Author Peter Janssen

On Watch with Peter Janssen
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No Boat Shows? The Boats Will Come To You

No boat shows? No problem. Many of the traditional fall boat shows have been closed, or changed to virtual, on-line versions of their past lives, fallen victim to the coronavirus pandemic. But boat companies are nothing if mobile, and if you can’t go to shows to see their new boats, they’ll bring their new boats to you. Or at least to a controlled space that’s relatively close to you. Here’s a look at what some of them are doing: Hinckley Yachts is hosting showcases in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, Stamford, Connecticut, and Annapolis. These will be semi-private, limited-access events, using Hinckley…

Boat Reviews
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The New All-Electric Zin Z2R: The Next Tesla?

Is Zin going to be the Tesla of the water? Or, if you’re an early-adapter, will an all-electric runabout from a startup company in Seattle be your next boat? Zin Boats has launched its first vessel, the Z2R, a carbon-fiber 20-footer with head-snapping acceleration but no carbon footprint, fumes, noise or vibration. Piotr Zin, the company’s founder, says it’s perfect as a tender, a second boat, or a picnic boat that you can run up on a beach. Zin himself worked as an industrial designer at BMW and GM before he settled down and moved aboard a houseboat on Seattle’s…

Cruising Life
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Coast Guard Rescues Two from Sinking Boat Off Bradenton, Florida

The Coast Guard rescued two people after their boat took on water and started to sink about two miles west of Anna Maria Island, off Bradenton, Florida. The boat, a 35-foot sportfisherman named the Last Lap, sank after the rescue. The owner is working with a commercial salvage service for salvage operations. The Coast Guard said its watchstanders in St. Petersburg got an emergency call from the boat saying it was taking on water. The Coast Guard dispatched a 45-foot response boat from its Station Cortez in Bradenton; the Manatee County Sheriff Office marine patrol also sent a boat to help.…

Boat Reviews
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New Dinghy Lift for Outboard-Powered Ranger 27, Cutwater 32

Ranger Tugs and Cutwater Boats have just come up with another good idea – a patent-pending Dinghy Lift. The new Dinghy Lift solves a problem that many people have when cruising on an outboard-powered boat: Where to put the dink? The new Dinghy Lift, created by the engineers at Fluid Motion, the parent company for Ranger and Cutwater, so far is in production and available on Ranger 27s, powered by a single 300-hp Yamaha outboard, and on Cutwater 32s, powered by two 300-Yamaha outboards. You can see it in action in the video below. The Dinghy Lift is made from…

On Watch with Peter Janssen
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New 48 Wallytender: 55-Knots with 4 Merc Verados

The new 48 Wallytender X, powered by four 450-hp Mercury Verado R outboards, is designed for the U.S. market, particularly for the South Florida area, where its aggressive styling and 55-knot performance make it an easy fit. The 48 is the first Wally built since the Ferretti Group took over the Monaco-based company. An earlier version was powered by twin 480-hp Volvo IPS600 pod drives, and it topped out at abut 38 knots. Wally’s shift to outboard power is part of a major trend that’s been growing in the past few years, and includes such Downeast builders as Hinckley, MJM,…

Cruising Life
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NOAA Update: “Extremely Active” Atlantic Hurricane Season

Was Hurricane Isaias (pictured above) just a warm-up act? A harbinger of things to come? In a new update, NOAA warns that we could have an “extremely active” Atlantic hurricane season this year and it could include as many as 11 major hurricanes. The new forecast comes in NOAA’s annual August update, called the Atlantic Hurricane Season Outlook. The previous forecast was published in May. Forecasters with NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center say that atmospheric and ocean conditions are ideal for fueling new storms; they warn of a potentially record-setting hurricane season. So far this season, which started June 1, there…

Cruising Life
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New 56-Knot Taiga Orca All-Electric Jet Ski

Here’s a new toy for the rest of the summer – and for a lot of summers to come: The Taiga Orca electric jet ski, and it gives a whole new meaning to plug and play. The Orca, made by Taiga Motors in Montreal, is powered by a 180-hp electric motor and a battery with a 20kWh capacity. It has a top speed of 56 knots and a range of 130 nm. After that, you just plug it in and it will charge back to 80 percent capacity in 20 minutes. Then it’s time to go out and play again.…

Cruising Life
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Volunteers Rescue 45 Dolphins Stranded on Cape Cod

Here’s a heartwarming story from The Cape Cod Times about how a group of volunteers rescued 45 dolphins that were stranded on a beach in Wellfleet: WELLFLEET — When a call came in at 7 a.m. that 45 dolphins were stranded in a stretch of beach in Wellfleet known as The Gut, volunteers from the International Fund for Animal Welfare responded. Almost 50 volunteers were on site by 8 a.m. trying to save the animals. Stacey Hedman, global marketing startegy manager for IFAW, said it wasn’t clear how the dolphins got stranded. “Cape Cod is a hook, and Wellfleet is…

Cruising Life
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Locks Repaired, Lake Champlain Opens to Cruising Boats

The Champlain Locks are finally open, after a long, coronavirus-delayed repair, and the 125-mile long Lake Champlain, one of the most beautiful spots in the U.S., is now accessible for anyone cruising up from New York or coming east along the Erie Canal. Whitehall, the last lock leading to the lake from the Hudson River, just above Albany, opened a few days ago; the repairs originally had been scheduled to be finished by the start of summer, but they were delayed by shutdowns caused by the coronavirus. The good news is that late summer and fall are spectacular times to…

Engine Room
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Scania Enters U.S. Market with 900- and 1,150-hp Diesels

Scania, the large Swedish manufacturer of engines for boats, trucks and industrial applications,  just announced that it’s entering the North American pleasure boat market with two large 900- and 1,150-hp diesel engines. Both are fully emissions certified for the U.S. market, and both are designed for cruising and sport fishing boats. The powerful and lightweight engines have leading power-to-weight ratios, according to the company. The 900-hp engine is a six-cylinder, 13-liter in-line version, and the 1,150-hp engine is a 16-liter V-8 (see picture at top). Both are built on a compacted graphite iron block and use a simple wastegate turbocharger.…

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