Running Aground by Sail

Sailboats hit bottom, too. What can you do about it?

Yesterday we ran a very informative guest blog post from Vincent Pica (a District Captain with the USCG Auxiliary) about what to do when your boat runs aground. To paraphrase Vin, it's not a matter of if you'll run aground someday, but when.

Waiting for the tide to come in?

However, as our sailboat correspondent Sean McQuilken pointed out via a Facebook comment, Vin's tips were mostly powerboat-centric. Sailboats get beached, too. So, for those of you with sailboats, Sean offered these suggestions for when you run aground:

When Your Boat Runs Aground

What to do when you are the skipper and you run aground. And you WILL run aground.

A 50 ft cabin cruiser runs aground in Boston Harbor in August, 2010. U.S.C.G. photo.

By Vincent Pica
District Captain, Sector Long Island Sound/South, D1SR
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary

When I teach seamanship courses to private boaters on the South Shore of Long Island, New York, I note that, if you boat in our local waters and have never run aground, you're lying. Even USCG regulars have been known to "touch bottom" at times in these waters... So, the issue is not if you run aground but what you do afterwards.

Merry Christmas from the Daily Boater

Each week we post a nautical tune to help you get your weekend off to a great start, even if you can't get out on the boat.

 

Our Sea Song of the Week is always nautically-themed, but at this time of year it's usually holiday-themed as well. Our choice for Sea Song of the Week this Christmas weekend is for anyone who wishes they were somewhere a little bit warmer for the holidays. How would you like to spend Christmas on a tropical island?

Enjoy Jimmy Buffett's Christmas Island, and have a Merry Christmas everyone!



We also want to wish a happy birthday to Jimmy, who celebrates his birthday on Christmas day each year... not that he visits DailyBoater.com. That's okay, we still visit his... In fact, for official Jimmy Buffett videos, news and concert information, visit margaritaville.com and read all about it. Tell him the Daily Boater sent you.

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Best of the Best Sailboats

Sailing World announces Boat of the Year winners, but who really makes the best sailboats?

Photo courtesy of the RS Sailing Facebook page

With Sailing World's recent announcement of their Boat of the Year awards, we decided to take a look at their top sailboats along with those of Sail Magazine's selections for their recent Best Boats Awards to see which boats were good enough to make both lists.

Sailing World's Boat of the Year contest is in its 25th year, and all six winners of the 2011 awards will be published in their January/February 2011 issue. Of course, in today’s tradition of instant gratification, you don’t have to wait for the old fashioned print version to find out which boats Sailing World selected as the best. Sailing World has already announced all six winners online.

States Surpass Last Year’s Boating Deaths

Florida, South Carolina both experience surges in boating fatalities in 2010

Photo Courtesy of The U.S. Coast Guard

This year has been a tragic one for boaters in many states, especially South Carolina and Florida. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), the state has seen 76 boating fatalities so far in 2010, a significant increase over the 66 deaths related to boating in 2009.

Abandon Ship

When to ditch, what’s in a Ditch Bag, and other advice to save your life

By Vincent Pica

U.S. Coast Guard Photo by Lt. Frank Wolfe

District Captain, Sector Long Island Sound/South, D1SR
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary


Help is on the way. It will take time to get to you. What have you done to stay alive while the rescue team is heading for you? This column is about those steps.

Second Sprint of Round the World Race Begins

The second sprint of the Velux 5 Oceans got underway yesterday after a four day delay. The oldest single-handed round the world yacht race, the Velux 5 Oceans is considered the longest and toughest event for ANY individual in ANY sport. This second sprint is perhaps the most dangerous of the five as it entails a grueling 7,000 nautical mile sprint across the Southern Ocean through some of the worst weather conditions known to man.

Photo © Ainhoa Sanchez/w-w-i.com

Christmas at Sea

Our Sea Song of the Week is always nautically-themed, but at this time of year it's usually holiday-themed as well.

