Cruising Rule No. 1- Always have plan B, C, D...
by Nancy Knudsen, Editor on 24 Nov 2011

Riot crew,everything broke but the spirit of the crew - photo by Tamell Simons SW
I couldn't help being amused that just three (at time of writing) of the six boats will finish the very first leg of the Volvo Ocean Race. One can't even blame fatigue – of boat or men. As for Puma, having lost her mast in the Atlantic, the skipper mused that they had
neither enough food nor water to limp to their next port. Never mind, there's always the back-up plan - a ship would arrive with diesel supplies, then another to crane them aboard and take them to Cape Town. You'll have to go to a Sail-World Racing site if you want to read the rest.
Somehow I enjoyed more the story of the
cruising yacht Riot, which had everything break but the spirit of her crew and she still finished the voyage. Riot was one of the NARC Rally boats caught in the late Tropical Storm Sean on their way from Rhode Island to Bermuda, but it could have been anywhere. (Next time they'll probably make sure their gear is in better order)
Great smorgasbord of news from our own coastlines and the world's oceans to keep you right up to date with what's going on in the world of the cruising sailor: - Mooloolaba's
Sunshine Coast Marine Festival went off with a bang...great break-through for sailors heading for Thailand or round the world to know it's getting easier to cruise the wonderful cruising grounds through
Indonesia...in Namibia
Australian Paul Larsen's Sailrocket II is trying some new technology in order to reach the
magic 60knot speed barrier for a sailing craft...alarming news about the
Arctic Ocean...some hints about
avoiding big ships at sea... and two great products featured, one an Australian low tech product, from the
sheep's back. The other is a super way to get your
smartphone GPS enabled.
Many more articles too, so browse down the headlines to find your interest.
Sweet sailing
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