Author Peter Janssen

Boat Reviews
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New Grand Banks 52: A Long-Range, Smooth-Running, High-Tech Cruiser

Grand Banks just announced that they are building a new 52, a long-range cruiser with a high-tech, slippery, 30-knot hull that will be launched at the Newport, Rhode Island, boat show next September. The GB 52 will be the latest in the newly reinvigorated Grand Banks lineup, coming after the Grand Banks 60 and Grand Banks 60 Skylounge. Mark Richards, the company’s president and CEO, made the announcement at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. “The 52 will combine weight reduction, strength and a low vertical center of gravity,” he said. “Of course, efficiency doesn’t matter without comfort, so we…

Cruising Life
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Captain of Princess 60 Pleads Guilty for Killing Fisherman on 23-Foot Center Console off Westerly, Rhode Island

The captain of a Princess 60 that ran into a 23-foot Steiger Craft center console off Westerly, Rhode Island, two years ago, killing its owner, has pleaded guilty in a federal court in Providence to a charge of seaman’s manslaughter. About 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 22, 2015, a clear, sunny day, Cooper “Chick” Bacon, of Cape May, New Jersey, a Coast-Guard licensed captain, was driving the Princess from Newport to Stamford, Connecticut. The Princess ran into the Steiger Craft, the Peggy K, killing Walter S. Krupinski, 81, the only person on board, who was returning home to Stonington, Connecticut, after…

On Watch with Peter Janssen
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On Watch

Fort Lauderdale Report: First Day at FLIBS By Peter A. Janssen Walking down the Beneteau dock at the opening day of the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show was like running into a new, improved version of an old friend. I could almost hear the new Beneteau 47 Swift Trawler, which was making its U.S. debut at the show, calling my name. After all, I’ve had a soft spot in my heart for Beneteau’s Swift Trawler line ever since I took one around part of the Great Loop a few years ago. But that was a two-cabin, single-diesel 34. The new…

Charter
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Six Reasons To Take a Crewed Charter Vacation. Reason One: Leave Your Worries Behind

Every once in a while, we all should have a chance to treat ourselves, to do something simply because it’s fun, or adventuresome or memorable. That’s the way I think about taking a crewed charter vacation. Over the years, I’ve done this both ways – chartered bareboat, and chartered crewed. Bareboat, of course, is where the charter company gives you the boat and you do everything yourself. That’s all great; you get to play captain again but in a new setting in a new boat. A crewed charter, however, is where you just show up, and the charter company does…

Cruising Life
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Six of the Best Personal Survival Devices for Your Boat. Make Sure You Have One

There are few choices you make about your boat that are potentially more important than finding the right survival device, the personal locator beacon or MOB equipment that could save your life, or the life of anyone else on board. And there’s no reason to postpone getting one or more of these; they generally are the least costly piece of electronics on board, by a long shot. But what to buy? Here’s some advice from Marine Electronics Journal, which asked manufacturers to submit what they consider the best and brightest in their product line. The Journal published a review of…

Charter
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Want To Make Money Chartering Your Boat? Take a Look at Boatsetter, an Airbnb on the Water

Take a look at the picture above. It’s a screen shot of a Boatsetter page for boats you can charter in Miami. That’s a great opportunity if you’re visiting on business or a vacation and want to charter a boat for a day or evening a few hours. It’s also an opportunity for boat owners who want to make some money off a vessel that otherwise would be sitting empty and unused for that same day or evening. Sounds like a win-win situation. Is it? In a sense, Boatsetter, with its headquarters in Fort Lauderdale, is a marine example of…

Cruising Life
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Manatees, Like Snowbirds, Return to South Florida. Slow Down

Along with the snowbirds, manatees have returned to Florida. Manatee season just started, meaning the manatee slow-speed zones are now in effect throughout the state. Here’s a great story from Southern Boating about the return of these gentle, slow-moving mammals, and what cruisers can do to protect them: They’re baaaaak! Sunday is the official start of the manatee season. That means that slow-speed regulations in South Florida’s network of waterways take effect. Manatees can’t tolerate water temperatures below 68 degrees (much like the other snowbirds that join us around this time of year), which is why the gentle giants swim south…

Boat Reviews
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Huckins Starts New 38 Sportsman with Either Outboard or Hybrid Diesel-Electric Power

Huckins is starting work on its 38 Sportsman, and the 90-year-old company is offering its retro-styled cruiser with either outboard power or hybrid diesel-electric power, showing that it can still blend traditional styling with the most modern engines and technology. Whatever the power, the new 38 will have Huckins’ iconic Quadraconic hull that founder Frank Pembroke Huckins introduced generations ago. Huckins Yacht in Jacksonville, Florida, is now run by Huckins’ granddaughter, Cindy Purcell, and she is staying true to the company’s heritage. The 38 has Huckins’ traditional art deco styling, but the company wants to offer buyers either the increasingly…

Cruising Life
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Luxurious 332-foot Megayacht and Charter Fishing Boat Collide South of San Diego. One Man Died, Several Injured

A 332-foot megayacht and a charter fishing boat collided at night in the Pacific south of San Diego. Several people were injured, one critically, and the fishing boat sustained major damage. The critically injured man died the next day. The Coast Guard said there were 28 people on Prowler, a 65-foot fishing boat out of San Diego. It launched a Jayhawk helicopter, a 45-foot response boat and the Cutter Sea Otter to the scene, which was nine miles off Imperial Beach near the U.S.-Mexico border. The Jayhawk crew hoisted the critically injured person off the Prowler and flew him to a…

Boat Reviews
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Stephens Waring Designs New Custom Composite 57-Foot Cruiser for C.W. Hood

Here’s a first look at a new custom composite 57-foot Down East cruiser that Stephens Waring Yacht Design of Belfast, Maine, worked on for C. W. Hood Yachts of Marblehead, Massachusetts. Construction of major components is starting at Lyman-Morse Boatbuilding in Thomaston, Maine, and will be finished at the Hood yard. “The client originally came to us with a 26-foot repower and refit project,” says Chris Hood, the founder of C.W. Hood Yachts. “Inspired by the style and performance of our earlier designs, the conversation turned to a larger custom yacht. With a few guidelines and a fair amount of…

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