Today is no exception. We found a song Sting released with harpist Mary Macmaster last year, based on the Robert Louis Stevenson poem Christmas At Sea. Enjoy Sting's musical version of Christmas At Sea, and have a safe journey, wherever you're going this holiday.



If the above video gets taken down, here's another performance on YouTube.

And if you're a huge Sting fan, did you know you can buy a membership to his official website (sting.com)? Your $45 gets you access to exclusive contests and a chance to buy his concert tickets before they go on sale to the general public.

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When Someone Goes Overboard

5 things to do when someone falls off your boat, and how to keep from falling overboard in the first place

Photo © istockphoto/pete collins

By Vincent Pica
District Captain, Sector Long Island Sound/South, D1SR
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary

Recently, a friend of mine fell overboard – while boarding a boat at the dock! Sound crazy? Not really – when the “victim” isn’t wearing proper shoes… when he stepped on the gunwales and not into the boat… and when the wake of a passing boat (who shouldn’t have been making a wake!) rocked the vessel strongly… In other words, things just go wrong at all the wrong times … Are you ready to deal with it?

Sailing Report: Velux 5 Part Deux

Second Leg of Perilous Ocean Race Delayed

Photo: Christophe Bullens/w-w-i.com

By Sean McQuilken
Special to the Daily Boater

While most people are finishing up their holiday shopping and preparing to spend time with their family and friends, a group of elite athletes is waiting out a treacherous storm with 45 mph winds and 30 foot waves so they can begin to sail across one of the world’s most dangerous stretches of waters, each of them alone in their 60 foot ocean racing yachts.

Dock of the Bay

Today's Sea Song of the Week is in honor of Otis Redding

© Nautical Sites Media

Each week we post a nautical tune to help you get your weekend off to a great start, even if you can't get out on the boat. It's not always about boating, but usually the songs have some reference to the water - enough, hopefully, to get your mind wandering and thinking about boating.

Sadly, Otis Redding died on this day back in 1967 in a plane crash at the way-too-young age of 26. So, in honor of Otis, we picked his classic (Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay, which was released a month later, as our Sea Song of the Week.

Of the hundreds and hundreds of covers of this song - by artists as diverse as Michael Bolton, Pearl Jam, Cold Play, Bob Dylan, Sammy Hagar and Willie Nelson - we picked one of the newest and most compelling versions.

Boat Shows in the Desert and in the Snow

Fishing and Boat Shows Around the World This Weekend from Syracuse to Saudi Arabia

Saudi International Boat Show is going on now

There are boat shows, fishing shows, charter yacht shows and boat parades all over the world this weekend. Unfortunately for us, other than the many boat parades, most of the big shows are outside the US until after the New Year.

A couple of the events we mentioned last week are continuing through this Saturday, including shows in Paris and Antigua.

Five Tips To Fight Fog

You can't make the fog go away, but you can wait it out safely with these tips and a bit of common sense. Here's what to do when the fog rolls in, whether you are operating a small boat or a large yacht or ship - by guest contributor Vincent Pica

U.S. Coast Guard photo by PO2 Etta Smith

By Vincent Pica
District Captain, Sector Long Island Sound/South, D1SR
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary

For those of a more scientific-bent, fog that forms when water is warmer than the air is called “steam” fog (most often occurs in the Fall). Think of that pot of spaghetti water you are boiling. Fog that forms when the water is colder than the air is called “advection” fog (Spring). There is a third kind of fog called “radiation” fog. That is the fog that you see float in across the backyard or linger in a dip in the country road…

But fog is fog. You can’t see the land or the buoys or, worse, the bow of your own boat! What to do?

States With Weak Boating Safety Laws

Two US states don’t require children to wear life jackets, 13 have no mandatory safety education

At least he's wearing a PFD! ©istockphoto/Jason Lugo

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the US Government Agency that is perhaps best known for investigating airplane accidents, recently removed recreational boating from what it calls its “Most Wanted List of Transportation Safety Improvements.” The NTSB says that many states have “responded favorably” to federal recommendations to improve boating safety, but there are still many states pushing back. Such states have insufficient boating safety requirements, specifically in regards to children’s life jacket laws and mandatory boater education.

