Boating And Yachting Magazine

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About Boating And Yachting

• Boating, the leisurely activity of traveling by boat typically refers to the recreational use of boats whether power boats, Sail boats, or larger Yacht, focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, such as fishing or waterskiing. Boating is an extremely popular activity, and there are millions of boaters worldwide.
  
  For more details on this topic, see Yachting.
  
  [edit] Types of boats
  
  Recreational boats (sometimes called pleasure craft, especially for less sporting activities) fall into several broad categories, and additional subcategories. Broad categories include dinghies (generally under 16' powered by sail, small engines, or muscle power), paddlesports boats (kayaks, rowing shells, canoes), runabouts (15-25' powerboats with either outboard, sterndrive, or inboard engines), daysailers (14–25' sailboats, frequently with a small auxiliary engine), cruisers (25–65' powerboats with cabins), and cruising and racing sailboats (25–65' sailboats with auxiliary engines). A very common type of boat in England is the canal Narrowboat, usually fited out with sleeping accommodation, though it is not clear which of the above categories it fits in (some are 72 feet long).
  
  The National Marine Manufacturer's Association ([1]) defines 32 types of boats [2], demonstrating the diversity of boat types and specialization.
  
  Contents
  [hide]
  
  * 1 Types of boats
  * 2 Boat storage
  * 3 Boating activities
  * 4 Safety
  o 4.1 PFD Use
  o 4.2 Drowning
  o 4.3 Carbon Monoxide
  * 5 See also
  * 6 External links
  
  Downeast style charter boat Wreck Valley
  Downeast style charter boat Wreck Valley
  
  [edit] Boat storage
  
  The smallest boats and kayaks may simply be carried by hand or by lashing it to the top of an automobile. Most smaller boats are stored at home and carried to the water on boat trailers, where they are floated from launch ramps leading down into the water. Some marinas will also offer electric hoists that can lift a boat from a trailer and swing it into the water (generally less than 6,000#). Larger boats are kept at marinas, which offer a mooring protected from the weather and a variety of support services, such as fuel, equipment and so forth.
  
  A more recent form of storage is rack storage where runabouts are stored in large steel racks, sometimes four or five boats high, and perhaps 25 boats across. These racks are housed in sheds, and large specialized fork trucks are used to lift the boats from the racks and place them in the water. This reduces the amount of space needed for boat storage, and also provides a clean environment in which the boats are housed.
  
  Some marinas will offer dry storage yards, where boats on trailers or dollies are stored on a hard surface. Many yacht clubs will offer a fenced area where boats are conveniently stored near the water, but without the maintenance associated with continual water storage (bottom growth, etc.) Boats in dry storage areas are either ramp-launched or hoisted into the water.
  
  [edit] Boating activities
  
  Boating activities [3]are as varied as the boats and boaters who participate, and new ways of enjoying the water are constantly being discovered. Broad categories include the following:
  
  * Paddlesports include both flatwater (lakes), swiftwater (rivers), and ocean going types, usually covered-cockpit kayaks.
  o Canoes are popular on lakes and rivers due to their carrying capacity and efficiency on the water. They are also easy to portage, or carry overland around obstructions like rapids, or just down to the water from a car or cabin.
  o Kayaks can be found on calm inland waters, whitewater rivers, and along the coasts in the oceans. Known for their maneuverability and seaworthiness, kayaks take many shapes depending on their disired use. Rowing craft are also popular for fishing, as a tender to a larger vessel, or as a competitive sport.
  o Rowing shells are extremely long and narrow, and are intended to convert as much of the rower's muscle power as possible into speed. The ratio of length of waterline to beam has much importance in marine mechanics and design.
  o Row boats or dinghies are oar powered, and generally restricted to protected waters. Rowboats are generally heavy craft compared to other has
  
  * Sailing can be either competitive, as in collegiate dinghy racing, or purely recreational as when sailing on a lake with family or friends.
  o Small sailboats are commonly made from fiberglass, and will have wood or aluminum spars, and generally a sloop rig (two sails: a mainsail and a jib). Racing dinghies tend to be lighter, have more sail area, and may use a trapeze to allow one or both crewmembers to suspend themselves over the water for additional stability.
  o Daysailers tend to be wider across the beam and have greater accommodation space at the expense of speed.
  o Cruising sailboats have more width, but performance climbs as they tend to be much longer starting Length Over All of at least 25 feet (six metres) re-balancing the dynamic ratio between length of waterline (aiding speed) and beam width (adding cargo and people space).
  
