What’s in Your Seabag
Over my years of sailing, I have slowly added to the number of things that I habitually take with me when I go on the water. The other day, I thought it might be fun to catalog everything I haul on board. I was a little surprised at what I discovered: My complete list includes […]
Reefing on a Merit
Merit 25: practical, fun boar for training, day sailing & racing
The Holy Grail for sailing clubs like Spinnaker Sailing is a boat that is fun to sail, fast, responsive, durable and relatively simple to operate. It needs to be roomy and comfortable enough for a beginning sailing class but also sophisticated enough to be attractive to experienced sailors. And it doesn’t hurt if the boat […]
Catalina 27: Popular for day and overnight cruises
The Catalina 27 gets a bad rap from some sailing purists. But that’s not fair. The boat is the most widely produced keelboat of all time for a reason. Actually for quite a number of reasons: simplicity, versatility, sailing qualities and comfort being a few. For Spinnaker Sailing members and students, the Catalina 27 is a great […]
Catalina 28: a Sassy Pocket Cruiser
By Patrick Twohy Spinnaker’s fleet of sailboats is growing. The latest addition is the club’s fifth Catalina 28. Rather than a stretched Catalina 27, this Gerry Douglas-designed vessel was designed from scratch as a speedy, more modern, more polished-looking boat. In many ways, the Catalina 28 is mini version of the bigger boats you can […]
Noodling About With Knots
I’m a bit of a knot head. I find knots fascinating. The most efficient ones are both useful and beautiful. A bit of filament, a bit of friction and voila — you have something that didn’t exist before. Security. A connection. A fabric, even. If humans are the tool-making animal, knots were probably among […]