Welcome to the new Soundings. We’ve spent more than a winter’s worth of time chipping ice and shoveling snow — we’ve been reinventing the magazine. From our base in Essex, Conn., we’re excited to introduce a refreshed Soundings that feels right for today and ready for tomorrow. The new format measures 9 by 10-7/8 inches, … Read more

People frequently ask me about survival at sea. After a boating-safety talk, someone almost always wants to discuss life rafts, rationing, or whether I’ve read the famous survival books about being lost on the ocean—most commonly Steve Callahan’s Adrift: 76 Days Lost at Sea. After I explain the best practices for staying safe and for … Read more

From Miami to Cowes: How Gincanotto Sealed a Long-Awaited Victory The origins of modern offshore powerboat racing trace back to Miami, a city that played a pivotal role in popularizing high-speed offshore competition. In the late 1950s, John William Maxwell Aitken witnessed one of the early Miami–Nassau races. That experience helped shape his vision for … Read more

First Light Boatworks: Preserving Traditional Wooden Boatbuilding in Chatham, Massachusetts At a small waterfront yard in Chatham, Massachusetts, First Light Boatworks carries on the craft of traditional wooden boatbuilding. Under owners Woody Metzger and Jim Donovan, the shop blends time-honored methods with practical modern improvements to produce handcrafted sailboats, lapstrake powerboats and custom commissions, while … Read more

At 71 years old, French adventurer Jean-Jacques Savin has taken a strikingly original approach to solo ocean travel: he built a barrel-shaped vessel to cross the Atlantic using only the force of the sea. Rather than relying on engines or sails, Savin’s plan is to drift with the ocean currents, letting the natural movement of … Read more

Ellen MacArthur joins youths for final leg The 48-foot yacht Scarlet Oyster completed the final leg of the Ellen MacArthur Trust Skandia Round Britain voyage on September 12, sailing from Torquay back to its starting point in Cowes on the Isle of Wight. This concluding passage marked the end of a carefully planned 132-day circumnavigation … Read more

Lucie is an International 6 Meter racing yacht designed by Clinton Crane and built by Henry B. Nevins in 1931. Bearing sail number US55, she is a striking example of the classic 6 Meter aesthetic: narrow proportions for her 37-foot overall length, a low profile, an elegant sheer line and long overhangs. Those graceful lines … Read more

Paul Todd / Outside Images — Photograph and Technical Notes Photo by Paul Todd/Outside Images Camera and Exposure Details Camera used: Nikon D800 Shutter speed: 1/800 second Lens focal length: 70mm Aperture: f/2.8 ISO: 500 Publication August 2013 issue About the Technical Choices The combination of a Nikon D800, a 70mm focal length and an … Read more

Investigating Boat Fires: Insights from a Marine Fire Investigator Daniel K. Rutherford has spent three decades as a certified marine investigator, examining boat fires, explosions, sinkings and disappearances at sea. His role is to determine the causes of marine casualties, and he typically investigates roughly 150 claims each year. Rutherford is president of Ocean Marine … Read more

Cotton Candy Lobster Found in Casco Bay: Rare Opalescent Specimen Named “Haddie” Finds New Home Last Friday, veteran lobsterman Bill Coppersmith made an extraordinary discovery while hauling traps in Casco Bay, Maine. Inside his hull he found an iridescent, opal-like lobster with a delicate, pastel sheen—an especially rare coloration commonly referred to as a “cotton … Read more