Author Peter Janssen

Cruising Life
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Owner Charged with Drinking, Driving Fountain 42 69 mph into Lake Michigan Breakwall, Killing Two Friends

This story is about a tragic combination of booze, speed and boating at night. Tom Gibson (above), 37, an experienced boater from Lake Village, Indiana, was just indicted there on several charges as a result of a crash he had on his Fountain 42 last summer that killed the other two people on board. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources charged Gibson on two counts each of reckless homicide, criminal recklessness and operating a motorboat while intoxicated resulting in death. After he was booked, Gibson posted $60,000 bail. The trial date hasn’t been set yet. Prosecutors say Gibson left East…

On Watch with Peter Janssen
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On Watch

Report from Palm Beach: “The Best of the Season.” Traditionally, the Palm Beach boat show is a buyer’s show; a lot of people, so the thinking goes, look at the Miami shows, but then a month later they actually buy in Palm Beach. The Palm Beach show, which just ended, certainly had a lot of the major cruising boats that had already been displayed in Miami, but it also had some new ones, including the Vicem 46IPS from Turkey and the Minorca 34 from Spain, while the new Sabre 45 (from Maine, of course) was undergoing sea trials just up…

Boat Reviews
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New Vicem Classic 46IPS, A Company First in Fiberglass and Epoxy, Launched at Palm Beach Show. Plus Video.

Vicem Yachts, the Turkish builder that’s been specializing in using marine mahogany in the cold-molded construction process since 1991, just introduced its first fiberglass/epoxy model, the Vicem Classic 46IPS, at the Palm Beach International Boat Show. And, no surprise, it’s a beauty, both outside and in. The joinerwork is simply elegant. Designed by Vicem’s in-house team, the boat carries classic Downeast lines that just as easily could have been drawn in Southwest Harbor, Maine.  The Classic 46IPS is powered by two 435-hp Volvo IPS 600s, offering joystick control and pod drives for easy maneuvering around the docks and greater fuel…

Cruising Life
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New Sabre 45 Turns in Impressive Performance in First Sea Trial. See Video.

Here’s a first look, an on-board video, of the new Sabre 45 Salon Express, in its initial sea trial off Jupiter, Inlet, Florida. All went well, as you can see. With twin 435-hp Volvos and IPS drives, the new Maine-built beauty topped out at 32 knots, burning 44 gph; at a  cruise speed of 27.6 knots, it burned 34.5 gph. And the new Sabre is quiet. The sound levels were 73 dB(A) at cruise, and 75 dB(A) at top speed. We’ve already written about the boat in our Boat Review section. For more: http://sabreyachts.com  Or see for yourself: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ByUEu0AUvvk

Cruising Life
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Outer Reef 88 Rounds Cape Horn with Company President on Board: Great Video

Not that many boat company presidents get to join one of their owners cruise around Cape Horn, one of the most dangerous bodies of water in the world, but then not that many production boats actually go around Cape Horn to begin with. But Jeff Druek, president and CEO of Outer Reef Yachts (above left), recently joined Paul Hawran (above right) on Hawran’s Outer Reef 880 cockpit motoryacht, Argo, as it rounded the horn. For both, it was the experience of a lifetime. Hawran, now 64, has been boating since he was 21 and bought a 20-foot Mako with…

Cruising Life
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Here’s a Feel-Good Video of Some Very Nice Boat Handling in Marigot Bay

There’s nothing urgent here, nothing mind-bending or surprising. But if you love boats, take a look at this video. It’s all about a pretty boat in pretty water handled by a pretty damn good captain. Meet the Lady J, a 389-ton, 142-feet-long, 1997 Palmer Johnson docking in Marigot Bay, St. Luca. Thrusters help, but here’s a nice look at some pretty professional boat handling: http://www.oceanofnews.com/dock-yacht-caribbean/

Cruising Life
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Fires on Board: What You Can Do. A New Report and Video from the BoatU.S. Foundation

We’re all aware of the possibility of a fire on our boat. But I know from my own experience, and that of most of my friends, we tend to put that possibility in the back of our minds. Yes, we have enough extinguishers; yes, we check them periodically, and yes, we tell our family or crew where they are and how to use them. But that’s clearly not enough. Because fires are much worse than we think they are. They spread faster. They often cut off escape routes. They can be explosive. All this is spelled out in a great…

Boat Reviews
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Minorca 34: A Totally New, Bright, Prize-Winning Cruiser from Spain

Just introduced at the Palm Beach show, the Minorca 34 is an entirely new entry, a light-filled, well-built Spanish cruiser being represented in the U.S. by SYS Yacht Sales of Jupiter and Sarasota, Florida. The two-cabin, one-head Minorca, made in the Balearic island of the same name, has an exceptional design on the outside, with gentle curves almost everywhere,while the interior is bright and open in a contemporary style that just as easily could be at home in Scandanavia as in the coast of Spain. Although new to the U.S., the Minorca 34 has already been displayed in Europe, winning…

Cruising Life
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Princess 60 Captain Found Guilty in Killing Fisherman in 23-foot Steiger Craft Off Watch Hill

We all know how easily this sort of tragedy can happen. And how easily it can be avoided. On Sept. 22, 2015, Cooper Bacon, 76, a Coast Guard licensed captain from Cape May Court House, New Jersey, was driving a new Princess 60 from the Newport, Rhode Island, boat show down to the Norwalk, Connecticut, boat show. Also on board was mate William Noe, 3rd, of Woodbine, New Jersey. It was 10:30 in the morning on a sunny, clear day. At the same time, Walter Krupinski, 81, a rod and reel commercial fisherman from Stonington, Connecticut, was heading home after…

On Watch with Peter Janssen
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On Watch

Now You Can Buy a Certified Pre-Owned Hinckley Hinckleys are certainly among the most beautiful yachts on the planet and, with their patented JetStick controls, among the most fun to drive. Most people would like to think about owning one. (I know I fit in that category, ever since I tested Dasher, hull number one of the Picnic Boat, in Southwest Harbor, Maine, back in 1994.) The basic problem, of course, is that they’re also expensive. The obvious solution: Buy a used one. But then, even with a good survey, do you really know what you’re getting? Now Hinckley has an answer…

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