  * Freshwater Fishing Boats account for approximately 1/3 of all registered boats in the U.S., and most all other types of boats end up being used for fishing on occasion. The boating industry has evolved and developed Freshwater Fishing Boat designs that are species-specific to allow anglers the greatest advantage when fishing for walleye, salmon, trout, bass, etcetera, as well as generic fishing craft.
  
  Ski-boat towing Parachute or Parasailing.
  Enlarge
  Ski-boat towing Parachute or Parasailing.
  
  * Watersport Boats or skiboats are high-powered Go-Fast boats (specialized towboats in fact) is designed for activities where a participant is towed behind the boat such as waterskiing and parasailing.
  o Variations on the ubiqutous water-ski include wakeboards, water-skiing, kneeboarding, inflatable towables, and wake surfing. To some degree, the nature of these boating activities has an impact on boat design. Waterski boats are intended to hold a precise course at an accurate speed with a flat wake for slalom skiing runs. Wakeboard boats run at slower speeds, and have various methods including ballast and negative lift foils to force the stern in the water, thereby creating a large and "jumpable" wake.
  
  *
  o Saltwater fishing boats vary widely in length and are once again specialized for various species of fish. Flats boats, for example, are used in protected, shallow waters, and have shallow draft. Sportfishing boats range from 25' to 80' or more, and can be powered by large outboard engines or inboard diesels. Fishing boats in colder climates may have more space dedicated to cuddy cabins and wheelhouses, while boats in warmer climates are likely to be entirely open.
  
  *
  o Cruising boats applies to both power and sailboats, and refers to trips from local weekend passages to lengthy voyages, and is a lifestyle. While faster "express cruisers" can be used for multiple day trips, long voyages generally require a slower displacement boat (trawler) with diesel power and greater stability and efficiency. Cruising sailboats range from 20' to 70' and more, and have easily managed sailplans to allow relatively small crews to sail them long distances. Some cruising sailboats will have two masts (ketch, yawl, or schooner rigs) to further reduce the size of individual sails and make it possible for a couple to handle larger boats. Diesel- (now sometimes electric-) powered Narrowboats are a very popular mode of travel (and accommodation) on the inland waterways of England.
  
  * Racing and Regatta's are common group activities in the sub-culture of boaters owning larger (twenty-five foot plus) small boats and larger Yachts, and are frequently organized around a Yacht club or Marina organization
  o Sailboat racing can be done on conventional family sailboats racing under one of the simpler handicap formulas [4] (PHRF, or Performance Handicap Rating Formula is one such rule), or can be done on specialized boats with virtually no accommodation or compromises for comfort. Racing is generally either one design, where the boats are close to identical, or handicapped where the boats' finishing times are adjusted based on their predicted speed potential. Racing is further broken down into ocean racing, where boats start at one port and race in the ocean and back to the same port or a new destination, or buoy racing where boats race around prescribed courses and return to port at night. Several famous races cross oceans, like the biennial Transpac Race[5] from Los Angeles to Honolulu, or the Newport-Bermuda Race [6]from Newport, Rhode Island to Bermuda. Other races actually circumnavigate the globe, like the Volvo Ocean Race or Vendee Globe race.
  
  [edit] Safety
  
  Since it is a recreational activity, most boating is done in calm protected waters and during good weather. Even so, conditions can change rapidly, and a small vessel can get into life-threatening difficulties. It is important to keep an inventory of safety gear onboard every boat, which is prescribed by the U.S. Coast Guard as well as state boating law administrators in the U.S. Depending on the size of the boat and how it's powered, required equipment may include:
  
  * personal flotation devices (PFDs or life jackets) for everyone on board
  * a throwable flotation device (in the U.S., a Type IV PFD)
  * navigation lights suitable for the type of boat operation
  * visual distress signals (VSDs) which are effective both day and night
  * sound making devices including horns and bells
  * fire extinguisher(s)
  * a copy of the Inland Rules of the Road
  
  Other items might seem obvious but are not actually required by law. They include a flashlight, first aid kit, paddles, whistles, anchor and rode, engine spare parts, bilge pumps, a VHF radio or mobile phone, etc.
  
  In addition to these safety items listed above, the Code of Federal Regulations lists some additional required items that may not fall into the common definition of "safety" items:
  
  * backfire arresters on gasoline powered vessels
  * ventilation systems on gasoline powered vessels
  * plaques which list the penalties associated with pollution due to oil discharge, or dumping trash overboard
  * a marine sanitation system (MSD) which prevents water pollution from sewage
  
  State laws may add to this list of requirements. Most of the differences fall into a few categories:
  
  * laws requiring life jackets to be worn in specific activities or by children
  * upgraded life jackets for specific activities or by children
  * restrictions on the types of MSDs that are allowed within state borders
  
  Commercial Fisherman wearing PFD with pockets among other safety equipment. Likely pocket contents: A Whistle (on the lanyard, left side), Dye Packet, Shark Repellent, Strobe Light and Pen knife. A Mini-flare is clipped to the 'vest' on the users left lapel.
  Enlarge
  Commercial Fisherman wearing PFD with pockets among other safety equipment. Likely pocket contents: A Whistle (on the lanyard, left side), Dye Packet, Shark Repellent, Strobe Light and Pen knife. A Mini-flare is clipped to the 'vest' on the users left lapel.
  
