Practical Boat Owner

Editor Alison Wood [email protected] News Editor Laura Hodgetts [email protected] Deputy Art Editor Daniel Franklin Art Editor Robert Owen Production Editor Julian Peckham Group Art Editor Neil Singleton Head of Art Kevin Eason Ste

with the editor Each week I open my inbox to find unexpected and delightful articles from all over the world. This month, Owen Moorhouse’s teenage canoe trip had me hooked. Together with his brother, he built an ‘unsinkable’ canoe from sheet metal an

Email news editor Laura Hodgetts at [email protected], tel: 0330 390 6467 Recreational sailors and lifeboat crew who rescue refugees and migrants in distress off the coast of the UK will not risk criminal liability. The Royal Yachting Association (RY

A life-partner of free-spirited sailor and pioneering multihull designer James Wharram, who passed away on 14 December, has paid tribute. Hanneke Boon said: “At 93 years old his spirit has set out on the voyage to sail the oceans of heaven. James was

Bangor University’s Ecostructure project team is appealing for recreational boaters and paddlers around the UK and Ireland to take part in a survey. A spokesman said: “We are interested in testing out some education materials you see on forums, at cl

The Environment Agency (EA) says it has listened to feedback and will not implement registration charges based on boat area on any of the inland waterways. It also announced that current charging mechanisms for powered and unpowered craft would be re

Britain’s Olympic gold medallists Hannah Mills MBE and Eilidh McIntyre were voted female 2021 Rolex World Sailor of the Year on 2 December in a virtual ceremony streamed live from the Royal Yacht Squadron in Cowes, Isle of Wight. Mills and McIntyre c

The RYA has welcomed the Government’s intent to waive the three-year condition for Returned Goods Relief (RGR) for pleasure craft that are the personal property of a UK resident and being returned to the UK for personal use. The waiver for boats that

▀ Düsseldorf Boat Show, 22-30 January CANCELLED ▀ All Wales Boat and Leisure Show, 5-6 February, Llandudno, allwalesboatshow.com ▀ Sailability National Conference, 12 February, online event, rya.org.uk/events ▀ BoatLife Live, 17-20 February, NEC Birm

Boatfolk marina group, has installed a Seabin in Penarth Marina, Cardiff Bay Barrage. The innovative floating plastic waste basket moves with the tides, sucking water in via a submersible pump. It is capable of displacing 25,000 litres per hour, thro

Suffolk Yacht Harbour (SYH) has invested in a pump out facility so boaters need not empty holding tanks at sea. The River Orwell marina offers the only pump out facility between Lowestoft and Clacton. Boat owners can call VHF Ch80 for directions to t

or write to us at the address on page 5. Photos are appreciated, letters may be edited. I’m trying to restore my late dad’s Sea King wooden sailing boat called Alcyone. My dad passed away in 2017 following a brave battle with vascular dementia. Losin

I enjoyed Rupert Holmes’ article on Mainsail Luff Hardware (PBO, July 2021) and agree with all he said. It reminded me of a baffling experience that took me years to resolve. I’d thought that the increasing difficulty I had hoisting my mainsail was d

www.twitter.com/p_b_o www.facebook.com/practicalboatownermag After reading PBO December 2021 I must say how refreshing it has been to see in recent issues the new editor of PBO proving beyond argument her credentials as a practical boat owner. If I r

Dave Selby is the proud owner of a 5.48m (18ft) Sailfish, which he keeps on a swinging mooring on the picturesque Blackwater estuary in Essex Sailors are essentially collectors. At sea we collect anecdotes – mostly of the “there I was holed by a whal

CLIVE MARSH discovered small boats whilst working for Canadian Pacific Steamships and is a past Commodore of the Merchant Navy Association Boat Club. In this NEW SERIES he shares tales from his 50 years of boat ownership. The London Nautical School w

It has already been several years since electric propulsion became the most popular form of auxiliary power for new daysailers and weekenders – we’ve seen it on everything from the retro Rustler 24 and 33 to the RS21 racing keelboat. While range anxi

Pack light We packed far too many warm clothes for the hot climate. We needed no more than what we wore to the airport. After which we were in shorts, T-shirts and flip-flops ashore or swimwear aboard. Local guides In Walilabou there were a lot of ‘b

We may be just unlucky or other PBO readers may have experienced the same problem with their holding tanks becoming blocked. On the Beneteau Oceanis 37 it’s impossible to clear the outlet to the holding tank via the deck fitting as the two fittings d

Q Our 1983 Sigma 41 has some spaces which trap water and which would be very difficult to drill limber holes into. They’re awkwardly shaped, often irregular and rough spaces which are difficult to dry out with a sponge. Stringers and ribs are formed

To ask a question email [email protected] and include your address. Tony Davies has been building and repairing boats for more than 40 years Stuart Carruthers is the RYA Cruising Manager and has sailed extensively Duncan Kent tests yachts and equipme