Laser Girl for Sunday

Mathilde De Kerangat of France was the early leader in the Girl's Laser Radial fleet at the 2009 Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship in Brazil last week, eventually finishing in third place.

Bite

Son#2 likes fishing.

Son#1 likes poking his camera or his mobile phone in your face when you are doing something photogenic. He must have lots of shots of me scowling at him.

Son#1 and Son#2 are out fishing today on a boat on Long Island Sound with some of son#2's buddies as part of son#2's bachelor party weekend.

Thanks to the technological wonders of the Blackberry, the Interwebs and Facebook, not to mention son#1's aforementioned annoying habit, here is a shot of son#2 fishing today.

Special thanks for making this possible to John McCain, Al Gore and Pete Cashmore,

Laser on Friday

Photo ©: David Eberlin
Notts County Sailing Club Laser Open
Photo shamelessly stolen from Yachts and Yachting website

If You Don't Like This Blog Here Are Some Others You Might Like Better

Thanks to everyone who participated in this month's group writing project Write a Review. I think we had 28 entries on everything imaginable from Orei to Z, from a pirate movie to a boating consignment store. They are all listed below.

Do take the time to read some or all of them. The whole point of these efforts is to allow bloggers to showcase their writing and to help readers of this blog find other boating blogs of which they may have been previously unaware.

So get clicking...

Captain JP wins the prize for most entries, all related to his recent sailing trip in the Med...

• Bareboat Sailing with Sunsail in the Greek Aegean - "in general very happy with the package and would be happy to sail with them again."
  
  
• Sailing with Navionics iPhone Charts - "there was something on the paper charts which might have been a reef or it might have been a smudge due to a retsina spill, but which was it? Out with the iPhone, couple of drags and zooms, and yup it's a smudge!"
  

• Orei - "best bit: the marble bull so if that doesn't float your boat go elsewhere."
  
  
• Koukounaries - "best bit: the peace and quiet in the evening after the day trippers have gone."
  
  
• Steni Vala - "there really isn't much there."
  
  
• Skopelos Town - "best bit: the view from the bar."
  
  
• Pigadhi - "a winding down, tomorrow's the last day sort of place."

Tim Coleman had more than one shot too...

• Boil-in-the-bag - the pros and cons of wetsuits in summer - "some of us don't look that hot in rubber."
  
  
• Start racing - "racing a boat gives you objectives both in terms of where you point the boat and how to control the speed and direction of the boat through steering, trim and sail controls."

Timmynocky submitted Chepstow and District Yacht Club's 60th Annual Regatta - "Some boy racers (Jack?) were either taking it all too seriously or were worried that the beer might run out before they got back."

Sam Chapin wrote an unusual piece entitled Real View Four Tiller Man but it now seems to have disappeared from his blog. I can't think why.

Carol Anne wrote a review of the cult sailing movie Pirates of the White Sands - "the best 14 minutes you'll ever spend."

Bonnie wrote a Review of a New Sailing Blog! - "K and I have decided to sail an open 14 foot sailboat across the Pacific Ocean from California to Japan."

Steve Bodner educated us about the Z question - "To Z or not to Z? That is Z question."

Smilicus of Sailing Catch 22 opined on various online sources of sailing news in News Review - "Yachts & Yachting: a true Sailing News Site with Reports on regattas and other news of sailing right over the globe."

Adam of Messing About in Sailboats reviewed some Summer Reading - "Tillerman had a great idea. He has a lot of them actually." (Oops. How did that quote get selected?)

Yarg scared the bejeezuz out of us with Whitewater Rafting – The Out-of-Raft Experience - "I suggest to the guide that perhaps 360s should be limited to a horizontal plane."

Greg had a book review We the Navigators - The Ancient Art of Landfinding in the Pacific - "the book does an excellent job... of detailing how the indigenous sailors of the Pacific use only the things they can see to determine where to find land."

Tweezerman wrote a review of the magazine Practical Sailor - "the only thing they don't do well is give me a heads up on what items will be on sale at the Annapolis Sailboat Show."

Thomas Armstrong submitted a review of Nic Compton's biography of IainOughtred, A Life in Wooden Boats with some superb pictures of aforementioned wooden boats.

