March 2024

March has arrived and with it, a strange mixture of excitement and stress! And it is not just because we run a boat show at the end of April, (stand by for plug). The CT Spring Boat Show is April 26-28 at Safe Harbor Essex Island in Essex, CT and it is shaping up very nicely, thank you for asking. But this very mild winter so far has had a strange effect. Is that the cause of…

I just read your article on Cole. So right you are. I am a grandmother and know nothing about sailing. I don’t know how I found her, but have been with her every day. I pray to Jesus for her success. She is already a huge winner in my eyes. Wow…she even just taught me how to give myself a facial. That girl!!! Dorthy Demauro, via email Dorthy – We’ve featured many inspirational sailors on the pages…

Zim Sailing, headquartered in Bristol, RI, and the Junior Sailing Association of Long Island Sound (JSALIS) are proud to announce a partnership to host a special 2-day Mid-Atlantic Regional Roundtable at Stamford Yacht Club in Stamford, CT on March 8 and 9.     With the JSA celebrating its Centennial this year, the ongoing partnership between Zim Sailing and Regional Sailing Associations provides a perfect opportunity to bring the popular collaboration event to the Mid-Atlantic Region. “2024…

At this year’s annual gathering of TowBoatUS fleet, company owners, captains and BoatUS staff honored nine captains from the U.S. and Canada who selflessly acted to provide emergency lifesaving assistance in 2023. Two Woody Pollak Awards or the highest honors in lifesaving and four Meritorious Service Awards were bestowed. On an early summer day clouded by Canadian wildfire smoke and haze, Capt. Matthew Lynch of TowBoatUS Old Saybrook, CT was towing a disabled vessel when he thought he heard…

The 3rd Annual CT Sea Music Festival will drop anchor in historic downtown Essex on June 7-10, 2024. This family-friendly weekend includes a Symposium on the Music of the Sea, free daytime workshops and concerts, featuring local, regional, and international maritime performers, a family stage, demonstrations of sailor skills, sails on the CT River, a Sunday morning revival-style hymn sing, and late night Chantey Sings in the historic Griswold Inn.     Main stage evening concerts are ticketed events….

Our friends at Thames Yacht Club in New London, CT are hosting the first ever Cal Brouwer Memorial Shorthanded Challenge on Saturday, June 29. Honoring Calvin K. Brouwer, who managed sailboat races on Long Island Sound, Fishers Island Sound and the Thames River for more than half a century, this inaugural event is exclusively for shorthanded racers.   Classes may include Single- and Double-handed, Spinnaker and Non-Spinnaker depending on entries. The course of approximately 15 to 25 miles…

On most boats, the mainsail is by far the biggest sail, and this means the mainsail trimmer has the most important speed-producing job in the whole crew. Because there are so many ways to adjust the shape of your mainsail, trimming it can be pretty challenging. However, if you follow a few basic guidelines, even an inexperienced trimmer can make this sail go fast. Whether you race a one-design or a one-tonner, here’s a list of fool-proof…

By Jonathan Russo In the early morning hours, there were more than a few times I thought the boat might break apart. The sound of the flat-bottomed boat crashing into the waves was alarming, as was the curling water frequently scouring the deck before flooding the cockpit. We would all be tossed into a dark, roiling sea, far from shore or rescue. To chase this thought from my consciousness I looked around the red lit space at…

By Tom Darling, Conversations with Classic Boats Ever wonder what seasoned amateur marine writers do in their free time? More often than not, they are having a “gam,” somewhere, anywhere. For those of you not conversant in whaling terminology, a gam was a timeout at sea, an opportunity to sit around and shoot the breeze. In his novel Moby-Dick, Melville brought this seagoing social media format to life in chapter 53, defining it thusly: “Gam (noun) –…

Save the date and register now for this years’ Antigua Barbuda Hamptons Challenge Regatta which once again features the biggest amateur sailing prize on the East Coast! Held on Saturday, August 10, the Antigua Barbuda Hamptons Challenge Regatta will be a single handicapped race using ratings provided by PHRF of Eastern Long Island.   This regatta and awards party is sponsored by the Antigua & Barbuda Ministry of Tourism as a way to bring the sun, fun…