  [edit] PFD Use
  
  Recreational boating deaths could be dramatically reduced with increased use of PFDs or Life Vests. Wear rates in 2003 were around 22.4% [7], although state and Federal laws requiring children to wear flotation were more common, and therefore children's wear rates were much higher than those for adults. Relatively few children die in boating accidents; the more likely victim is an adult male in the mid-afternoon in a boat (under 20 feet length over all) who is not wearing a PFD.
  
  Not surprisingly, that also describes a typical boater under normal conditions.
  
  While various strategies have been devised in the last few decades to increase PFD wear rates, the observed rate has been relatively constant. This has led to the possibility of legislation requiring PFD usage on boats under a specified length when underway.
  
  Interestingly, the percentage of deaths due to drowning have declined (from 80% to 70%) in the last decade for a peculiar reason. Personal Watercraft, or PWCs [8], have increased in popularity for the last 15 years, and account for about 70 fatalities per year (2002). However, PWC operators commonly wear PFDs, and therefore have a relatively low incidence of drowning. Trauma, largely due to collisions with other vessels and the shoreline, accounts for 70% of PWC fatalies while drowning accounts for about 30%.
  
  [edit] Drowning
  
  See also: Man overboard
  
  In the U.S., approximately 700 people die per year as a result of recreational boating accidents. These accidents are tabulated in the B.A.R.D., or Boating Accident Reporting Database [9], which is published each year by the U.S. Coast Guard based on the cumulative records of the National Association of Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) [10]. Since 1970, when recreational boating deaths peaked at about 1700 per year, the annual rate of fatalities has been declining at a rate of about 2% per year. The majority of these deaths (70%) occur due to drowning, and are frequently associated with small powerboat accidents. Other causes of death include trauma (especially with small powerboats), fire, carbon monoxide poisoning, and hypothermia.
  
  The cause of the reduction of deaths is subject to some debate, but the Federal Boat Safety Act [11] in the 1970s required that boats under 20' be equipped with level flotation. This change in boat construction meant that boaters who found themselves in the water next to a swamped boat could climb back into the boat and both reduce their likelihood of drowning, while increasing the size of a search target and reducing hypothermia. Other frequently named causes include improved boater safety education, increased use of life jackets, and improved boating safety gear.
  
  Another potential cause for drowning is the presence of stray electrical power from a boat leaking into the water. This is known as electric shock drowning. Metal surfaces of a boat leaking power into the water can create zones of high-energy potential. Stray current entering salt water is less of a problem than the same situation in fresh water. Salt water is a good conductor and it carries current away to ground quickly. Fresh water is a poor conductor and when alternating current form an electrical potential near a boat, the current can paralyze a swimmer. Stray electrical current has caused many drowning, but post-mortem examinations will not link this problem to the death. The problem can be reduced by prohibiting swimming near boats connected to shore power and ensuring marinas comply with National Fire Protection Association Standard 303 for marinas.
  
  [edit] Carbon Monoxide
  
  In the early 2000s, several high-profile deaths due to carbon monoxide poisoning (CO) led to increased scrutiny of boating habits (especially the practice of towing participants immediately behind a boat, known as "teak surfing" or "platform towing") and the implementation of various warning placards to educate boaters of the hazards arising from these activities. Other CO-related deaths were attributed to high concentrations of CO gas from houseboat generator exhaust, where swimmers were able to access an area near the stern of the boats that collected the exhaust. This has led to improved pollution controls on modern generator sets, and changes in the designs of houseboats so that they discharge exhaust gasses in a way that they can disipate. The increased use of CO detectors, especially in boats with enclosed accommodation spaces, would help reduce the risk of CO poisoning.
  
  A boat is a craft or vessel designed to float on, and provide transport over, water.
  