Some of my favorite reviews were from three "guest bloggers", writers without their own blogs who sent me reviews via email.

• O'Docker - Blog Commenting For Dummies - "just copy a comment from the CD and paste it into the comments page of your favorite blog. What could be easier?"
  
  
• Tobias - My Review of 50 Summers - "my life is full, my family loves boats, and we live in a sailing town. This review is definitely good."
  
  
• Jacob - GizmoTube© Review - "this review was intended to be unbiased; but after a few Dark and Stormys, provided by the manufacturer, I am not so sure anymore."

And last but not least (but actually a tad late) Zen wrote a review of his local boating consignment shop the Blue Pelican - "I found out their trick. They have even more stuff stashed behind stuff."

Oh, and I almost forgot, I wrote three pretty lame reviews myself...

• Jay Livingston's Laser Warm Up Routine - "Two thumbs up."
  
  
• Osprey Sea Kayak Adventures - "I will now write a review of something about which I know nothing: kayaking."
  
  
• Sailing World - "I'm certainly not going to renew my subscription this year."

Phew. Can you guys take it easy next time? It's taking me an age to compile these wrap-up posts for our group writing projects.

50 Great Things To Do In And Around Tiverton Rhode Island

Dear D.,

Good to see you at that regatta last week. Hope you know I was serious about that invitation for you and your lovely wife to come and stay with us in Rhode Island for a while. You and I can go Lasering a different place every day during the week and then we can do a regatta somewhere nearby at the weekend.

But I understand that (like me) you prefer to travel to sailing venues where your wife can find something interesting to do during the day while you are sailing. So here are few ideas off the top of my head for things to do around here. My blogging friend Carol Anne says that I should tell you about the "offbeat" activities, not the stuff that is on the radar of the average tourist. Well, I've done a bit of both, so I hope your wife will find something on this list that appeals to her.

Look forward to seeing you soon.

Tillerman

1. Sin and Flesh
   
   
2. Do the Cliff Walk
   


3. Have dinner at 22B
   


4. Experience WaterFire
   


5. Visit the Newport Mansions
   


6. Stop at the sign of the lemon
   


7. Enjoy an ice-cream at Gray's
   
   
8. Catch a play at the Trinity Rep
   
   
9. Drive the Coastal Villages Trail
   
   
10. Tour the gardens at Blithewold
    
    
11. Take lunch at Evelyn's Drive-In
    
    
12. Go for a walk in Weetamoo Woods
    
    
13. Tour a battleship at Battleship Cove
    
    
14. Check out the Buzzards Bay Brewery
    
    
15. Fly a kite at Brenton Point State Park
    
    
16. Go surfing at Easton Beach in Newport
    
    
17. Watch international polo in Portsmouth
    
    
18. Go for a stroll around Mount Hope Farm
    
    
19. Have a picnic at the Sakonnet Vineyards
    
    
20. Pick your own fruit at Sweet Berry Farm
    
    
21. See the butterflies at the Butterfly Farm
    
    
22. Explore a fort at Fort Wetherill State Park
    
    
23. Try Standup Paddleboarding at Third Beach
    
    
24. Take a day trip on the ferry to Block Island
    
    
25. Run, walk or bike on the East Bay Bike Path
    
    
26. Take the kids go-karting at Seekonk Grand Prix
    
    
27. Go kayaking with Osprey Sea Kayak Adventures
    
    
28. Have an Italian meal on Providence's Federal Hill
    
    
29. Be amazed by the Green Animals Topiary Garden
    
    
30. Visit a museum dedicated to our local axe murderer
    
    
31. Go birdwatching at the Emilie Ruecker Wildlife Refuge
    
    
32. Visit the Rhode Island Red Commemorative Monument
    


33. Have breakfast at the Bayside Restaurant in Westport
    
    
34. Take the kids swimming at Newport's Gooseberry Beach
    
    
35. Take a cruise around 10 lighthouses in Narragansett Bay
    
    
36. See the proof that the Chinese discovered America before Columbus
    
    
37. Take a windswept walk for miles and miles on Horseneck Beach
    
    
38. Shop for pottery, antiques, toys, cheese, whatever at Tiverton Four Corners
    
    
39. Drink wine and listen to live music on a Friday night at the Westport Rivers Winery
    
    
40. Take a tour of Newport Harbor on Rum Runner II a prohibition-era smuggler's boat
    
    
41. Go to Hartley's Original Pork Pies in Fall River to buy the best English-style pork pies in America
    
    
42. Learn about the history of the American whaling industry at the New Bedford Whaling Museum
    
    
43. Watch a minor league baseball game in Pawtucket -- yeah I know it's only the Red Sox but that's all we have
    
    
44. Does your wife play golf? I know nothing about golf -- but just in case that is her thing, here is a list of the Best 25 Rhode Island Golf Courses
    
