Author Peter Janssen

Cruising Life
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ACR Introduces New ResQLink Personal Locator Beacons with Global Reach

ACR Electronics has just launched new ResQLink personal locator beacons that are small, lightweight and pack more punch to help you in case of an emergency. The new PLBs have a digital display option, and they incorporate first-hand feedback from survivors who have had to activate their PLBs in real life. The new ResQLink PLBs are small enough that you can carry them in a pocket or attach them to a life jacket. They have built-in buoyancy and an operating life of more than 24 hours. They also have global coverage, operating on three satellite systems so their signals can…

Cruising Life
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Recovered from Irma, St. Barts, an Island Gem, Has Regained Its Luster

With a combination of French and Swedish history, St. Barts is one of the most alluring islands in the Caribbean. Its harbor, in the main city of Gustavus, has more than a touch of Caribbean-style cosmopolitan charm, while the pristine white-sand beaches and occasional  anchorages around the island make it a worldwide cruising or vacation destination. The New York Times just ran one of its popular “36 Hours” stories about St. Barts, giving a sample itinerary of what to do and where to go if were able to get there for that period of time. For anyone cruising or chartering there,…

On Watch with Peter Janssen
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Is Your Boat Smarter Than You Are?

We already have smart phones, smart cars, and perhaps even smart refrigerators. Now we’re getting smart boats too. Consider this: Numarine will introduce its new 78HTS as “the world’s most innovative smart yacht” at the Palm Beach International Boat Show, starting March 28. The boat actually was displayed at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January to promote its new artificial intelligence systems worked out with Furrion, the luxury innovation company. The Numarine 78 (pictured above) is indeed smart. On board, you can interact with Angel, a virtual onboard concierge, and with a series of Smart Mirrors that…

Cruising Life
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Maritimo Set To Launch Innovative New X50, with Beach Club or Third Cabin Aft

Building on the success of its creative X60 that was launched last year, Maritimo, the highly regarded Australian builder, is launching a new X50 at the Sanctuary Cove boat show south of Brisbane next month. With its low profile, race-bred hull and innovative “beach club’” aft cabin, the Maritimo X60 set sales records for the company after its introduction last  year in Australia and was equally well received in the U.S., starting with the Annapolis powerboat show in October. The new X50 is a two-cabin, two-head boat, with a highly customizable third cabin or beach club lounge area aft, accessible…

Cruising Life
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Le Boat Turns 50, Opens New Base, with More Boats, on Canada’s Historic Rideau Canal

Le Boat, the French company with the world’ largest fleet of river and canal charter boats, is celebrating its 50 anniversary this year, and it just opened its second base on the historic Rideau Canal in Ontario, Canada. It also is expanding its fleet there. When it started in 1969, Le Boat had eight boats on the gorgeous Canal du Midi in France. The concept of chartering a canal boat that you could drive yourself proved popular almost immediately, and the company has grown exponentially. Today, Le Boat has 940 boats in eight countries around the world. Last spring, Le…

Cruising Life
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New Towable NautBoard Water Toy: Swim Like a Dolphin

The new towable NautBoard water toy just looks like fun. It’s easy to use – you basically just hang on – and then a boat or jet ski tows you through, or under, the water, at speeds from 2 to 5 knots. The company says that NautBoard’s patented design lets you swim like a dolphin – and we all know how much fun they are. The board is shaped something like a bird in flight. Its wave-like design limits the gravitational pull on your body so you can swim behind it easily. And anyone can use it. The NautBoard is…

Cruising Life
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Dramatic Pictures of Coast Guard Surf Training Off San Francisco

If you think you’ve been in some bad surf, take a look at these pictures. They show two 47-foot Coast Guard lifeboats practicing surf training off Ocean Beach in San Francisco. Taken by Dave Rogers, who usually shoots wildlife, they capture the raw power of the surf and the intensity of the Coast Guard training in absolutely memorable images. Rogers told USA Today that he was driving by the beach when he saw other photographers gathered on the dunes, taking pictures of the surf. He stopped, and started shooting himself. What he saw was memorable, as the boats climbed over…

Cruising Life
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Wilbur Introduces New 37 Weekender with Twin Outboards and a 48-Knot Top End

Here’s a big change for Wilbur Yachts, the traditional builder of Down East boats in Southwest Harbor, Maine. Lee Wilbur started the company in 1973 and built more than 200 classic lobster boats there over the years, working with such iconic boating names as Jarvis Newman, Ralph Stanley, Ralph Ellis and Raymond Bunker, among others. In 2001, Wilbur sold the company to his daughter, Heidi, and her husband, John Kachmar, who’ve been running it ever since. Now Kachmar has come up with an entirely new look for Wilbur – a Wilbur 37 Weekender.  Powered by twin 425-hp Yamaha outboards, the…

Cruising Life
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Whale Starts To Swallow Diver Off South Africa, Then Spits Him Out, Uninjured

Rainer Schimpf, 51, is a lucky man. After all, he was almost eaten up by a 50-foot whale while he was diving in the Indian Ocean off South Africa, with his head and torso inside the whale’s mouth. Fortunately, after a few seconds, the whale spat him out, and Schimpf swam back to his dive boat, unharmed. (See the video, below.) Schimpf is the director of Dive Experts Tours, and he was leading a group about 25 nm off Elizabeth Harbour, just east of Cape Town. The group was filming a sardine run that usually attracts seals, dolphins, sharks, penguins…

Cruising Life
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Navy Cracks Down on Boaters Anchored in Restricted Waters Off Key West

If you’re going to Key West, make sure you check your chart before you drop anchor. The Navy just cracked down on boats anchored in restricted waters there, issuing citation to 37 vessels, including some that were being used as vacation rentals. The problem was that the boats were anchored in restricted areas around the Naval Air Station in Key West. The Navy wanted to clear them out of potentially dangerous areas near bunkers on Fleming Key that store explosive materials. Fleming Key is connected to Key West by a short bridge and is just across Garrison Bight from the…

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