Boat Shows and Parades: Paris, Antigua, St. Pete and More

Several boat shows and parades in amazing locations over the next few days

Boats in Antigua ©iStockphoto.com/Robert Rushton

Are you looking for a reason to escape to St. Petersburg, Florida, or perhaps even to Paris or the West Indies this weekend? Well, if you like boat shows, you now have an excuse to start packing.

Of course, if you want to stay close to home, you can still whet your nautical appetite by going to a boat parade. There are plenty of those around the US this weekend and over the next couple of weeks as local maritime communities celebrate the holidays by parading lighted boats through their harbors and rivers.

Lanyard Law Coming Soon

Boaters May Soon Be Required to Wear Engine Emergency Kill Switch Lanyard

Do you use your kill switch?

Have you ever used that red cord that dangles from somewhere on your boat’s dash? As you probably already know, its purpose is to kill the engine if the operator of a boat is tossed overboard. Many people simply leave it dangling or coiled up, but have you ever seen anyone clip it on while operating a boat?

A new boat owner often sees the lanyard and wonders:

Is it illegal not to use it?

Does it work?

What is the big deal?

What’s coming next?

How to Win a Boat

$40,000 worth of boats and gear are up for grabs in various contests across the web

Did you ask Santa for a new boat for Christmas? Feeling lucky? This may be your year.

Image courtesy of RBFF / Contest details below

Right now, there are several contests going on that give you a chance to win either a free fishing boat like the one pictured or a ton of boating gear. Three contests in particular are offering a combined forty thousand dollars in cash and prizes. All of these contests are sponsored by large, reputable organizations. If you don’t win, you may get an email or two from the sponsors – which are all clearly identified – but you can always opt out of their lists once you receive the first unwanted message. None of these contests look like the type of deal where you’re going to get cold calls from timeshare salespeople.

Keep reading for the three big contests and find out how to enter them.

Six Things To Do When Your Boat Is Sinking

Guest contributor Vincent Pica shares the top reasons that boats sink and what to do if it happens to you

By Vincent Pica
District Captain, Sector Long Island Sound/South, D1SR
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary

U.S. Coast Guard Photo by Lt. Frank Wolfe

Why do boats sink at sea?
Before we get into the why’s and wherefore’s of sinkings, the single most reported reason is water coming aboard from the stern through the out-board engine cut-out. So, be extremely cautious about taking a boat so configured onto the high seas. A following sea can easily “poop” you from behind and overwhelm your capacity to off-load the water (see Skippering in Heavy Seas.)

As to the other reasons, roughly 1 in 5 sinkings at sea (18%) are due to direct leaks in the vessel, not caused by violent contact with the bottom or the sea itself. Areas of ingress, in order, are:

1. through-hull fittings that give way,
2. stuffing box leaks (the spot under the boat where the drive shaft exits the engine space of a cruiser and enters the water),
3. knot-meter plugs,
4. bait well discharge back-ups

Roughly 1 in 8 sinkings at sea (12%) are caused by raw (sea) water cooling and exhaust systems failures. These parts, subjected to high heat from engine exhaust gases and the corrosive effects of salt water, simply wear out – and you are now pumping water from the sea into the engine spaces...

Hitting something, often rocks, accounts for another 10%. This is called "holing the boat", i.e., you just put a hole in it...

Roughly 1 in 20 sinkings at sea (6%) are caused by excess force/excessive speed and the hull comes apart...

(Editor's note: The 45 ft sailboat in the above photo was taking on water this past Friday, November 26, about 90 miles off of the Outer Banks, North Carolina, in 12-foot seas. The two men onboard were rescued by the USCG and reportedly did not know the source of the flooding..)

