Can rigging your jackstays in a different way really save lives? PBO reader Willem Bijl reckons it can, so David Harding put his ideas to the test
Seamanship
14 tips for single handed anchoring
Ben Meakins tries out some methods for dropping and recovering the anchor for singlehanded sailors in crowded anchorages
‘By mid-morning the pontoon linking us ashore was listing… and sinking’
Following a two-year pause from cruising habits in our Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 349, Scoundrel, we were ready to set sail again. The hiatus was partly due to me being overseas…
Motor sailing: how to add power to your sails
Whether you’re supplementing the engine with the sails or vice versa, using them together can make a lot of sense – as David Harding explains
Safe sailing: practical know-how from the racers
Cruising sailors wanting to make sure their boat passes muster on the safety front could pick up a few tips from racing yachtsmen, says Rupert Holmes
Essential shorthanded sailing skills
Many sailors sail shorthanded much of the time, and it can prove a challenge. Rupert Holmes has some tips and techniques to help inspire confidence
Sailing in storms and squalls
One crew's brisk breeze and exciting sail can be another's gale, even if sailing similar boats. So what makes the difference? Rupert Holmes outlines techniques that experienced skippers use to…
Rig tuning: a practical guide for sailors
Correct rig tension will maximise the efficiency of your boat’s sails as well as reduce stresses on the mast. David Pugh demonstrates simple rig tuning
5 tips for sailing in strong winds
Rupert Holmes has sailed more than 85,000 miles, including the Southern Ocean. He shares his tips for sailing in strong winds
Coping with a dismasting & rig checks
Faced with a sudden dismasting in 40-knot gusts, Rupert Holmes explains how he and his crew saved his boat, and offers advice for simple safety checks you can make to…
Lessons learned from a disastrous start to the sailing season
Fairey Atalanta A142 Sugar Plum, being a mature lady, needs a lot of maintenance. Living in the north of Scotland, she’s stored over winter in a building for her protection…
Margaret and Frank Dye: open boat pioneers
Roger Barnes reflects on the legacy of small-boat sailors Margaret and Frank Dye
“We appeared to be travelling sideways, the adrenaline had now peaked”
Crossing dangerous coastal bars asleep and sideways is certainly not a habit of mine, but strange things can happen on the water, and like many incidents they often happen slowly…
Nautical know-how: The Bernoulli principle
Andrew Morton describes the Bernoulli principle and its effect on manoeuvring in tight spaces in a motorboat
Blind navigation: how to find your way in restricted visibility
Is blind navigation a foggy notion for Yachtmasters, or a useful seamanship skill? PBO investigates
Antila 33.3 review: The ideal lakeland explorer
Lake sailing in Poland is very different to coastal sailing. In many ways it’s more relaxing. There are no tides to contend with and because you can find a marina…
“Just as I was thinking about cutting the engine, the decision was made for me”
Sailing, with the wind, sea and tides, is a sport ever ready to reward complacency with challenge. From an estuary dinghy sailor to an ocean voyager, there are endless opportunities…
Squatter onboard: ‘Rather than heading out on a perfect sunny day we set about sanitising the boat’
Rory Church’s much anticipated visit to his beloved boat doesn’t go quite as planned when he discovers evidence of a squatter onboard
Jimmy Cornell: “How I’ve coped with almost every type of emergency at sea”
Perhaps it is inevitable in my long and eventful sailing life that I’ve faced a number of emergency situations. In every case I was able to deal with them successfully.…
‘Towing the Drascombe, a racing fleet appeared and like a swarm of locusts gathered around us’
Following a white knuckle marina rescue of three boats during Storm Eunice, Gilbert Park experiences two fairer weather towing adventures