How a 150-Year Old Pilot Boat Became the World’s #1 Offshore Design Pride in the Norse seafaring tradition is kept alive in the Pacific Northwest by immigrants from the Nordic countries and is visible in many forms. In Seattle for example, we have the statue of Leif Ericson, the Viking chief who led the attempt… Continue reading Colin Archer and the Viking Tradition
Category: Sailors & Yachts
Scandinavian Canoe Stern Revived in the 20th Century
Colin Archer, the Westsail and More By the 1920s, the sport of yachting had seen several theories of design come and go. There was the narrow beam/long overhang style demanded by the International handicap rule, or the wildly contrasting types used by the earliest circumnavigators: Joshua Slocum’s Spray with its wide beam and shallow draft… Continue reading Scandinavian Canoe Stern Revived in the 20th Century
The Life and Designs of Bill Tripp
William Tripp was born in 1920 on Long Island where he was soon exposed to the world of boats by his father, a civil engineer. While still a boy, he sailed the family Star boat and everything else from frostbite dinghies to ocean racers. He was said to have begun drawing boats as a youth… Continue reading The Life and Designs of Bill Tripp
Around the Americas Voyage Sails the Northwest Passage
Around the Americas Crew Enjoy Portland Welcome When skipper Mark Schrader set in motion his plan to make a voyage “Around the Americas,” he knew he’d need a strong, versatile vessel built to withstand the rigors of the Arctic Circle, the Northwest Passage, and later on Cape Horn and the Chilean channels. The ambitious goal… Continue reading Around the Americas Voyage Sails the Northwest Passage
Ray DeFir–Portland Water Ski Racer and Boat Builder (1930-2011)
Ray Was First Man to Water Ski 1,000 Miles Non-Stop! Ray DeFir, an active and well-known figure in the Portland, Oregon boating scene for over 50 years, died in 2011 at the age of 81. Ray had a lifetime love of water sports and was well-known as a record-breaking water-skier, designer and builder of high-performance… Continue reading Ray DeFir–Portland Water Ski Racer and Boat Builder (1930-2011)
1996: Sailing Back In Time by Maria Coffey
Cruising the B.C. Coast with the Farrells on China Cloud by P.M. In a literary market awash with regional memoirs and local biographies, Maria Coffey has produced a work so unique it overflows these categories. Ostensibly, it is about “yachting,” a subject which is thoroughly over-subscribed. But this book rises far beyond the typical formula… Continue reading 1996: Sailing Back In Time by Maria Coffey
2011: The Nomadic Nautical Life of Allen and Sharie Farrell
Introduction: Allen Farrell spent 69 years building over 40 wooden boats on the coast of British Columbia, Canada. With his wife Sharie, he lived for almost 50 years aboard many of their handmade vessels or homesteading on the coast, continually building wooden boats and sailing up and down North America and across the Pacific. The… Continue reading 2011: The Nomadic Nautical Life of Allen and Sharie Farrell
2013: Meeting My Vendee Globe Heroes
In March 2012, after riding along the Canal du Midi from the Med to Bordeaux, I rewarded myself with a train ride north to Brittany. But i was soon back on the bike and searching for the sailing center of Port La Foret in Brittany, the training center for the top Open 60 sailors. It… Continue reading 2013: Meeting My Vendee Globe Heroes
2014 – Mini Yachts Promise Maxi Speed…..and Risk!
Huge Beam, Giant Rigs, Maxi Sprits Early in October, 2013 I took the train from London to Portsmouth, ferry to St Malo, and cycled across Brittany via back roads and canal towpaths to see the solo Mini Transat race start in Douarnenez, near the north-western tip of France. Another big fleet of 84 MINI 6.5 meter (21′… Continue reading 2014 – Mini Yachts Promise Maxi Speed…..and Risk!
1967 Maxi Atalanta Sails On
The 74′ Atalanta–a NW Favorite Since 1990 With its unmistakable flush deck and transom rudder, the 74′ ketch-rigged Atalanta has been a familiar site on Puget Sound since it arrived her in 1990 under the ownership of Richard C. Hedreen, a Seattle developer. It has successfully completed three Vic-Mauis, and several Mexico races including the… Continue reading 1967 Maxi Atalanta Sails On