Chuck Hawley, San Francisco Station, with immense help from
Stan Honey and Sally Lindsay Honey, San Francisco Station
We offer several types of article covering a wide range of topics. Choose your topic or article type below:
- Feature Articles. Discussions of one or more topics regarding Seamanship, Safety, and best practices afloat.
- School of Hard Rocks. First-person narratives of ... challenging ... experiences and lessons learned.
- Safety Moments. Short items suitable for a quick read or presentation to a group.
- White Papers. In-depth dives into topics of interest.
- Travelogs. Stories of near and far journeys afloat, including selected articles from our Voyages magazine
- Videos. A growing library of streaming content, from weather seminars to member highlights.
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Navigation and Piloting, Electronics
It would be prudent for all navigators on unfamiliar boats, or perhaps when returning after a period of time to a familiar boat, to ensure that the hidden, potentially helpful fudge factors buried in silicon memories are actually helping, not…
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School of Hard Rocks
Subject:
Culture of Safety, Emergency Signalling
As I was leaving the boat around 1630, having completed my chores for the day, I gathered my gear and prepared to get off onto the dock. I stepped out the shrink wrap door, I put my right foot on a boarding step, and my knee promptly gave way. My…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Good Practices Underway
Lessons from a British Virgin Islands Charter
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Fire/Flooding
My technician, Chris, found that the entire manual pull system on the FireBoy system in the engine room was inoperable with zip ties and a locking pin preventing the system from working. No matter how hard I might have tried to trigger the system, I…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Good Practices Underway
A problem can easily arise when several knowledgeable sailors are on deck during a passage or even a daysail and it is not clear who is charge. Each is partially attentive, but no one is paying attention to the details on the chart or what…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Overboard
A problem can easily arise when several knowledgeable sailors are on deck during a passage or even a daysail and it is not clear who is charge. Each is partially attentive, but no one is paying attention to the details on the chart or what…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Preparation of Boat and Crew
A problem can easily arise when several knowledgeable sailors are on deck during a passage or even a daysail and it is not clear who is charge. Each is partially attentive, but no one is paying attention to the details on the chart or what…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Good Practices Underway
Many of us have a general idea about how we’d tow another boat back to the harbor or gas dock or a safe anchorage. While most sailboats don’t generate a lot of pull, they can generally tow a similarly-sized sailboat at four or five knots, which…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Anchoring
Several decades ago, entering Morro Bay around sunrise, I was at the helm of a 30’ wooden ketch while the rest of the crew slept below. It was near a full moon, and the boat was bucking about a 3-knot ebb with her 4.5 knots of speed through the…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Practice and Safety Training
Recently, we discussed some New Year’s Resolutions for safe voyaging that included having a pre-departure chat with your crew so that everyone had basic safety (and comfort) information when on the water: where the safety gear was stowed, how to…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Safety Gear, Personal
In 2017, US Sailing Yachtswoman of the Year Timmy Larr asked me to participate in a series of life jacket tests in Tampa Bay, about ¼ mile from the University of Southern Florida. These tests were reasonably similar to other life jacket testing that…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Safety Gear, Personal
Bottom line: safety gear is a compromise. Too foolproof, and it may be either too expensive or too difficult to use. Too heavy, and people leave it below decks. Too much maintenance required, and it may not work when it is supposed to.
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Preparation of Boat and Crew, Seamanship and Awareness
I had the wonderful opportunity to charter a Moorings 4600 catamaran in Croatia for two week in late May, and in fact I am writing this Safety Moment from the catamaran as I sit in the lovely Palmizana marina on the island of Klement.
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Feature Article
Subject:
Narratives
‘Lore from the Lazarette,
…. a Look Back’
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Preparation of Boat and Crew
“Safety Moments, presented at CCA Stations and Posts”
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Voyages
Subject:
Narratives
These Stories!
A range of tales, lavishly photographed, from Maine to the Antarctic.
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Good Practices Underway
Safety Moment, Cruising Club of America