Author Peter Janssen

Boat Reviews
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Fleming 55: An Updated Classic Cruising Boat

The quintessential serious cruising boat, the Fleming 55 has become a classic since it was first launched in 1986. Some 235 Fleming 55s have been built since then, reflecting hundreds of refinements and tweaks to reflect changing technologies and lessons learned on the water. Most of these refinements, of course, come from Tony Fleming himself, the founder of the company who cruises around the world on his Fleming 65 Venture, which he uses as a test bed to make sure the boats are constantly updated. A pilothouse motoryacht, the Fleming 55 has three staterooms and two heads, a large, 130-square-feet…

Boat Reviews
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Endeavour TrawlerCat 42: Tons of Space and Outboard Power

Many smaller cruising boats, monohulls and cats, are moving to outboard power, and the Endeavour TrawlerCat 42 is a larger example of that trend. Using the same hull and layout as the Endeavour 40, the new 42 is powered by twin 300-hp Suzuki outboards that produce a top speed of 21.3 mph, while making the boat even more user-friendly in skinny water spots of the Chesapeake and the Bahamas with its 3-foot draft. You could even trim the outboards up if you need to. The appeal of the new Endeavour, in addition to its outboard power, is the tremendous amount…

Boat Reviews
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Cutwater 28: A Proven Pocket Cruiser

Cutwaters are made in Washington State by Fluid Motion, LLC, the same company that makes Ranger Tugs, and that was founded by the father-son team of David and John Livingston. They know how to build boats; David was president of Bayliner when the company was making 56,000 boats a year. And they know how to create value for their owners. Indeed, the new Cutwater 28, fully equipped with a 260-hp Volvo diesel, Garmin electronics, bow and stern thrusters and ready to cruise, carries a base price of $194,937. With an 8’6” beam, the 28 is trailerable, user-friendly and packed with…

Boat Reviews
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Coastal Craft 45: Built for Serious Cruising

Coastal Craft, founded in 1996 by Jeff Rhodes in Gibsons, B.C., about 25 miles north of Vancouver, is something else in the recreational boating market. Originally catering to the fishing and work boat industry, Coastal Craft are all built with commercial-quality welded aluminum hulls, with an emphasis on reliability, safety and seaworthiness. Gibsons is about 25 miles north of Vancouver on Georgia Strait, where the waters can be unpredictable at best. The new Coastal Craft 45, the company’s flagship, is built with a planing hull (topping out at 32 knots), an upscale interior, two staterooms and two heads, and a…

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American Tugs 435: A Sturdy, No-Frills Cruiser

A sturdy cruiser, well-equipped to handle the coast of Maine, the Great Loop, or the Waterway down to the Keys or the Bahamas, the new American Tugs 435 has two staterooms, two heads, a raised pilothouse, a comfortable salon with forward galley and enough storage and living areas to keep a couple or family comfortable for a long time onboard. American Tugs are made in LaConner, Washington, but about half are now sold on the East Coast as more and more owners appreciate all the boats have to offer. The no-frills approach to cruising, with a single 500-hp Cummins diesel,…

Cruising Life
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Tragic Video: Two Dead as Cat Flips on Potomac Radar Run

This is just a tragic accident: A 36-foot cat flipped during a timed radar run on the Potomac River near Fairview Beach, Virginia. The driver and throttle man were both thrown from the boat and died. The cat had been timed at 170 mph earlier in the day. I personally how how boats travel right on the edge of control/disaster at these speeds, since I once drove a 47-foot Fountain cat 162 mph. At that speed a puff of wind, something in the water or an error in judgment can easily mean an upside down boat and catastrophe for the…

Cruising Life
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Report from Annapolis: “Best Show in Years”

The Annapolis Powerboat Show just ended, and the reviews are coming in: “Best Annapolis in recent years” –  Dave Northrop, director of sales and operations, Americas, for Grand Banks and Palm Beach Yachts. “Our attendance was 4.8% better than 2015 and the best since pre-2008.” – Paul Jacobs, show president and general manager. “The overall attitude of customers was more positive than any of us can remember.” – Jeff Messmer, VP of Ranger Tugs and Cutwater Boats. “It looks like it will be a great show.” – Bentley Collins, VP of Sabre and Back Cove Yachts. “We were so busy,…

Cruising Life
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Incredible Video: Great White Inside Shark Cage

Off the coast of Mexico, a great white shark trying to eat some tuna actually bit through the side of a shark cage, with the diver inside, and then fought its way out, while the diver swam under the cage to safety. Here’s an incredible video, shot from the dive boat. https://gcaptain.com/viral-video-great-white-shark-breaches-dive-cage-diver-inside/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Gcaptain+%28gCaptain.com%29

Cruising Life
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Is the Great Barrier Reef Toast? Read this…

The Great Barrier Reef off the eastern coast of Australia has been around for 25 million years, stretching over 1,400 miles and containing some 2,900 individual reefs, not to mention 1,625 species of fish and 450 species of coral. But now with climate change and warmer water and catastrophic bleaching, according to this story 50 percent of the coral in the warmer, northern section has already died. What happens next? http://www.outsideonline.com/2112086/obituary-great-barrier-reef-25-million-bc-2016?utm_content=buffera9dd8&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=facebookpost

Cruising Life
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Boat Starts to Sink; Coast Guard Rescues Three Men, Two Dogs

I’m partial, but I’ve always got to hand it to the Coast Guard for being there when you need them. Latest example: When the Coast Guard near New Orleans got a call that a powerboat was sinking off Dauphin Island, Alabama, they launched a 45-foot fast response boat and two helicopters. The rescue boat got there first and plucked three men and two dogs from the water. If you look the picture, I think you’d agree that the Coast Guard got there just in time. http://coastguardnews.com/coast-guard-rescues-3-people-2-dogs/2016/10/12/

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