What to do when the boat starts taking on water

Boat Parades Begin on Black Friday

Lighted holiday boat parades this weekend in Mystic, Newport, NY, Savannah

Image by Bernard Ente, sail-nyc.com

There’s nothing like a lighted boat parade to get you into the spirit of the holiday season with a nautical twist. And they are already starting to happen this weekend, so make plans to bring the family to a waterfront near you and watch the boats decked out in their Christmas splendor.

A sailboat on parade in Florida

The festivities begin on Black Friday in Rhode Island, where the Newport Yacht Club is open to the public for viewing the Newport Harbor Holiday Boat Parade.

Saturday, the big boat parades are happening in New York City, Savannah and in our home state of Connecticut in Mystic.

More information is available for the aforementioned events in our boat show calendar. Additional boat parades can be found in a calendar BoatU.S. put out this week.

If you know of any boat parades happening THIS WEEKEND, please add them as comments below and they will be approved and published right away.

And since it is Black Friday, make sure you check out our Holiday Gift Guide for Boaters, featuring unique, handpicked nautical gifts from trusted small businesses across the country.

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Holiday Gift Ideas for Boating Enthusiasts

Unique gifts for boaters fill our first annual holiday shopping guide

Browse all our gift ideas: Read on...

With Black Friday and Cyber Monday upon us, we decided to put together a collection of nautical gifts that are sure to please any boating or fishing enthusiast. If you have a co-worker, neighbor, spouse or any friend or family member with a passion for the boating lifestyle, you will be sure to find the perfect gift from among our selections. Our guide includes unique nautical glassware, shark-fishing trips, life-saving boating gadgets, products personalized with a boat name or a local nautical chart, and more.

Let's Get Personal
No respectable boating gift guide is complete without a selection from BoatNameGear. If you know the boat's name of the person you're shopping for, then BoatNameGear can make your life a lot easier this holiday. With fast shipping, no minimum order size requirement and no set-up fees, BoatNameGear is our choice for boat name gifts.

Embroidered wear from BoatNameGear.com

View more from BoatNameGear and all our Gift Guide selections in our first Daily Boater Holiday Gift Guide.

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Gifts for Boaters - Our Holiday Gift Guide

Great gift ideas for the boating enthusiasts on your holiday shopping list

Browse all our gift ideas like these nautical pilsner glasses.

We've sought out some nautical gift ideas that are sure to please any boating enthusiast. If you have a co-worker, neighbor, spouse or any friend or family member with a passion for the boating lifestyle, you will be sure to find the perfect gift from among our selections. Our guide includes unique nautical drinkware, fishing trips, life-saving boating gadgets, products personalized with a boat name or a local nautical chart, and more.

Boaters Be Warned

Recent boating news illustrates boating hazards are everywhere; boaters should expect the unexpected

Photo: Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission/NOAA

In scanning the boating news from local newspapers (i.e. news websites) from around the country over the past few days, we found that boaters basically have to be vigilant of almost everything! Beyond the boating safety basics you normally have to worry about – wearing a life jacket, filing a float plan, checking the weather, etc. – there are also special hazards, unique to your boating community, that you must be aware of before you boat. We’re talking about large sea creatures, submerged pilings, abrupt changes in water levels, and pirates, to name a few.

How to Avoid Drowning in Cold Water

Our guest contributor from the USCG Auxiliary spells out the new facts about Hypothermia

By Vincent Pica
District Captain, Sector Long Island Sound/South, D1SR
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary

A cool water cruise could turn deadly. ©iStockphoto.com/TT

Traditions Die Hard at Sea
It isn’t easy convincing mariners that a life-time of tradition and practice is wrong. And not everything we know and practice on hypothermia IS wrong – but some has been. So, here are the facts:

The first phase of cold water immersion is called the cold shock response. Data now shows that roughly 20% die in the first two minutes. They take on water in that first uncontrolled gasp, panic and drown, plain and simple. Surviving this stage requires you to stay calm and get your breathing under control. If you don’t, your life is measured in minutes and you won’t need your other hand to count them.