  A boat's propulsion can be by propellers, oars, paddles, setting poles, sails, paddlewheels, or water jets. Boats are generally smaller than ships.
  A wooden boat operating near shore.
  Enlarge
  A wooden boat operating near shore.
  Contents
  [hide]
  
  * 1 Parts of a boat
  * 2 Types of boats
  * 3 Boat building materials
  * 4 Boat propulsion
  * 5 Why boats float
  * 6 External links
  
  [edit] Parts of a boat
  
  See also: Glossary of nautical terms and Naval architecture
  
  A boat in an Egyptian tomb painting from about 1450 BCE
  Enlarge
  A boat in an Egyptian tomb painting from about 1450 BCE
  
  The roughly horizontal, but cambered structures spanning the hull of the boat are referred to as the "deck". In a ship there are often several, but a boat is unlikely to have more than one. The similar but usually lighter structure which spans a raised cabin is a coach-roof. The "floor" of a cabin is properly known as the sole but is more likely to be called the floor. (A floor is properly, a structural member which ties a frame to the keelson and keel.) The underside of a deck is the deck head.
  
  The vertical surfaces dividing the internal space are "bulkheads". The front of a boat is called the bow or prow. The rear of the boat is called the stern. The right side is starboard and the left side is port. Many boats have a section called the gralper, designed to reduce water flow to the non-aerodynamic parts of the boat.
  
  [edit] Types of boats
  A passenger boat to the islands off the coast of the Sai Kung Peninsula of Hong Kong.
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  A passenger boat to the islands off the coast of the Sai Kung Peninsula of Hong Kong.
  A sailboat (racing dinghy) and barge share the Mississippi River, USA.
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  A sailboat (racing dinghy) and barge share the Mississippi River, USA.
  
  * Air boat
  * Banana boat
  * Bangca
  * Bareboat charter
  * Barge
  * Bow Rider
  * Cabin cruiser
  * Canoe
  * Cape Islander
  * Car-boat
  * Caravel
  * Cargo Boat
  * Catamaran
  * Catboat
  * Coble
  * Center Console
  * Coracle
  * Cruiser
  * Cuddy
  * Cutter (pulling boat)
  * Cutter (sailing boat)
  * Dhow
  * Dinghy
  * Dory
  * Dragon boat
  * Dredge
  * Durham Boat
  * Dutch Barge
  * Express Cruiser
  * Felucca
  * Ferry
  * Fireboat
  
  
  
  * Fishing boat
  * Folding boat
  * Go-fast boat
  * Gondola
  * Houseboat
  * Hovercraft
  * Hydrofoil
  * Hydroplane
  * Inflatable boat
  * Jangada
  * Jetboat
  * Jet ski
  * Jon boat
  * Jordan Sales
  * Junk
  * Kayak and Sea kayak
  * Ketch
  * Lifeboat
  * Log boat
  * Longboat
  * Luxury yacht
  * Motorboat
  * Narrowboat
  * Norfolk wherry
  * Outrigger canoe
  * Padded V-hull
  * Personal water craft (PWC)
  * Pinnace
  * Pirogue
  * Pleasure craft
  * Pontoon
  * Powerboat
  * Punt
  
  
  
  * Raft
  * Rigid-hulled inflatable boat (RHIB)
  * Riverboat
  * Runabout
  * Rowboat, rowing boat
  * Sailboat, sailing boat
  * Sampan
  * Schooner
  * Scow
  * Sharpie
  * Shikaras
  * Ship's tender
  * Ski boat
  * Skiff
  * Sloop
  * Submarine
  * Surf boat
  * Swift boat
  * Tarai Bune
  * Tjalk
  * Trimaran
  * Trawler (fishing)
  * Trawler (cruising)
  * Tugboat
  * U-boat
  * Waka
  * Wakeboard boat
  * Walkaround
  * Water taxi
  * Whaleboat
  * Yacht
  * Yawl
  
  Unusual boats have been used for sports purposes - for example, in "bathtub races" which use boats made from bathtubs. Pumpkins have been used as boats as in the annual Pumpkin Boat Race on Lake Otsego in New York state, USA. In this race, very large, hollowed out pumpkin shells are used for boats, powered by canoe paddles.
  
  [edit] Boat building materials
  
  See also: Boat building
  
  A ship's lifeboat, built of steel, rotting in the wetlands of Folly Island, South Carolina, USA.
  Enlarge
  A ship's lifeboat, built of steel, rotting in the wetlands of Folly Island, South Carolina, USA.
  
  Until the mid 19th century all boats were wooden. As the forests of Britain and Europe continued to be over-harvested to supply the keels of larger wooden boats and the Industrial Revolution cheapened the cost of steel, the age of the steel ship began. In the mid 20th century aluminium gained popularity, being lighter and easier to work with than steel. Around the mid 1960s, boats made out of glass-reinforced plastic, more commonly known as fiberglass, became popular, especially for recreational boats. The coast guard refers to such boats as 'FRP' (for Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic) boats.
  
