At the Ft. Lauderdale International Boats Show, I had the chance to test out the performance of Seakeeper’s Ride stabilization systems aboard a 35 foot performance cruiser capable of hitting 40 knots.  We took the boat to government cut and ran it in and out through a nasty washing-machine seaway. The stabilizers are mounted on the stern and make trim adjustments in micro seconds. The effect was dramatic. With the Ride system engaged, the boat leveled off, did not roll or pitch and did not yaw as it moved through the mixed up sea. Turned off,  the boat’s motion was…

YANMAR Marine International has announced the launch of its VC30 at Metstrade, a third-generation Vessel Control System, with advanced design and functionality, a newly designed precision-engineered joystickand easy installation.  YANMAR’s most advanced control system to date, the VC30 is designed to simplify throttle control and docking in one integrated system, whilst making it easier to view data and create a seamless dashboard.  The full system is enhanced by a high-quality display and modern design, including alarger, 4.3” 1000cd optically bonded screen, to reduce reflection and improve readability, with NMEA2000 output. The display unit has an auto dimming function for dark…

On September 10, 1982, three passengers aboard a light aircraft crashed into the sea off the Canadian Maritimes. They were able to deploy their life raft and they had with them the earliest version an Emergency Position Indicating Beacon (EPIRB). They switched it on and set in motion the very first COSPAS-SARSAT rescue. They were found and rescued in a matter of hours instead of the days such search and rescue missions took before the satellite rescue system was in place. Since then, more than 50,000 people have been saved from a watery end by EPIRB technology. For those of…

Volvo Penta introduced Joystick steering two decades ago and has continued to pioneer ways to use the combination of engines,  thrusters and GPS to help skippers maneuver their boats more easily and precisely. I was involved in the early demonstrations of the Volvo Dynamic Positioning technology  back then and was amazed at how well even the prototype held a boat in position and allowed the skipper to turn a boat inside its own length. Last fall at the Ft. Lauderdale show, I got to test the latest Volvo Joystick iteration with the new Assisted Docking Function that allows you to…

Of all the natural phenomena that we run into out on the water, lightning may be the most worrisome. A direct strike can blow a thru-hull right off the boat creating a gaping hole, it can fry your electrical panel and battery bank and it can start a fire. Even near misses can create a mess inside marine electronics and the autopilot, or in the alternator and starter motor on your engine, or it can blow up an inverter-charger. Lightning works in mysterious ways so you can never predict where it will go and what damage it can do. That…