Best Sailboats Announced

Sail Magazine’s 2011 Awards for the Best Boats

Presto 30, Cruising Monohull Under 50ft. Source: SAIL

SAIL Magazine has announced the Best Boats Awards for 2011 in the December issue of their publication. According to their press release about the awards, the magazine's judges pored over the Best Boats nominees on the docks at the recent Newport and Annapolis boat shows, and tested many of the finalists before choosing the winners. Wouldn’t that be a great job!

It's The Beatles

Each week we pick a song to celebrate the sea, and help you kick-start your weekend or think about boating if you can't get out on the water.

  With this week's announcement about The Beatles finally being available on iTunes, did you have any doubt that we would pick a tune from the Fab Four as our Sea Song of the Week?

Even after more than four decades, there is still controversy about what this song is really about, but according to Wikipedia, the song was inspired by a nursery school drawing of a girl on a boat. Regardless of what the young Beatles were thinking about when they wrote this classic, we'd like to remind you that the opening line of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds is "Picture yourself in a boat on a river".

Boat Shows Light

This weekend there are only two boat shows for consumers, and both events are in Florida

We're calling this the light edition of our weekly boat show round-up. The boat show season has nearly come to a grinding halt and remains virtually nonexistent until January.

Photo © Nautical Sites Media

That being said, there are a couple of small, free boat shows this weekend, which both happen to be in Florida.

We also have some other news of nautical events over the next several weeks, as well as a $10,000 contest that you can enter online - the winner will be announced at the Miami Boat Show in February.

Another Promising iPhone App Released

New iPhone App Makes Marinas Easy to Find and Puts Concierge Services in the Palm of Your Hand

With the increasing popularity of the iPhone, BlackBerry, Android and iPad with boaters, the Daily Boater has been trying to keep you up to date on all the boating apps that have been coming out recently.

Screenshot from itunes.apple.com

In fact, it seems as if there has been a whirlwind of new apps for boaters released over the past six months. Our latest report came just last month covering two new niche boating apps for the iPhone, and today there is yet another announcement.

Marinalife sent us a press release today stating that it recently got into the iPhone app market with a tool to give you instant access to up-to-date listings for marinas and related services. The new Marinalife iPhone App connects users to the company’s online reservation service and provides them with a handheld window into Marinalife’s database of marina and marine travel related information, as well as NOAA charts and Google satellite maps

The advertising-supported app, built by the company’s partner EarthNC, is available to download for free at: marinalife.com/mobileapp

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The Sailing Report

American wins first leg of major ocean race

We checked in with our sailing expert Sean McQuilken to see what is going on in the world of wind. Turns out there is plenty to report.

Photo: Aingoa Sanchez/W-W-I.com

Velux 5 Oceans
In a segment of the sport of sailing traditionally dominated by the French, an American is now leading a major solo ocean yacht race. After 27+ days at sea Brad Van Liew of Charleston, SC has taken a convincing leg 1 win in the Velux 5 Oceans. He sailed his Open 60 alone over 7500 nautical miles at speeds approaching 30 knots while sleeping only 4 hours a day in short catnaps no longer than 30 minutes and eating freeze dried food.

Six Tips to Surviving a Storm at Sea

Our guest contributor from the USCG Auxiliary shares his experience to help you navigate through your next storm

By Vincent Pica
District Captain, Sector Long Island Sound/South, D1SR
United States Coast Guard Auxiliary

Facing 25 ft waves: USCG photo by Christopher Enoksen

The Nor’easter season is fully upon us so let’s review some ideas on skippering in heavy weather.

1. Put Your Life Jackets On – Right away, the skipper has to direct everyone to don their life jackets. On my vessel, I have a heavy weather/type-1 life jacket on the back of my helm seat. Across the back, where the crew can read it, it says, “If you see the captain put this on, try to find one for yourself.”

2. Take Waves at an Angle – Those waves that you are trying to muscle through pack tremendous power within them. So slow down and tack! Your 20 knots and 5 knots of wave speed multiply the force of the pounding. Slow down and divide the forces.

