August 2008 By Tom Snyder There is a question that I have always asked, which, I am told, one is not meant to ask. Which, of course, has made me want to ask it even more. But this year, without any outside badgering, I am effortlessly letting it slide. ButRead More

August 2008 By Dodge Morgan The world of “Safety at Sea” has matured to become a little old lady. Clearly, going back 30 or more years ago, there would not be a boat that would pass today’s safety muster, even when not considering the electronic crap we now tend toRead More

July 2008 By Dodge Morgan I have been recruited for active duty in the war on terror by none other than Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. This assignment was announced by the secretary at the recent meeting of the National Marine Manufacturing Association in Washington, D.C. Chertoff pronounced that theRead More

July 2008 By David Roper Remember responding to that “double dare” as a kid? Remember looking down off that ledge or that railroad bridge on that hot summer’s day and feeling pressure from your peers overcoming your basic survival instincts? Many of us jumped. Stupid. I remember responding to suchRead More

July 2008 By Tom Snyder I’m a talker on a boat. I know that. I share countless words, except when I’m being quiet, at which time I only say a lot of words. I find my ideas fascinating and generally won’t quit until the crew experiences a comparable thrill. OnRead More

June 2008 By Dodge Morgan Age and illness drive one’s mind into the distant past, to childhood memories, often clean and true, sometimes elegantly embellished. The present seems not that compelling, and the future not that comforting unless flavored with the spices of how things once were. My initiation intoRead More

June 2008 By David Roper A Points East reader fortunate enough to keep his lunch down while getting through my column about my holding-tank surgical removal struggle and the resulting effluent assault asked a legitimate question: So what did you put in that big space where the holding tank onceRead More

June 2008 By Tom Snyder Replacing William F. Buckley, Jr.America has recently lost one of its most famous sailors, William F. Buckley, Jr. Since I was a kid, I have heard stories of his extraordinary experiences on the water. This is the end of an era, which has led meRead More

May 2008 By Dodge Morgan The sloop American Promise has been retired after 25 years of service as the flagship of the United States Naval Academy sail training fleet. She is the vessel I sailed around the world solo and nonstop in 1985-86. The purpose of the academy sailing programRead More

May 2008 By David Roper “Hope for the best, but Plan for the Worst.” A famous round-the-world sailor had this imprinted on his companionway bulkhead. I guess he did it as a constant reminder. Makes sense. Those of us with a few miles under our keels know that things canRead More