  Fiberglass boats are extremely strong, and do not rust, corrode, or rot. Fiberglass provides structural strength, especially when long woven strands are laid, sometimes from bow to stern, and then soaked in epoxy (i.e., plastic) to form the hull of the boat. One of the disadvantages of fiberglass is that it is heavy and to alleviate this, various lighter components can be incorporated into the design. One of the more common methods is to use cored fiberglass, with the core being balsa wood completely encased in fiberglass. While this works, the addition of wood makes the structure of the boat susceptible to rotting. Similarly, 'advanced composites' are simply other methods designed to introduce less expensive and, by some claims, less structurally sound materials.
  Severn class lifeboat in Poole Harbour, Dorset, England. This is the largest class of UK lifeboat at 17 metres long
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  Severn class lifeboat in Poole Harbour, Dorset, England. This is the largest class of UK lifeboat at 17 metres long
  
  [edit] Boat propulsion
  
  The most common means are:
  
  * Human power (rowing, paddling, setting pole etc.)
  * Wind power (sailing)
  * Motor powered screws
  o Inboard
  + Internal Combustion (gasoline, diesel)
  + Steam (Coal, fuel oil)
  + Nuclear (for LARGE boats)
  o Inboard/Outboard
  + Gasoline
  + Diesel
  o Outboard
  + Gasoline
  + Electric
  o Paddle Wheel
  o Water Jet (Jet ski, Personal water craft, Jetboat)
  o Air Fans (Hovercraft, Air boat)
  
  [edit] Why boats float
  
  See also buoyancy
  
  A boat stays afloat because its weight is equal to that of the water it displaces. The material of the boat itself may be heavier than water (per volume), but it forms only the outer layer. Inside it is air, which is negligible in weight. But it does add to the volume. The central term here is density, which is mass ('weight') per volume. The mass of the boat (plus contents) as a whole has to be divided by the volume below the waterline. If the boat floats than that is equal to the density of water (1 kg/l). To the water it is as if there is water there because the average density is the same. If weight is added to the boat, the volume below the waterline will have to increase too, to keep the mass/weight balance equal, so the boat sinks a little to compensate.
  
  Yachting is a physical activity involving boats. It may be racing sailing boats, cruising to distant shores, or day-sailing along a coast.
  
  [edit] Yachting as a sport
  
  Main article: Yacht racing
  
  Whilst sailing's invention is prehistoric, racing sailing boats is believed to have started in the Netherlands some time in the 17th century, whence it soon made its way to England where custom-built racing "yachts" began to emerge. In 1851, a challenge to an American yacht racing club in New York led to the beginning of the America's Cup, a regatta won by the New York Yacht Club until 1983, when they finally lost to Australia II. Meanwhile, yacht racing continued to evolve, with the development of recognised classes of racing yachts, from small dinghies up to huge maxi yachts.
  
  These days, yacht racing and dinghy racing are common participant sports around the developed world, particularly where favourable wind conditions and access to reasonably sized bodies of water are available. Most yachting is conducted in salt water, but smaller craft can be - and are - raced on lakes and even large rivers.
  
  Whilst there are many different types of racing vessels, they can generally be separated into the larger yachts, which are larger and contain facilities for extended voyages, and smaller harbour racing craft such as dinghies and skiffs.
  
  Dinghy races are conducted on sheltered water on smaller craft, usually designed for crews of between one and three people. They are almost all equipped with one mast. Some have only one triangular sail, but most have two configured as a sloop, and usually carry a spinnaker, a large, bulging sail designed for sailing "with the wind". Most races are conducted between vessels of identical design ("one design" racing). In these races, with identical equipment the sailors best able to make use of the ambient conditions win.
  
  Dinghy designs vary from small, stable, and slow craft for novice sailors to lightweight, high-speed designs that are very difficult for even experienced crews to sail safely and effectively. Australia's 18-foot skiff class are the fastest monohull dinghies, reaching speeds of up to 40 kilometres per hour even in relatively light winds. Sailing has a reputation for being a boring spectator sport, but skiff racing can be very exciting, particularly in unpredictable conditions where crews struggle to keep their boats upright. Various multi-hull racing classes are even faster.
  
  Various one-design dinghy classes are raced at the Summer Olympic Games.
  
  Larger yachts are also raced on harbours, but the most prestigious yacht races are point-to-point long distance races on the open ocean. Bad weather makes such races a considerable test of equipment and willpower just to finish, and from time to time boats and sailors are lost at sea. The longest such events are "round-the-world" races which can take months to complete, but better-known are events such as the "Fastnet race" in the United Kingdom and the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race along the east coast of Australia. As well as a first-past-the-post trophy (called "line honours"), boats may race under a handicap system that adjusts finishing times for the relative speeds of the boats' design, theoretically offering each entrant an equal chance.
  