    
45. I don't know why anyone would come to Rhode Island to go mall shopping but if that's your wife's thing then she will enjoy Providence Place Mall
    
    
46. Check out the colonial garden at the Pardon Gray Preserve -- the corn is Tillerwoman's project so be careful what you say about it over dinner
    
    
47. If you come next week I will see if we can get you tickets so we can all go and see Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson and John Mellenkamp at McCoy Stadium
    
    
48. Or if you come for the July 4th weekend we can go and watch the parade in Bristol, the oldest continuous celebration of its kind in the United States!
    
    
49. If you feel inclined to buy your hostess a thank-you gift then you couldn't do better than to buy a plant for the garden from Tillerwoman's favorite nursery, Peckham's Greenhouse in Little Compton
    
    
50. Whatever our wives find to do around here and wherever we go sailing, at the end of the day we can all meet at the absolutely best place to be and for the best thing to do: our deck for cocktails and a bottle or two of wine, and watching the sun set over Mount Hope Bay. Cheers mate!
    

What is a view worth?
Priceless.

Posted in response to Carol Anne's writing project:
Getting the spouse to come along.

Last Few Reviews (Maybe)

A few more reviews today for our July group writing project, Write a Review which is now closed. (If past experience is any guide this will be the signal for a flurry of last-minute "Oh shit, I really meant to write a review but I missed the deadline and I know Tillerman will give me a link anyway" posts. I really am way too nice to people.)

Anyway, Captain JP has been continuing his exhaustive tests of the bars and tavernas of the Aegean and since our last update has posted reviews of

• Steni Vala - "there really isn't much there"
• Skopelos Town - "best bit: the view from the bar"
• and Pigadhi - "a winding down, tomorrow's the last day sort of place."

I'm not sure if JP's faint praise of some of these places is because he genuinely was underwhelmed, or because they really all are totally awesome and he's trying to keep them a secret from the rest of us.

Also, Tweezerman of Earwigoagin has written a review of the magazine Practical Sailor - "the only thing they don't do well is give me a heads up on what items will be on sale at the Annapolis Sailboat Show."

And Thomas Armstrong of 70.8% (yes, that really is the title of his blog) submitted a review of Nic Compton's biography of IainOughtred, A Life in Wooden Boats. I won't give you a teaser quote from this one, but instead I urge you to follow the link and check out the pictures in the review. They are so gorgeous that they are able to stir up a yearning to own a wooden boat even in the heart of a die-hard fiberglass junkie like me.

Full round-up of all the reviews coming soon.

GizmoTube© Review

Thanks to Jacob for this entry in our July writing project Write a Review. Today is the last day of the project so if you were planning to enter, do it now. Full details at Write a Review.


This review will focus on the GizmoTube©, a device (patent pending) about to hit the small-boat market. Thanks to my 'industry' connections, I have had the opportunity to try a prototype of this novel device and obtained permission to share my early findings. In case you are an early adopter, I have been told that the GizmoTube© will go on sale at your favorite boating store this coming fall*.



Laser sailors know that it's good to have the weight outside of the boat when the wind pipes up. Unfortunately, not all of us are built that way. In fact, it has been my observation that a sizeable number of 'mature' sailors have accumulated extra mass, but it is centered around the midriff. No help whatsoever on those windy days. Well, the GizmoTube© allows you to shift this blubber to the shoulders. After swallowing the device, not an easy feat, I might add, one simply opens the valve when about to hike out. With the body roughly horizontal, mass from the midriff area will flow to the shoulders. At least ten pounds outside the boat now. It sure made hiking a lot easier for me. Wow, I could actually keep the boat flat upwind in 15 mph! Once around the windward mark, you just sit up and all that mass flows back downward..



