Rallies

Hurry Up and Wait: Behind the Scenes of the Caribbean 1500

by Charles J. Doane, Posted February 1, 2012

For many, the denouement of the 2011 Caribbean 1500 rally took place in a crowded conference room in Hampton, Virginia, on Wednesday, November 9, two days after the rally’s original start date. The atmosphere in the room, as skippers gathered for what was expected to be the final weather briefing, was taut with expectation.

Tragedy in the North American Rally to the Caribbean

by Charles J. Doane, Posted February 1, 2012

While the Caribbean 1500 fleet was cooling its jets in Hampton waiting for Sean to expire, another seasonal bluewater cruising event, the North American Rally to the Caribbean (NARC), was running into some serious trouble farther north.

Phaedo after the ARC: Shifting into Cruising Mode

by Charles J. Doane, Posted January 10, 2012

The ARC, which starts each November in the Canary Islands, is very much a European event and the Americans who run it are often a bit out of the ordinary. Without doubt, the least ordinary American boat in this last edition of the rally was the Gunboat 66 Phaedo.

Heavy Weather Sailing: Remembering Hurricane Mitch

by Charles J. Doane, Posted November 28, 2011

AFTER TWO BOATS HAD BEEN ABANDONED, after people had been hospitalized, after we finally (and gratefully) reached the safety of Virgin Gorda, Steve Black, who had organized the rally, held a "debriefing" session."This is not something anyone would go through willingly," he explained to the crowd. "It's important that sailors have short memories."

The Rallying Kind

by Charles J. Doane, Posted October 31, 2011

I’ve been on both sides of the fence when it comes to cruising rallies. My very first transatlantic experiences, way back in 1992, were in two cruising rallies organized by Jimmy Cornell, the man who can rightfully lay claim to having invented the concept when he launched the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC), from the Canaries to the West Indies, in 1986.

Coming Full Circle

by Chris Museler, Posted September 1, 2011

It was a crisp Caribbean morning—bright sun with the trades rolling in early. Nothing seemed too special, aside from the spectacular views of Grenada’s mountains, until I heard a crackling announcement over the VHF: “Jeannius has just crossed her track and has circumnavigated the globe.”

A Passage to Africa

by Duncan Gould, Posted May 9, 2011

“When you come to a fork in the road, take it.”Baseball legend Yogi Berra gets credit for that advice, but it sort of encapsulated our motivation for the coming cruise.Our 39-foot steel cutter, Moose, was sailing out through the pass at Mayotte, a French island between Mozambique and Madagascar, bound for Ilha de Moambique, just off the African mainland. After a

Cruising for a Cause

by Meredith Laitos, Posted February 27, 2009

One of the great things about sailing is that no two sailors have to set out for the same purpose. Some sail for the love of speed. Some sail for the love of gadgetry. Some, to be with friends and family. To see new sights. For intensity. For tranquility. For Columbus it was exploration. For Desjoyeaux it is competition. But for the crew of Khulula and Can Drac, it’s about