  [edit] Cruising - yachting as a lifestyle
  
  Cruising involves traveling on a boat. It could be a trip to the other side of the bay or across the oceans to the islands of the South Pacific. Safe cruising across long distances requires a degree of self sufficiency and a wide range of skills beyond handling the boat. Knowledge of navigation, meteorology, mechanical and electrical systems, radio, first aid, sea survival, nutrition and more are needed and can be life saving when cruising to distant shores. In the UK a system of certification is run by the Royal Yachting Association which includes a range of courses, both theoretical and practical, covering these areas.
  
  Sailing is the skillful art of controlling the motion of a sailing ship or sailboat, across a body of water. Sailing vessels are propelled by the force of the wind on sails. Today, for most people, sailing is recreation, an activity pursued for the joy of being on the water and pursuing the mastery of the skills needed to maneuver a sailboat in varying sea and wind conditions. Recreational sailing can be further divided into Racing, Cruising and "Daysailing."
  Contents
  [hide]
  
  * 1 Introduction
  * 2 The physics of sailing
  * 3 Basic sailing techniques
  o 3.1 Steering and turning
  o 3.2 Trim
  o 3.3 Running
  o 3.4 Reaching
  o 3.5 Sailing upwind
  o 3.6 Reducing sail
  o 3.7 Sail trimming
  o 3.8 Hull Trim
  o 3.9 Points of Sail
  o 3.10 Heeling
  o 3.11 Sailing safety
  + 3.11.1 Man overboard
  + 3.11.2 Rules of the road
  * 4 Sailing hulls and hull shapes
  * 5 Types of sails and layouts
  * 6 Sailing terminology
  o 6.1 Rope and lines
  o 6.2 Other terms
  * 7 Knots
  * 8 Sailing regulations
  * 9 Sailboat racing
  o 9.1 Olympics course
  * 10 Sailing traditions and etiquette
  * 11 See also
  * 12 References
  * 13 External links
  
  [edit] Introduction
  
  A sailboat or sailing ship moves forward due to the action of the wind on its sails. Since the dawn of history this vital technology has afforded mankind greater mobility and capacity for fishing, trade and warfare. From moving the stones of the great pyramids from Aswan to Giza to allowing man to migrate throughout Polynesia to Nelson's defeat of the French Navy at Trafalgar, mankind's history has been intertwined with this seemingly simple technology.
  
  [edit] The physics of sailing
  
  The energy that drives a sailboat is obtained by manipulating the relative movement of wind and water speed; if there is no difference in movement, such as on a calm day or when the wind and water current are moving in the same direction, there is no energy to be extracted and the sailboat will not be able to do anything but drift. Where there is a difference in motion, then there is energy to be extracted at the interface, and the sailboat does this by placing the sail(s) in the air and the hull(s) in the water.
  
  Sails are foils and work just like wings do. They generate lift using the air that flows around them. The air flowing at the sail surface is not the true wind[1] but an airflow modified by the motion of the boat. This is the apparent wind, which is the relative velocity of the wind in relation to the boat which also has a velocity. The curved surface of a sail serves to deflect the air. Deflecting the air results in a reaction force on the sail and rigging, which pushes the boat in direction opposite that deflection. It is often said that lift is generated by the pressure differential on the sails, but this is not entirely true--the pressure differential deflects the air, but it is the deflection that generates the force. Since the air behind the sailboat has been deflected, it now has less energy and is slower and is often called dirty air. Racing sailors try to avoid sailing in dirty air and attempt to give dirty air to opponents where possible.[2].
  
  The sail alone is not sufficient to drive the boat, as it would tend only to push the boat in the same direction as the wind. Sailboats do this by placing a second "sail" in the water, in the form of a keel, centerboard, or some other form of underwater foil or the hull itself, as in catamarans without centreboard or in a traditional proa. By doing this, it is possible to generate an additional source of lift from the water. The flow of water over the underwater hull portions create a hydrodynamic force. The combination of the aerodynamic force from the sails and the hydrodynamic force from the underwater hull section allows motion in almost any direction, except straight into the wind. Depending on the efficiency of the rig, the angle of travel relative to the true wind can be as little as 35 degrees to over 80 degrees. This angle is called tacking angle [2]. With a 35 degree tacking angle on either side of the wind, it is possible for a sailboat to sail directly over 290 degrees of the compass.[3]
  
  When sailing upwind, the sails when correctly adjusted will generate aerodynamic lift. When sailing downwind the sails no longer generate aerodynamic lift and airflow is stalled, with the wind push on the sails giving drag only. As the boat is going downwind, the apparent wind is less than the true wind and this allied to the fact that the sails are not producing aerodynamic lift serves to limit the downwind speed.[4]
  
  When moving the motion of the boat creates its own apparent wind. Apparent wind is what is experienced onboard and is the wind that the boat is actually sailing by. Sailing into the wind causes the apparent wind to be greater than the true wind and the direction of the apparent wind will be forward [5] of the true wind. Some extreme design boats are capable of traveling faster than the true windspeed.
  
