Ocean Voyaging - Ocean Navigator

24 Feb

Organizers Investigate Vessel Abandonments in 2024 Bermuda Race

Eric ColbyBoat Accidents, Navigation, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Safety, Offshore Sailing, Racing News, Sailboat Racing

After three sailboats were abandoned during the 2024 Newport Bermuda Race and return trip, the Bermuda Race Organizing Committee has partnered with US Sailing and the Cruising Club of America to conduct an in-depth safety review. The goal was to gather facts, analyze the incidents and make recommendations that will contribute to safer offshore sailing races. After interviewing the rescued and rescuing crews, the BROC and US Sailing have released individual reports for the three vessel abandonments. The reports provide important insights and lessons learned, reinforcing the need for preparedness, training and seamanship in offshore sailboat racing. The sailing vessel…

11 Feb

The New Revolution in Tide and Current Predictions

David BurchNavigation, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Safety, Offshore Sailing, Power Voyaging, Seamanship & Navigation, Seamanship & Navigation Newsletter

We had one tidal revolution in 2021 when NOAA announced that they were discontinuing the decades-long use of Table 2 lists of secondary station corrections, and that there will no longer be any sanctioned annual Tide and Current Tables. Plus there will no longer be any international tidal data published by NOAA. Going forward, the way we get official tide and current predictions is go to tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov and create a monthly or annual table for specific stations as PDFs and then print them. It takes four pages per year, per station. This is a superior system, as we rarely needed…

07 Feb

US Sailing Names 2024 Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year

Eric ColbyIndustry & Company News, Navigation, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Sailing, Racing News, Sailboat Racing

US Sailing has announced the winners of the 2024 Rolex Yachtsman and Yachtswoman of the Year awards. Ian Barrows and Hans Henken are the yachtsmen of the year and Cole Brauer is the yachtswoman of the year. The awards acknowledge their accomplishments in sailing during the past year. The winners were honored on Feb. 6 during the US Sailing Awards Ceremony at the 2025 US Sailing Leadership Forum in Coronado, Calif. The selection process involved a vote by past Rolex Award winners and prominent sailing media members. To learn more about the selection process, visit ussailing.org. “This year’s Rolex Yachtsmen…

28 Jan

New Anti-Collision System and Gyrocompass

Eric ColbyBoat & Gear News, Electronic charting, Marine Apps, Marine Electronics, Navigation, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Safety

Artificial Intelligence company SEA.AI has added to its machine vision systems with the SEA.AI brain. It integrates the technology with existing thermal cameras on a boat. The company demonstrated its abilities in its new Watchkeeper series of modular safety systems at the Boot Düsseldorf Show in Germany in January. Starting at less than $5,200, the Watchkeeper lets boaters customize a SEA.AI system based on personal preferences. The system comes with a 4k low-light camera with a wide field of view of 135 degrees, providing a comprehensive view of the surroundings around the boat. With integrated GPS and Intertial Measurement Units,…

27 Jan

Hanse 360 Wins Yacht of the Year

Eric ColbyBoat & Gear News, Industry & Company News, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Sailing, Press release

German sailboat manufacturer Hanse has received the European Yacht of the Year 2025 award. Boats that were nominated were announced in September. The awards are judged by a 12-member jury and each vessel is put through a sea trial before it is assigned a class. “What an incredible achievement: Winning the European Yacht of the Year award with the Hanse 360 is a testament to the hard work, passion, and dedication of the entire Hanse Yachts team,” Hanjo Runde, CEO HanseYachts AC, said in a statement. “A huge thank you to all employees for making this possible — you’ve truly…

21 Jan

Hands-On Training

Eric ColbyNavigation, Newsletter, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Safety, Offshore Sailing, Seamanship & Navigation, Voyaging Skills, Voyaging Skills, Voyaging Tips

Most teachers or people in a training/instructing position will tell you that one of the best ways to learn something is by doing it. But even instructors start somewhere. Marc Hughston founded Santana Sailing in 2003 in Long Beach, Calif., but he took his first sailing lesson at the age of 14 and has been on the water for most of his life. He is a U.S. Coast Guard 100 Ton Master and an American National Standards Instructor/Assessor as well as a Mediterranean Sailing License and Credentials Instructor/Assessor. In 2007, he was working as an instructor and had a crew…

17 Jan

Charlie Dalin Wins Vendée Globe

Eric ColbyOcean Voyaging, Offshore Sailing, Racing News, Sailboat Racing, Seamanship & Navigation

On January 15, solo sailor Charlie Dalin at the helm of MACIF Santé Prévoyance crossed the finish line for the 2024 Vendée Globe around the world sailboat race, shaving more than five days off the predicted time. “I am the happiest man in the world,” he said 20 minutes after claiming victory. “I have never experienced such emotion, never experienced that in my entire life. It is the most beautiful finish line of my career with this daylight breaking through.” He arrived at the finish in Las Sables-d’Olonne, France, on January 14 at 8:24:49 a.m. local time, finishing with a…

16 Jan

Proposed Boat Speed Limit for Atlantic Coast Withdrawn

Eric ColbyBoat & Gear News, Boat Accidents, Industry & Company News, Navigation, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Safety, Offshore Sailing, Power Voyaging, Seamanship & Navigation

The National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Commerce Department have withdrawn a proposed rule that would have imposed speed limits on boats operating off the East Coast of the United States. The rule was originally published in the Federal Register on Aug. 1, 2022, to amend the North Atlantic right whale vessel speed regulations. “NMFS withdraws this proposed rule in light of numerous and ongoing requests from the public for further opportunity to review and engage with the Agency on the proposal,” the fisheries service said in a statement. “NMFS’s existing vessel speed regulations remain…

08 Jan

Cruising Club of America Awards Highest Honor

Eric ColbyNavigation, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Sailing, Sailboat Racing, Seamanship & Navigation, Voyaging Skills

The Cruising Club of America has named Leiv Poncet of the Falkland Islands, the recipient of the 2024 Blue Water Medal. This accolade was established to honor exceptional seamanship and adventure by amateur sailors. It recognizes Poncet for his many high-latitude voyages around the world that were taken without fanfare. First granted 101 years ago, the Blue Water Medal is the CCA’s highest honor. Poncet follows in the footsteps of legendary sailors including Bernard Moitessier, Eric and Susan Hiscock, Thies Matzen and Kicki Ericson and Jean-Luc Van Den Heede. Poncet is the first to follow in the footsteps of his…

03 Jan

Vendée Globe Sailors Spot Icebergs

Eric ColbyOcean Voyaging, Offshore Sailing, Racing News, Sailboat Racing

For the first time since 2008, sailors in the Vendée Globe around-the-world solo sailboat race on Jan. 2 encountered an iceberg in the middle of the Pacific ocean. For many days leading up to the start of the new year, sailors had been informed by race management that they were in an ice zone in the Pacific. Two icebergs were spotted by satellite outside the Antarctic Exclusion Zone and their position put them closer to the course the sailors in the race were on. “My radar alarm went off: I had an echo four miles ahead,” Sébastien Marsset, skipper of…