This wasn’t part of the plan. Four months ago, I was in Miami. A friend of mine, a fellow Canadian, had bought a boat and was planning to head out around the world. Given that she had absolutely no sailing experience, she asked me to come along.
Last Friday at the Carlu in Toronto, Sarah Douglas from Ashbridges Bay Yacht Club was honoured with the most prestigious national sailing award of the year.
Read more: Sarah Douglas named 2019 Rolex Sailor of the Year!
Doug’s pathway to a career in marine service is a unique one. A few years ago, as his retirement date with the Canadian Armed Forces drew closer, Doug began planning an exit strategy to transition into a productive civilian life.
In 1969, Canadian Bruce Kirby designed the Laser one-person sailboat that has revolutionized racing and is a huge part of international competition. The Laser became an Olympic-class boat at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.
In 2008, Pat and Lynn Lortie said goodbye to their everyday life to pursue their dream; making their way into the Great Loop and head out on a three-year sailing odyssey.
Read more: Helly Hansen Sailor of the Month - Pat and Lynn...
With old boats every repair seems to uncover something else needing attention. Removing the top rudder bearing and enlarging the opening for the new bearing revealed an area of wet balsa core.
Canadian Sailing Team member, Tom Ramshaw, put his training to the test at the 2019 Finn Gold Cup in Melbourne, Australia last month. Competing against some of the best Finn sailors in the world, this event saw various conditions, from being stuck ashore with no wind to record-breaking 40C days with 15 knots.
On November 13 Sail Canada, the national governing body for the sport of sailing, announced Mark Lammens as the Helly Hansen Sailor of the Month.
This week, Katie Nicoll, writer and boat reviewer for Canadian Yachting will be receiving the Ontario Sailing Volunteer of the Year award.
In the dark hours of November 9, 1913, death screamed across the Great Lakes in the guise of a rare white hurricane. The Storm continued to brutalize the region for most of the following week.
Read more: Ottawa: “Weather Bomb 1913 – Life and Death on...
Related Articles
Boat Reviews
Video Gallery
Neptunus 650F Review
By Andy Adams
Over the years Canadian Yachting has had the pleasure of doing several boat review articles on new Neptunus models and we are familiar with the qualities that Neptunus is famous for. They have all been exceptional yachts, but this is the one I would most want to own myself. It’s a personal choice and a matter of taste as to whether you would prefer to have a sedan express model or a flybridge but in my opinion, the flybridge layout offers some wonderful attributes.
We met with Neptunus Managing Director Jan Willem De Jong this past fall to take the new Neptunus 650F out in Lake Ontario.
Destinations
The Other Virgin Islands
By Mark Stevens
I was first seduced by the United States Virgin Islands during a ferry ride from St. Thomas to Tortola to begin one of our earliest British Virgin Islands charters nearly twenty years ago.
A perfect sunset off St. John with St. Thomas views for backdrop.
Clearing Pillsbury Sound, surrounded by voluptuous emerald mountains as the ferry sliced through royal blue waters, I was struck by the unspoiled ambiance of St. John, the island gliding past our starboard beam and the irresistible charm of a village called Cruz Bay visible from our quarter stern.
By AMY HOGUE
What to look for and ask about as you plan your vacation times. You’ve invested thousands and thousands of dollars into your boat so naturally, you want to find just the right spot for her to live, and where you can enjoy her to the maximum. Marinas and yacht clubs are just like people, no two are completely alike and finding the one that’s perfect for you, may make you feel a little like Cinderella – searching for the shoe that fits just right.
It’s okay to take your time on this search because the marina you choose is arguably as important a decision as the one to buy your boat.
Read More
DIY & How to
Going Electric to Cruise Lake Ontario: A family ditches the diesel
Story and photos by Matt Bera
We settled Svala into what my family and I had come to think of as the most desirable anchorage on Lake Ontario, on a sunny summer afternoon. With an abandoned settlement, an old schoolhouse full of swallows, giant snakes and a rum-running past, Main Duck Island had it all.
That we had to sail past the Psyche Shoal, a magnetic disturbance, and into the middle of the rumoured Marysburgh Vortex made an even better sea story. It had taken us two attempts, two years, two boats and a new sort-of experimental engine to get there.
Cruising with a Captain - It’s easier than you think
By Zuzana Prochazka
Never chartered? No problem. Here’s how to plan, execute and enjoy a vacation on a charter yacht where life is easy and the sunsets can’t be beat.
Decide on a crewed or bareboat charter
A crewed charter means you have a captain who manages the boat and maybe a chef or mate as well. Crewed charters ensure a safe and comfortable vacation with most everything done for you. The chefs are usually outstanding so if you’re a foodie, you’ll be in heaven and you may be able to pick up new recipes too. Larger crewed yachts may also have a mate who works with the captain and will do things like getting toys (kayaks, SUPs, snorkel gear, etc.) ready for you to use so you do very little work.
Marine Products
Marine Electronics – Staying Connected in 2023
By Andy Adams
The world of marine electronics is just on fire in terms of development. You can almost name any function that you could dream up and somebody is offering it. We are just heading into the traditional boat show season and this year there is a big difference from past years.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, most boating enthusiasts have not had any in-person boat show exposure to the new products since 2019 or 2020. That means that there are almost three years of new products to catch up on. It's going to be an exciting year in 2023!
News
On November 15th 2022, Mercury Marine, a division of Brunswick Corporation (NYSE: BC), introduced the industry’s first ever V10 outboard with the official launch of its all-new 5.7L 350 and 400hp Verado® outboard engines.
Consistent with the award-winning Verado brand, the new V10 engines are the quietest and smoothest in their class running 45 percent quieter than a leading competitor at cruise. In addition to NVH, the new Verado’s are not only compatible with the latest Mercury SmartCraft® technologies but will also be offered with an optional dual-mode 48V/12V alternator to seamlessly pair with Navico Group’s Fathom® e-power system, an integrated lithium-ion auxiliary power management system, providing boaters the opportunity to eliminate an onboard generator system.