Tuesday's post recognized ten of my favorite blogs about sailing and similar damp doings. But there are so many other great sailing blogs out there, so here are my Top Ten Sailing Posts Of 2007 Not Counting Any Posts By Bloggers On The Top Ten Blogs List Because Then Almost Every Post Would Be By Edward Or Adam.
Let's start the list -- and the day -- with Fall Sunrise on Sailscape.
One reason I love this picture is that the guy who takes all the photos on Sailscape is from Wickford, more or less diametrically the opposite side of Narragansett Bay from where I live. So he sees superb sunrises over the bay; and I enjoy equally spectacular sunsets. Ain't life grand?
Then to exercise your mind, try to answer the question How Corinthian Is Your Yacht Club? on Desert Sea. Pat challenges us to think about the standard of our sailing clubs in a long but highly stimulating post.
And for another take on yacht club politics and all that crap take a read of Sailing Burbles from Team Gherkin. It's another long post but a fascinating insight into one dinghy sailor's weekend and his club.
If you'd like something more inspiring try Woodwind Rescues Haitian Migrants on Bruce Smith's Voyage Blog. Wow. What a story. This guy is a real hero.
Then for an epic racing story how about Tommy Hilfiger Wins Italy’s Centomiglia Regatta! on Stan Schreyer's blog.
Or if you want to explore some gender differences in approaches to sailing check out Get over it, Love! on SailJuice.
Of course we all love to read about other's mistakes so how about RFU w/ RDF so bad we missed Cape Cod on Panbo: The Marine Electronics Weblog.
Sometimes I'm attracted to a blog because of a theme or a whole series of posts on the same subject. Any top ten list has to include a post about Cape Cod Frosties on Eli Boat such as Pics or it didn't happen.
Talking of series I've never seen anything quite as amazing as all the mermaid posts on Never Sea Land.
On second thoughts I have. Nothing will ever compare to all the Fish on Friday's posts on The Horse's Mouth of which the photo below is just one typical example.
Enjoy!
Just over a year ago I sold my last Sunfish (after owning one or more for over 15 years) and decided to concentrate on racing my Laser. I have no regrets after a year of fun, travel, and some modest achievement in the Laser. But I wonder if my timing was a bit off...
After all, 2008 is the Year of the Sunfish.
Huh? What does that mean?
Judging by various documents on the Sunfish Class website it seems that the class has been undergoing a rigorous self-examination over the past year and has been giving some serious thought on how to position itself for success in the future. For example check out this presentation on marketing strategy. After honestly admitting the Sunfish's (at best) second place status to the Laser in terms of new boats built, geographic coverage and class membership, the strategy goes on to discuss how to change the perception of the class in the minds of the public and how to trade on the unique nature of the boat to grow the class in the future. Not surprisingly they are planning to exploit some of the benefits of the Sunfish that I also pointed out in my post on Ten Reasons Why Sunfish Are Better Than Lasers.
Wait. What's that about a problem with the perception of the class?
Well, to be honest in some quarters the Sunfish is not taken as seriously as a racing class as the Laser is. One example from my own experience: My sons grew up sailing Optimists, then in their early teenage years they mainly raced Sunfish with a bit of Laser sailing thrown in too. When my elder son was in his junior year at high school we had the good fortune to meet one of the top college sailing coaches at that time, and we pumped him for information on college sailing. Would my son's achievements (mainly in Sunfish) be attractive to college coaches, which colleges might be a good fit for him, would he have a chance of making a college team, etc. etc.? The uber-coach's main advice was, "Forget the Sunfish and concentrate on the Laser. College coaches won't have much respect for what you have achieved in the Sunfish." I have no reason to think much has changed in the past twelve years.
But 2008 is the Year of the Sunfish.
What? What is Tillerman rambling on about? Why is 2008 the Year of the Sunfish?
Well, it seems that the good folk in the Sunfish class have pulled off a couple of coups in their attempts to raise the perception of the class in the minds of the public. In 2008 the Sunfish will be...
1. The boat used for the finals of the US Sailing Singlehanded Championship, also known as the O'Day Trophy.
2. The boat used for the US Championship of Champions, in which the national champions of each class compete against each other.
Kudos to whoever in the Sunfish class managed to twist some arms at US Sailing to make this happen. This can only help to improve the perception of the class (especially in a year when the Olympics will be giving the Laser some free PR.)
So who will win these two events? Will it be some of the regular Sunfish hotshots? There's always an advantage in sailing an event like this in a boat you've known for twenty years. Or will some genius from another class step into a Sunfish and blow everyone else away? Only time will tell. Personally I'm rooting for some of my old friends from the Sunfish class to win both of these prestigious events. That will stick it those snooty Laser snobs.