Down by the Sea Song

Sea Song of the Week: Under the Boardwalk

While this song is admittedly not about boating, any tune with a reference to the sea is open for consideration when it comes to choosing our Sea Song of the Week. When the song remains a classic sing-along more than 45 years after its release, with cover versions by dozens of artists, it makes it an even easier choice.

Among all those covers, we found this version to be one of the funner (is that a word?) ones. Our Sea Song of the Week is Under the Boardwalk , performed here by Bruce Willis accompanied by the Temptations. Continue to view the video and read more about Bruce.

Two Florida Boat Shows This Weekend

Boat shows this weekend in Barcelona, Stockholm and Florida all look like a lot of fun

Ft. Myers Boat Show

TWO big boating events in Florida offer something for everyone this weekend. First, the 38th Annual Ft. Myers Boat Show should be easy to find if you're in town.

Photo courtesy Ireland Yacht Sales /Regulator Marine

The show, which runs today through Sunday, is spread out through the Harborside Convention Center, The Fort Myers Yacht Basin and along Edwards Drive in downtown Fort Myers. This is a traditional boat show offering seminars on fishing, safe boating and a preview of marine electronics for 2011. Of course, there will also be plenty of boats of all types on display, as well as lots of booths offering fishing and boating accessories. Kudos (do people really still say that?) to the folks at Ireland Yacht Sales and Regulator Marine for getting pictures of the show up on their Facebook page before the gates even opened this morning.

The Fort Myers show looks fantastic, but if you'd rather see boats in action instead of tied up to the docks, keep reading.

Do You Have a Website for Your Boat Yet?

New service makes it easy to get a website for your boat and blog about your adventures

There is a new service that offers do-it-yourself websites and blogs for boaters that want to share their adventures at sea. The web-based tools are intuitive if you’ve ever used Word or sent an email (of course you have!), and they are designed for all types of boaters - from weekend anglers to year-round cruisers.

For Boaters, By a Boater
Websitesforboaters.com was founded by Ken Williams, who not only runs the company, but is also its best-known customer! Ken and his wife Roberta publish one of the most popular boating blogs on the web using their own web service - kensblog.com chronicles the couple’s trans-ocean adventures aboard San Souci, their 68 foot Nordhavn trawler.

Best Time to Buy a Boat

Whether you are looking for new or used, it’s no secret that fall is typically the best time to buy a boat if you want a bargain.

Used Boats
The current owner of your next used boat probably wanted to get one more season out of her, and is now under pressure to sell before the holidays or before incurring winter storage fees. You’ll likely find a little more selection of used boats for sale earlier in the fall, but as the days get colder there are two types of sellers – those that decide to take their boat off the market until the spring, and those that are really going to be flexible if you make them an offer. There are thousands of boats for sale listed on FirstBoat.com through their affiliation with UsedBoats.com, and thousands more boats available for auction through FirstBoat’s EBay affiliation. Whether you are more of a buyer or a bidder, look around and make an offer… you never know what you might be able to get this time of year from a distressed seller.

What a Weekend - Boat Fires, Capsizes and Rescues

Rescue off Point Pleasant, NJ. U.S. Coast Guard photo

Boaters Keep Authorities Busy Across the Country

Despite the cold weather throughout much of the US (we got our first snowfall here in CT this a.m.), there were still enough boating incidents over the weekend to share some valuable boat safety lessons. Stories of boat fires and small boat capsizes popped up in Oregon, New Jersey, Ohio, and Florida. Luckily, there were few injuries reported due to heroic efforts by local police, fire and Coast Guard personnel, and in some cases, a lot of luck.

Sea Song of the Week: Troubled Water

Simon & Garfunkel pose for an album cover

The Sea Song of the Week for November 5, 2010

Each Friday we announce our choice for Sea Song of the Week. We always try to pick a song, whether it's new or a classic, that has some reference to water or boating, or at least one that sounds good when you're on a boat. Art Garfunkel turns 69 today, so choosing our Sea Song of the Week today was simple. Happy birthday, Art... We're sailing right behind!

