The TP52 Bronenosec zooms downwind at Key West Race Week.Sharon Green photo For 30 years, sailors have escaped the clutches of Old Man Winter by heading south, to the southernmost point in the U.

Boy, things in the world of yacht design are moving fast, literally and figuratively. Beneteau, working with the design team of Van Peteghem Lauriot Prevost, is producing what they call the first foiling production monohull.

 The new Lagoon 42 catamaran, also from the Van Peteghem Lauriot Prevost design team, makes a huge contrast to the two sportboats. This design is purely designed for comfort. 

Stupid sport” is repeated numerous times throughout the iceboating season, including in my house as the ice reports come in. There is a lot of sitting around, sharpening runners, discussing the weather and waiting for the call to come in. From the DN, the most popular iceboat, with worldwide cult status, to the Nite, a slightly larger boat that can accommodate two cozy people, to the Skeeters and stern-steerers that whiz by at dizzying speeds, iceboating is a unique sport. 

I think I’ll just quote from the Reichel-Pugh press release here: “A high-performance design for inshore and offshore racing. The briefing to the Reichel-Pugh team was to develop a flat-out racer that delivers the thrill of a high-performance design as well as the ability to capture podium positions.” 

 Just because I have spent most of my life sailing in warm climates doesn’t preclude me from having huge amounts of fitting out experience. Growing up racing dinghies in Southern California and now sailing toward retirement in Florida only gives me a longer sailing season than much of the country. It doesn’t mean never having to use the words “fitting out.”

 A viral video of solo sailors in the Southern Ocean shot by a French warship and helicopter has landed on my Facebook page a hundred times. Sailor friends and friends who know I sail are sharing it. Parents and grandparents have texted dire warnings: “You’re not going to try this are you?” No, mom, I promise I won’t.

 I’d like to set up a meeting between James Harrison and Rich Wilson. Rich could give James some tips about competing in sports.Harrison is a star linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers whose winning-is-everything attitude earned him $100,000 in fines for illegal hits in a single season. Wilson is a scholarly 66-year-old sailor.

 The plan was to sail from Rhode Island’s picturesque Narragansett Bay to Cape Cod’s idyllic islands, but Mother Nature had a different itinerary in mind.

 Here is a new boat from Elan, the first in the Gran Turismo series. The designer is Rob Humphreys, with some help from the Elan factory design team. In most cases you can read this as Humphreys did the hull, appendage and rig design, while the factory did the deck and interior. I quite like the look of the boat. The proportions are pleasant.Schedule

I like the term “pocket cruiser” but I have seen it applied to boats as long as 30 feet LOA. The new Sage 15, designed by Jerry Montgomery, would hardly belong in a group of 30-footers, so Sage is calling its new model a “micro cruiser.” I think that works. Schedule

This is the new Hudson Marine cat built in Xiamen, China. Xiamen is where my Flying Tiger boats were built. It is quite the yacht building center now. This new cat is aimed at high performance with an all carbon fiber build, deep daggerboards and a huge rig. Schedule

Every sailor has heard the adage that the two happiest days in a boat owner’s life are the day you buy your boat and the day you sell it. Ensuring that the buying part of that equation rings true starts with buying the right boat for your sailing style at the right price. We’re breaking down the process, whether you’re buying new or used, big or small, cruiser, racer or daysailer.Schedule

 I am planning to replace the freshwater hoses on my boat this spring. The lines are currently a combination of hose and soft copper tubing. The tubing I can see is pretty black, and I have to assume this is impacting my water quality. I’d like to replace it all, but I am not sure what to use.Schedule

 Most of the time, sailing is probably no more risky than other outdoor pursuits, but when something goes wrong the situation can get very serious very quickly. Any sailor can think of several onboard worst-case scenarios that can be enough to scare you straight to your couch. The secret to dealing with this is to have an idea of what to do when the worst happens but not allow that knowledge to take away from enjoying sailing.Schedule

The sales brochure from 1989 pretty much sums up the Hunter 43 Legend, noting it was designed to exceed the requirements of sailors searching for performance without sacrificing comfort.Schedule

Although short in stature, sailing photographer Bob Grieser had a huge presence, one that he was known to announce with his trademark bark, a literal “Woof, Woof!” that could be heard from down the dock or across anchorages. Whether it was the press offices of the America’s Cup or the Los Angeles Times, a Caribbean race’s party tent or local sailors’ watering hole, The Big Dog, as Grieser was known, would bring life to any room. ScheduleScheduleSchedule

 I have a Yanmar 4JH2DTE in my boat and I don’t seem to be getting the power I am used to above 2,400 rpm. I checked the fuel filters and they seem OK. What else should I check?Schedule