Whatever the results, 2008 will be the Year of the Sunfish.
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Here is my list of the Top Ten Blogs that have entertained and informed this particular sailor the most in 2007.
What can I say about the EVK4 SuperBlog that has not already been said? Edward's superb blog has the unique distinction of being the only blog to make my Top Ten list three years in a row. Edward is not a sailing rock star (yet), just a regular guy who day sails with friends and family on San Francisco Bay, with a dream to sail across the Pacific to Hawaii one day. I think I enjoy his blog so much because his sense of humor is even weirder than mine. My left coast alter ego. May you achieve your dream in 2008.
And then we have 1000 Days at Sea, the blog of Reid Stowe and Soanya Ahmad as they attempt to achieve a world record by staying at sea without making landfall for 1000 days on their 70 foot gaff-rigged schooner Anne. Love them or hate them, they have energized fans and detractors alike. There's a thread about them on Sailing Anarchy that has over 9,000 posts and which accuses Reid of almost every imaginable sin under the sun. There's even a parody blog. So we can't ignore them. But as we armchair critics render judgment, Reid and Soanya are currently a quarter of the way towards their goal, sailing the Southern Ocean, and sending back stories of eating fenugreek sprouts, seeing the black behind the blue sky, and speculating about weightless toothbrushes! Honest. Even I couldn't make this stuff up.
Is it a blog? It says it's a blog. But it doesn't allow comments. Shall I let it on the list? Oh well, I guess it's too good to leave out. Rule 69 Blog, described as "hand-grenade journalism" by the author Magnus Wheatley, is the best source of news and strong opinions on the yachting controversies of the day. From the Olympics to the America's Cup and beyond, Magnus has a point of view and is not afraid to express it. I just wish I could rant back at him in the comments occasionally.
As a Laser sailor I must include two excellent blogs by the sailors who won the Laser Radial and Laser US Olympic Trials this year. Anna Tunnicliffe and Andrew Campbell write about Laser regattas of course, but they have both found time to fit other sailing activities into a busy year of Olympic campaigning. Anna and her crew made it to the podium at US Sailing’s Rolex International Women's Keelboat Championship and Andrew has been exploring many tactical and racing rules questions in his Monday Morning Tactician series. Good luck to them both in China.
And here's a pic of Anna flying a Bladerider Moth.
You didn't really want pictures of Reid or Edward did you?
I'm not much of a windsurfer but I have to admit I am enthralled by the exploits of Michael who writes The Peconic Puffin. This guy goes out windsurfing in ice and rain and freezing slush and 50 knot winds and then makes us believe how much fun it was. Truly amazing.
A blog I've been following since I first discovered the medium is frogma, the story of Bonnie, a New York based sailor and kayaker. Truth is she writes more often about kayaking than sailing, but that's OK. Her blog is honest, down-to-earth, direct... and at the same time inspiring. I guess it's a characteristic of every blog on this list, but her enthusiasm for her sport (paddling in this case) just shines through in every post and makes you want to give it a try.
Several readers of Proper Course recommended tugster: a waterblog for this list, and I can see why. The author Will Van Dorp works on greater New York harbor and posts on his blog photos of what he sees on the water. Tugs, sunsets, barges, birds, container ships, rudders, tillers, men at work, fishnets, kayakers... even some sailing craft occasionally. Strangely addictive.
The author of Captain JP's log writes about life on the river in another major port, the Thames in London, as well as musing on various aspects of sailing and watery pursuits in general. But perhaps his most ambitious venture was a series of posts on the Celebrity Yacht Race, an event that seems to have been totally overlooked by the mainstream yachting press.
I've saved the best for last. If I had to choose one blog as the top sailing blog of 2007 it would be Messing About in Sailboats by Adam Turinas. Entertaining, witty, informative, topical... Adam's blog covers everything from the America's Cup to Naming a Boat the Cockney Way, from "great places to sail" to why a yacht is naked without a heavy machine gun. Adam also has a gift for promoting participation and pulling together our community of sailing bloggers. The most striking example of this art was his group project to choose the Top 10 Sailing Songs. A gazillion readers sent in ideas, no doubt motivated by his promise to send out a CD of the top songs to all participants. He has been posting videos of sailing songs on his blog for several months now and shows no signs of running out of material. What a brilliant idea! And thanks for the CD mate, it's played almost daily in the Tillerman household.
So there we have it. Apologies to all the excellent blogs that didn't make the list this year. Every year the number of high quality boating blogs increases and it becomes harder and harder to choose only ten. Congratulations to the Top Ten. What a mix! I wonder what new blogs will emerge in 2008 to challenge them?