International Boat Show Season is On

Photo HMC / Michael Zapf

International Boating Events Show Signs of Recovery

As we were celebrating the biggest boats at the biggest boat show in the world here in Fort Lauderdale, the rest of the world has been enjoying its own share of shows.

And the shows continue through next week. Barcelona, Dubai, Queensland, and Hamburg are all hosting major boat shows this weekend, with the Barcelona show already in progress. In addition to showcasing new models of boats and the latest marine gear, many of these events are displaying optimism for a positive turn in the industry.

Burning Boats in Biscayne Bay

Another day, another boat fire in Biscayne Bay caught on video

After seeing news of a 45-foot motor yacht catching fire in Biscayne Bay last Friday on a video clip from 7 News, we decided to search the interwebs for more stories about this particular Halloween-weekend yacht fire.

It turns out we couldn’t find any other sources that included video of the fire on the Gypsy Rose last Friday, but we were surprised to find several videos of other boats burning in Biscayne Bay over the past few years. Someone should research whether boats are more likely to catch on fire in this South Florida destination, or if that 35 by 8 mile body of warm water is just a highly popular boating area closely observed by people with video cameras.

Hero Saves Sailors

Off-duty cop jumps into action, saves two souls from sinking Sunfish

This news story is only worth sharing because there are valuable boating safety lessons in the end, and to praise Monroe County Sheriff's Deputy Frank Trinca, Jr., for saving the lives of two men. Sure, the two men who were rescued over the weekend could have been eligible for a Darwin award, but in the end they learned some valuable lessons.

Photo: Yankee Boating

It’s easy to think these two grown men should have been okay going for a short sail. One of them was an avid swimmer, they had life jackets with them in the boat – right at their feet, and Sunfish boats are easy to handle. (Editor’s note: I speak from experience, having spent much of my childhood on a Sunfish in Long Island Sound.)

Boating Celebrates Green Initiatives... and Bikinis

Sea-Doo Challenger 210 with Eco Mode

Eco Awards Presented by Boating Magazine at FLIBS

Over the weekend at the Ft. Lauderdale International Boat Show (FLIBS), Bonnier Corporation’s Boating magazine publication presented their first ever Eco Awards to honor the people and products that have made a positive impact on the marine environment. The ten recipients were highlighted in the October issue of Boating magazine, and introduced at FLIBS.

We thought the Eco Awards were kind of cool, but perhaps they were overshadowed by all the super-mega-yachts on display, or by Boating magazine’s other “first ever” announcement – their first annual swimsuit layout which was the focus of their November issue.

Catch all the Sea Songs

Fan Photo © Brad Paisley

Today's pick for Sea Song of the Week is from Brad Paisley, who celebrated his 38th birthday yesterday. (Happy Birthday Brad!)

Since we already chose his hits Water and I'm Gonna Miss Her (The Fishin' Song) earlier this year, we had to dig a little deeper into Brad's discography to find this track - which is one of Brad's favorites to play on the road according to this interview.

Fort Lauderdale is the place to be this weekend

The boating world invades Fort Lauderdale today through Monday for one of the biggest boat shows in the world

Biggest boat ever built in the US, by Derecktor in CT

Today is the first day of the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show... so if you want to go to a boat show this weekend, you're going to have to head to south Florida. There is plenty happening at this year's show, with the boating industry hoping for a recovery sometime in the near future. This year's event boasts approximately 1,000 vessels on display, from personal watercraft to super yachts over 280 feet - including at least 120 vessels over 100 feet long.

Keep reading for free ticket and other discount offers and tips for navigating the show.

Winterizing – an Inside Job

Some things are better left to experts - perhaps prepping a boat engine for the winter is one of them

This time of year, virtually every boating website offers up tips and checklists for winterizing your boat. We even posted an article ourselves last week, with plenty of advice for readying your boat for its hibernation season.