  Some non-traditional rigs supposedly capture energy from the wind in a much different fashion[citation needed], and are said to be capable[citation needed] of feats that traditional rigs are not, such as sailing dead into the wind. One such example [3] is the windmill boat, which purports to use a large windmill to extract energy from the wind, and a propellor to convert this energy to forward motion of the hull![citation needed].
  
  [edit] Basic sailing techniques
  
  The article Points of sail defines several terms that identify a sailboat's movement relative to the wind direction.
  Sailing in front of Helsinki, Finland.
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  Sailing in front of Helsinki, Finland.
  
  [edit] Steering and turning
  
  When steering a sailboat, the method for changing direction depends on the direction of the wind. Thus, all direction changes or turns are described by one of the following terms:
  
  * Heading up (or luffing up) means steering so the wind is closer to coming from directly in front (or "on the bow"). Heading closer to the wind requires trimming the sails, pulling them towards the vessel's center. Heading up so the wind is nearly or directly ahead causes sails to luff, to flutter without achieving lift. If the boat loses maneuverability because of this, it is said to be in irons. Tacking (or coming about), one of the basic turning techniques, requires heading up and through the wind so it then comes across the opposite side of the boat, and the boat sails away on the opposite tack.
  * Heading down, bearing away, falling off and freeing off mean steering so the wind comes from closer to the vessel's aft. This requires easing sails, letting them out away from the vessel's center. Gybing or Jibing is the turning maneuver in which the boat heads down past the point where the wind crosses the vessel's stern, which causes the sails and boom to swing to the opposite side, before the boat sails off on the opposite tack. The sail crosses with significant speed and misjudged gybing can easily capsize a small boat or damage the rig in a larger boat, especially in strong winds.
  
  [edit] Trim
  
  An important aspect of sailing is keeping the boat in "trim". To achieve this a useful mnemonic (memory aid) is the phrase:
  
  Can This Boat Sail Correctly?
  
  This helps the crew to remember these essential points;
  
  * Course to Steer - Turn the boat using the wheel or tiller to the desired course to steer. See points of sail. This may be a definite bearing (e.g steer 270 degrees), or towards a landmark, or at a desired angle to the apparent wind direction.
  * Trim - This is the fore and aft balance of the boat. The aim is to adjust the moveable ballast (the crew!) forwards or backwards to achieve an 'even keel'. On an upwind course in a small boat, the crew typically sit forward, when 'running' it is more efficient for the crew to sit to the rear of the boat. The position of the crew matters less as the size (and weight) of the boat increases.
  * Balance - This is the port and starboard balance. The aim, once again is to adjust weight 'inboard' or 'outboard' to prevent excessive heeling.
  * Sail - Trimming sails is a large topic. Simply put however, a sail should be pulled in until it fills with wind, but no further than the point where the front edge of the sail (the luff) is exactly in line with the wind.
  * Centreboard - If a moveable centreboard is fitted, then it should be lowered when sailing "close to the wind" but can be raised up on downwind courses to reduce drag. The centreboard prevents lateral motion and allows the boat to sail upwind. A boat with no centreboard will instead have a heavy permanent keel built into the bottom of the hull, which serves the same purpose.
  
  Together, these points are known as 'The Five Essentials' and constitute the central aspects of sailing.
  
  [edit] Running
  A Thistle running downwind with a spinnaker.
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  A Thistle running downwind with a spinnaker.
  
  Sailing the boat within roughly 30 degrees either side of dead downwind is called a run. This is the easiest point of sail in terms of comfort, but it can also be the most dangerous. When sailing upwind, it's easy to stop the boat by heading into the wind; a sailor has no such easy out when running. Severe rolling is more likely as there is less rolling resistance provided by the sails, which are eased out. And loss of attention by the helmsman could lead the boat to gybe accidentally, causing injury to the boat or crew. (A preventer can be rigged to prevent damage from an accidental gybe.) Alternately, if there is a sudden increase in wind strength, the boat can round up very suddenly and heel excessively, often leading to a capsize in smaller boats. This is called broaching.
  
  [edit] Reaching
  
  When the boat is traveling approximately perpendicular to the wind, this is called reaching. A 'close' reach is somewhat toward the wind, and 'broad' reach is a little bit away from the wind (a 'beam' reach is with the wind precisely at right angles to the boat). For most modern sailboats, that is boats with triangular sails, reaching is the fastest way to travel.
  
