Broad Reachings

This column first appeared in the May 2019 edition of Freshwater News. And proves that opposites can attract… It’s Oregon Offshore Month, that annual Pacific Northwest yachting ritual that celebrates, in no particular order, hypothermia, sleep deprivation, endless lee shores, and upon reaching that most beautiful of finishes in Victoria, B.C., scores of sailors swearing that they’ll, “NEVER DO IT AGAIN.”  That is of course until the second beer at Garrick’s Head or the Sticky Wicket dulls short term memory…

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This article first appeared in the September 2018 issue of Freshwater News.  Right about the time that the West Coast was basically burning just about everywhere.  And we were just trying to identify the windward mark through the smoke… (Cough, cough. Wheeze.) If you’ve been sailing this summer just about anywhere in the Pacific Northwest, be it racing or cruising, then you’re likely familiar with the braille-like conditions on the water since wildfires broke out…well…just about everywhere on the West…

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This article first appeared in the October 2018 issue of Freshwater News.  There are a lot of reasons to love sailing.  But one of the most sublime is enjoying a quiet, breezeless morning in a special anchorage… Recently, my ever-patient wife and I took an extended weekend trip into the San Juan Islands, more specifically Friday Harbor.  I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that Friday Harbor, and these islands in general, could be my favorite spot on Earth. …

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This article first appeared in the April 2018 edition of Freshwater News.  Marine swap meets are a shining example of boating capitalism.  To say nothing of the Law of Conservation of Energy, which states that energy never disappears, it just changes forms.  Or something like that… As I put ink to paper here (or whatever the laptop computer equivalent is) it’s just turned spring in the Pacific Northwest.  It’s still raining, but the rain is…well…warmer.  Fellow sailors are migrating back…

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This article first appeared in the November 2017 edition of Freshwater News.  And it proves, unequivocally, that sailors aren’t totally crazy.  But we are sometimes pretty soggy… And so the rainy sailing season starts. It was inevitable.  Unless I could convince my ever-patient wife to sell everything and move our boat and all earthly possessions down to… I don’t know…Cabo San Lucas, we were going to have to come to terms with the fact that one of the longest stretches…

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Author’s Note: This article originally appeared in the July 2014 edition of Freshwater News.  For what it’s worth, I’ve sailed on the ocean, and made any number of runs that my non-sailing friends think sound impressive.  Then I tell them the story of Jeff Duvall and Peter Guilfoyle sailing across the Pacific in a 24-foot, 2,000 pound Moore 24.  It puts to shame anything I’ve ever done.  Here’s their story.   There’s a 24 foot sailboat moored a few slips…

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This article first appeared in the March 2016 edition of Freshwater News.  Want to race but don’t want to stress?  Want to avoid the protest room?  Want to justify beers DURING a ra…nevermind.  Just check out a local beer can race… A few years ago, my ever-patient wife and I took some friends out for a Friday night beer can race on the Columbia River.  It was a beautiful evening, with unusually light winds, and a beer can fleet consisting…

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(Author’s Note: This column first appeared in the September 2016 edition of Freshwater News.  Whether you’re one of those who have or those who will, this accounting of your author’s journey into the delightful world of offshore puking will, hopefully, not give you any ideas of your own.  Good luck, and keep it down… We’ve all heard the old adage about sailors and seasickness: “There are those who have, and those who will.”  Or something along those lines.  As one…

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(Author’s Note: This column first appeared in the September 2016 edition of Freshwater News.  If you’ve ever wondered what makes those guys on the pointy end tick, well, this may not answer the question.  But hopefully it will bring a little entertainment to your day.  Because that’s what those crazies up there do for me.  Bowmen (and women) of the sailing world, I salute you! I’ll be the first to admit that I work the foredeck when I’m required to,…

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Published November 2014 in Freshwater News Author’s Note: Do you dream of racing around the world, but figure you’ll never make a Volvo crew?  Then maybe the Clipper Round The World Yacht Race is for you.  It gave me the opportunity to dream, even if my bank account didn’t.  Enjoy! Many of my friends, to say nothing of my ever-patient wife, have often heard me pine that, were I 20 years younger and about 100 times the sailor I am,…

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