©iStockphoto.com/Steven Miric

But let’s face it. There is a group of us boat owners that leave the engines to professional marine mechanics (or perhaps even to a handy hubby if we’ve got one.) We don’t like to get our hands dirty and we don’t want to mess anything up. What we worry about is making sure the interior of the boat is prepped properly so that it doesn’t smell like spoiled milk when returning to launch in the spring, and that the boat is completely cleaned of important valuables so that nobody has to venture to the boat in four feet of snow to fetch a toddler’s favorite toy.

If this sounds like you (and for the record, it sounds like this Daily Boater editor), then the winterizing tips from the Boater Life blog were written just for you.

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Sharing a Boat with Friends

New Programs Available to Help Manage Shared Boat Ownership

© iStockphoto.com / mbbirdy

Are you intrigued by the idea of sharing the costs of owning a boat with a few friends or family members without paying fees to a big time-share-like company, and without joining a club?

Before you do, you should be aware that sharing a boat with friends is not always smooth sailing. Disputes over scheduling, maintenance, and most of all – money – can ruin a friendship. Disasters can happen. Companies such as Sailtime and Windpath (both of which we have reviewed here previously) exist because there are these risks involved with shared boat ownership, even though the cost savings could be tremendous.

Less is More with Latest iPhone Boating Apps

New iPhone Apps Make Boating Safer, Boat Shows More Fun

The latest iPhone apps that we have come across are very narrow in their functionality compared to some of the more comprehensive apps that we reviewed in previous posts such as Boating Suite and BoatLoad. But that laser-like focus on just one function is exactly what makes the more recent apps stand out – and easy to remember what to use them for.

Dropkick this Sea Song

Our Sea Song of the Week Comes from Boston Once Again, but this time with a little more bite

Yes, we're still in the "spirit" of Boston (ha ha)

Okay, okay, Boston has been on our mind since we attended the Boston Fall Boat Show a couple of weeks ago. In fact, hey, here are some pics from the show, courtesy of BoatNameGear.com.

But when we mentioned in a post last week that we thought the city of Boston had just TWO theme songs, several readers gently reminded us about a song that you have definitely heard if you've watched any Boston sporting event over the past few years, or if you've seen the movie The Departed. In fact, Conan O'Brien calls this band the heart and soul of the Boston music scene.

Quiet before the Storm

It's a quiet weekend for boat shows as the marine industry prepares for Fort Lauderdale.

Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show

With boat exhibitors just coming off the huge back-to-back United States Sail and Powerboat Shows in Annapolis, and the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show® commencing next Thursday, it's no surprise there are not any boat shows happening in the US this weekend. The industry need a breather.

Even outside the US there is only one boat show this weekend that we're aware of - and it's in Istanbul. So, if you're in Turkey between now and Sunday, you should check out this show.

You can find links to the official websites, maps, and more for these and other upcoming nautical events on our calendar of boat shows.

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Winterizing Time

But there still may be time for one last fall foliage run!

©iStockphoto.com/Robert Rushton

The lack of rain and the extended warm weather many of us enjoyed this past year, at least here in the northeast, really enabled us to get the most out of our boats. There may even be time for one more fall foliage boating trip before we have to haul her out. Was your summer and fall boating season as good as ours in your part of the world? Well, that time is coming to an end except in the southernmost regions of the US. Now that the leaves have turned and both the real summer and the Indian summer are finally over, it's time to face the music and winterize your boat...

The Ultimate Solo Challenge

Seven-Month Round-the-World Solo Sailing Race Begins with Competitors from the US, the UK, Poland, Canada and Belgium

Photo: onEdition 2010©

This past weekend, many of us in the US were hauling our boats out of the water, winterizing them, and getting used to the fact that boating is not an option until spring of 2011. Meanwhile, across the pond on this cool October weekend, five skippers from around the world– each on their own 60-ft sailboat - set off on an ocean race that will keep them on the water until May of 2011... if they're lucky.