Did the Gizmotube© work? Well, it certainly did for me; I finally moved out of the bottom pack during this evaluation. But the initial swallowing was a bit hard and will get some getting used to. And yes, the GizmoTube© will be class legal. But if you are in doubt, ask yourself who really IS really going to look down your throat at the the Skippers' meeting?



* I have just learned that the FDA insists on reviewing the GizmoTube©. This is likely to postpone the official launch by a few months. An official press release regarding this development will follow shortly.



PS: This review was intended to be unbiased; but after a few Dark and Stormys, provided by the manufacturer, I am not so sure anymore.

Hoist

It's all relative.

I use a Seitech dolly to launch my Laser.

Folks with bigger boats use a trailer or a hoist.

Alinghi uses a helicopter.

It's all relative.

Review of 50 Summers

Thanks to Tobias for sending me this review via email. What a great account of how to live the sailing good life.





We are at the halfway point of Sally’s and my 50th Summer on the planet. The review is definitely good.



My bride loves to sail! Racing, cruising, delivering boats home from Bermuda or Halifax, schlepping kids to regattas. And she can tow, launch and retrieve the mommy boat. Thank goodness she’s more interested in the “fun” part of the kids’ regattas (assuming the kids were safe) than how they did. If you got to drive them there, you’d might as well enjoy a day on the water. Our mommy boat, NEW-PRIORITIES, is the swim platform, the lunch boat, the place to have fun between races, for both kids and parents.



Our five kids are passionate about boats and sailing, even if two don’t race anymore. One of those teaches in the Town Sailing Program and spends every moment not on the lacrosse field on some boat or another. And there are always sailors or coaches in town for some regatta or another staying in the house. For years we had a procession of Kiwis sailing instructors live with us. All good people with whom we share a passion.



My claim to fame? We own more boats than cars. We have 3 trailers, 3 dollies, 3 Lasers, 1 Club 420, a 20 center console and the 53 year old lobster boat FIREWOOD, which is perfect for running laser races, a little fishing and hosting up to 16 people for very slow harbor tours with big coolers and the grill going while laughing all around us are envious people on “bristol” yachts or expansive water front homes. On regatta days we can stack 6 Optis on FIREWOOD’s deck and tow seven 420s for 20 miles up wind with the kids on every available flat surface. Sometimes the ride home can be the highlight of the great day on the water.



The cars have 100,000+ miles. They start, they get us to the water, the hockey rinks, the lacrosse fields and to work. I park at the swanky yacht club next to a new fancy car. The owner is divorced and his kids hate to sail. I am blessed.




I sailed a friend’s J-120 (40 feet, asym spinnaker) from Marblehead to Maine last night. Ten hours with kite up in 15 knots, effortless gybing by one person, full moon, porpoises playing in the phosphorescence all around the boat. Awesome night. Even better as my 13 year daughter was really into it. Wants to bring her friends next time.



I am spending more time doing race committee than racing. The races are good, the sailors thankful for the passion I put into their passion. I am giving back to the sport we all love. I am lucky to be able to help out.



I get to read sailing blogs, sometime at work. Business isn’t great because the economy is in a recession. But who cares. My life is full, my family loves boats, and we live in a sailing town. This review is definitely good.

Yet More Reviews

Three more reviews today for our July group writing project, Write a Review.

Captain JP continues his series of reviews of harbors in the Aegean with Koukounaries - "best bit: the peace and quiet in the evening after the day trippers have gone."

The rather Greek sounding Mr. Andkris has a book review We the Navigators - The Ancient Art of Landfinding in the Pacific - "the book does an excellent job... of detailing how the indigenous sailors of the Pacific use only the things they can see to determine where to find land."

Winner of the prize for most terrifying review submitted so far goes to Yarg for Whitewater Rafting – The Out-of-Raft Experience - "I suggest to the guide that perhaps 360s should be limited to a horizontal plane."

And now it's your turn to Write a Review. Do it now. Do it for fun. Do it as a service for your readers. Do it to make yourself famous. Do it before midnight on Monday, the absolute drop-dead deadline. Just do it.