Offshore Sailing: 200 Essential Passagemaking Tips - Hardcover

by William Seifert (Author), Daniel Spurr (Author)

In a book that is sure to become a classic, internationally respected boatbuilder, yacht manager, and delivery skipper Bill Seifert shares his hard-won solutions to a host of boat design, construction, and equipment issues and seamanship dilemmas. Unlike other books on the subject, Offshore Sailing doesn't just tell readers what to do for safe and comfortable passage making; it shows them how to do it with clear, step-by-step instructions and nearly 200 detailed drawings and photographs.

Back Jacket

"Anybody even thinking of sailing out of sight of land would want Bill Seifert aboard, whether in person or in print. As he describes what gear and skills count the most, Bill generously calls on his many experiences offshore and in boatyards. Since many of his stories are pretty funny (when they aren't painful), Offshore Sailing is one of the most winning boating books I've read--as well as one of the most helpful."--John Rousmaniere, author, The Annapolis Book of Seamanship and Fastnet: Force 10

Bill Seifert has sailed 100,000 offshore miles and has thirty years of experience as a yacht builder, racer, manager, and delivery skipper. He has encountered just about everything that can go wrong with every aspect of a boat, from deck to galley, electricals to plumbing, fuel pump to rigging, and he's earned a worldwide reputation as a crack nautical problem-solver. In Offshore Sailing, he shares his hard-won solutions to a host of boat design, construction, equipment, and seamanship dilemmas. He tells you what works and what doesn't, and step by step--with the help of detailed illustrations and photographs--fills you in on what you need to know for safe, comfortable passagemaking.

• Experiencing diesel engine surge-and-die syndrome (SAD)? Tip 132 tells you why it's happening and what to do about it.
• Worried that your bilge pump might not provide adequate pumping power in rough seas? Tip 8 shows you a simple way to measure its true pumping capacity.
• Want to make companionway dropboards lockable from inside and outside? See tip 71.
• Batteries charging too slowly or not at all? Tip 111 tells you how to locate and stop hidden power drains.

Author Biography

Bill Seifert was a project engineer at Tartan Marine Company, materials manager at Tillotson Pearson Inc., and a project manager at Alden Yachts. In 1991, he started his own yacht management company. He does prerace seaworthiness inspections for the Marion - Bermuda Race.

Dan Spurr was the editor of Practical Sailor newsletter for twelve years. A former senior editor for Cruising World, he is the author of Heart of Glass: Fiberglass Boats and the Men Who Made Them, Spurr's Boatbook: Upgrading the Cruising Sailboat, and Yacht Style, among other books.