This is the second entry in a series of my mini-interviews with prominent sailboat designers. My guest this time is Bill Dixon. Bill leads Dixon Yacht Design and has done so ever since he took over Angus Primrose Design more than 27 years ago. To cruising sailors, perhaps Bill's best known designs include sailboats from Moody Yachts  since 1981. Of particular note are the unique and innovative Moody deck saloons. As Moody Yachts puts it, "Bill Dixon is more than a designer. Each one of his developments is filled with life." Dixon Yacht Design has also been involved with the Passport Vista 615 , Passport 58TC , the Discovery 50 catamaran , the Tayana 54 and many others including  several superyacht sailboats  and powerboats. A very big THANK YOU to Bill for participating! And now on to my questions and Bill's responses: 1) Sum up your sailboat design philosophy in a few sentences. I enjoy designing sailing yachts, based on the lifestyles of owners. This, I believ

"A designer must study the essentials of what is beautiful in yachts, and work these ideals into any design he draws whether blonde or brunette, transom stern or pointed, power or sail." - Chuck Paine This post is the first in a series I'm putting together to help give myself some new perspectives on cruising sailboats from the design pros. In the series, I'll be asking well-known yacht designers to answer 4 questions. Follow along with the series and learn a bit about what makes these designers tick and the intricacies of such things as the tradeoffs for sailboats between form and function. Here are my questions for the designers: 1) Sum up your sailboat design philosophy in a few sentences. 2) What's one of your personal favorite sailboats that you designed and why? 3) Is there a sailboat design and/or designer that inspired your own work or career? 4) Is it more difficult to design a sailboat that looks good or sails good? For this particular post,

Autumn Rolling In (Muskegon, MI)

"Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society." - Mark Twain I'm mostly a t-shirt sailor, which is to say I'm not picky about what attire I wear when I'm sailing (and I have little influence on society). But I find that the older I get the more sensitive my skin seems to be to UV and wind rash, which is exactly why I was excited to try out a shirt from Snikwah that offers sun protection (UPF 50+) and an extendable/convertible collar to keep my neck, ears and even face protected on the water if I so choose. No, I'm not robbing a bank - I'm outfitted for sun/wind/bug/spray protection on the water! Snikwah's claim to fame is their proprietary blend of Dri-Release fabric that adds excellent moisture wicking ability to the UV protection. I don't know exactly what the material is made of, but it's been comfortable and airy during the last two weekends of sailing.  I'm also happy to report that Lake Michiga