Adventure sailing, new gizmos, sailors needed to track climate change

by Nancy Knudsen, Editor on 24 May 2013

TRIMARAN IDEC / FRANCIS JOYON - STANDBY IN NEW YORK CITY PHOTO: VINCENT CURUTCHET / DARK FRAME / DPPI / IDEC V. Curutchet / DPPI / IDEC http://www.trimaran-idec.com/

The adventure sailors are making news again. French sailor Francis Joyon, probably the world's fastest and best known solo speed sailor, is making news in New York even before he begins his latest challenge, to beat the Trans-Atlantic record in his giant trimaran, IDEC. Then there's British solo sailor Jeanne Socrates, who after more than 200 continuous days at sea has passed her last big milestone on her quest to be the oldest female to circumnavigate solo, non-stop and unassisted. Just a few thousand miles to go in warm waters riddled with obstacles and the record will be hers!

It's hard for the modern non-tech-savvy sailor to keep up with all the new aids available. But at Sail-World Cruising we're trying! This week there is a really interesting invention, the yacht track library. This shows you the previous tracks of other yachts, so that, if the chart is 'wrong', the yacht track across the middle of an island or a reef will alert you to the issue – brilliant, see example below.

PIC 2 © SW

Featured this week is Digital Media Locker with Blue Tooth. It is a great way to keep your iPhone or iPad secure while you use the myriad Apps available for sailing.

If you are concerned, like many sailors, about the effects of overpopulation and climate change on our oceans, now there is a vital way you can help, by tracking the water purity in your region. The call is out to all leisure sailors – read the details and volunteer, please!

Many other interesting articles as well, a featured book for those near Vancouver, the really delightful 'Memoirs of a Cruising Dog', a great guide to how to install your own inverter, a wonderful sailing tale about a voyage to one of the most remote islands in the world, Maug in the Marianas, opportunities to sail with a tall ship for east coast Canadians and news of the 10th Tahiti Pearl Regatta.

Maug as seen from a satellite © SW

It's warming up for those in northerly climates, so in the US the Coast Guard is offering eight vital safety tips to check before starting spring sailing.

Read on, enjoy, and

Sweet spring sailing!
If you want to link to this article then please use this URL: www.sail-world.com/109785

Related Articles

Bill Johnsen on the Sarasota Bay Multihull Regatta
A Q&A with Bill Johnsen on the 2026 Sarasota Bay Multihull Regatta Some things simply pair better than others, especially in the sometimes-frozen depths of February in North America. Forget about peanut butter and chocolate—we're talking about multihulls, racecourses, and Florida's warm and inviting waters.
Posted on 17 Feb Growing Pains
The SailGP event in Auckland this weekend was extraordinary on many fronts The SailGP event in Auckland this weekend was extraordinary on many fronts. Thirteen F50 foiling catamarans on the startline, wild conditions with unpredictable gusts, and possibly the worst crash we've seen on the circuit since its inception.
Posted on 16 Feb Video: Gitana 18 launched at Lorient La Base
The incredible new Ultim is in the water and the mast is stepped Gitana 18 is the trimaran which has been designed and built to take the great offshore records, including the Jules Verne Trophy for the fastest circumnavigation of the globe, to another world.
Posted on 15 Feb Checking in on the Mini Globe Race
As the sailors prepare for their final challenge The Mini Globe Race began on February 23, 2025, off Antigua and saw a starting fleet of 15 singlehanded sailors from eight countries embark on a six-leg circumnavigation adventure aboard 19-foot one designs. It's now just 2,500 miles from the finish.
Posted on 10 Feb Surf to City
It's kind of a big deal. Southport to Brisbane. A plethora of divisions, spread over inshore and off It's kind of a big deal. Southport to Brisbane. A plethora of divisions, two courses, one outside from the surf off the Gold Coast, and then up and over back down to Shorncliffe.
Posted on 8 Feb How can clubs thrive?
While a sailing club exists primarily for its members, it also needs to break even financially While a sailing club exists primarily for its members, and must first and foremost serve their interests, it also needs to at least break even financially to remain viable.
Posted on 3 Feb Jen Glass discusses Team Cascadia
A Q&A with Jen Glass on Team Cascadia and the NYYC's Women's International Championships Cascadia Sailing is a cross-border American-Canadian team that earned one of 20 coveted invitations to the New York Yacht Club's Women's International Championships this September.
Posted on 3 Feb A Splash of Colour at boot Düsseldorf 2026
I was very much looking for things which brighten up a cold and wet January At boot this year I was very much looking for things which brighten up a cold and wet January.
Posted on 27 Jan Circumnavigation and transatlantic records fall
New Jules Verne Trophy and Transatlantic Race records established January's cold may be icing-up sailing aspirations in much of North America right now, but the international sailing news cycle has been lit-up of late with tales of adventure, record-breaking circumnavigations, and proud racing efforts on the high seas.
Posted on 27 Jan The other way
Is it the wrong way? Some even think it might be the right way! Hobart to Sydney. The delivery home. Is it the wrong way? Some even think it might be the right way! Hobart to Sydney. Yes. The delivery home. It has always struck me that it does not get anywhere near the attention of the way down, but back up needs just as much care and consideration.
Posted on 27 Jan