  [edit] Sailing upwind
  Using a series of close hauled legs to beat a course upwind
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  Using a series of close hauled legs to beat a course upwind
  
  A basic rule of sailing is that it is not possible to sail directly into the wind—at least not for long. Generally speaking, a boat can sail 45 degrees off the wind. When a boat is sailing this close to the wind, it is close-hauled or beating (beating to weather).
  
  Since a boat cannot sail directly into the wind, but the destination is often upwind, one can only get there by sailing close-hauled with the wind coming from the port side (the boat is on port tack), then tacking (turning the boat through the eye of the wind) and sailing with the wind coming from the starboard side (the boat is on starboard tack). By this method, it is possible to reach that destination directly upwind. The heavier the wind, the rougher the seas, thus boat movement can be more uncomfortable. This can feel like the boat is beating its hull into the waves, hence the term beating.
  
  How closely a boat can sail into the wind depends on the boat's design, sail trim, the sea state, and the wind speed, since what the boat "sees" is the apparent wind, the vector sum of the actual wind and the reciprocal[6] of the boat's own velocity. The apparent wind speed is what the anemometer on top of the mast shows. A good analogy to this would be walking through a room and feeling the "wind" on your face. The faster you walk, the more wind you feel. The apparent wind angle while sailing close hauled will be less than the true wind angle. A good, modern sloop can sail within 25 degrees of the apparent wind. An America's Cup racing sloop can sail within 16 degrees—under ideal conditions. Those figures might translate into 45 degrees and 36 degrees relative to the actual wind, depending on boat speed.
  
  [edit] Reducing sail
  
  An important safety aspect of sailing is to adjust the amount of sail to suit the wind conditions. As the wind speed increases the crew should progressively reduce the amount of sail. On a small boat with only jib and mainsail this is done by furling the jib and by partially lowering the mainsail, a process called 'reefing the main'.
  
  Reefing means reducing the area of a sail without actually changing it for a smaller sail. Ideally reefing does not only result in a reduced sail area but also in a lower center of effort from the sails, reducing the heeling moment and keeping the boat more upright.
  
  There are three common methods of reefing the mainsail:
  
  * Slab reefing, which involves lowering the sail by about one-quarter to one-third of its luff length and tightening the lower part of the sail using an outhaul or a pre-loaded reef line through a cringle at the new clew, and hook through a cringle at the new tack.
  * In-mast (or on-mast) roller-reefing. This method rolls the sail up around a vertical foil either inside a slot in the mast, or affixed to the outside of the mast. It requires a mainsail with either no battens, or newly-developed vertical battens.
  * In-boom roller-reefing, with a horizontal foil inside the boom. This method allows for standard- or full-length horizontal battens.
  
  Mainsail furling systems have become increasingly popular on cruising yachts as they can be operated shorthanded and from the cockpit in most cases, however, the sail can become jammed in the mast or boom slot if not operated correctly. Mainsail furling is almost never used while racing because it results in a less efficient sail profile. The classical slab-reefing method is the most widely used. Mainsail furling has an additional disadvantage in that its complicated gear may somewhat increase weight aloft. However, as the size of the boat increases, the benefits of mainsail roller furling increase dramatically.
  
  [edit] Sail trimming
  A Contender dinghy on a reach.
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  A Contender dinghy on a reach.
  
  As noted above, sail trimming is a large subject. Basic control of the mainsail consists of setting the sail so that it is at an optimum angle to the wind, (i.e. no flapping at the front, and tell tales flowing evenly off the rear of the sail).
  
  Two or more sails are frequently combined to maximise the smooth flow of air. The sails are adjusted to create a smooth laminar flow over the sail surfaces. This is called the "slot effect". The combined sails fit into an imaginary aerofoil outline, so that the most forward sails are more in line with the wind, whereas the more aft sails are more in line with the course followed. The combined efficiency of this sail plan is greater than the sum of each sail used in isolation.
  
  More detailed aspects include specific control of the sail's shape, e.g.:
  
  * reefing, or reducing the sail area in stronger wind
  * altering sail shape to make it flatter in high winds
  * raking the mast when going upwind (to tilt the sail towards the rear, this being more stable)
  * providing sail twist to cope with gusty conditions
  
  [edit] Hull Trim
  
  Hull Trim is the adjustment of a boat's loading so as to change its fore-and-aft attitude in the water. In small boats, it is done by positioning the crew. In larger boats the weight of a person has less effect on the hull trim, but it can be adjusted by shifting gear, fuel, water, or supplies. Different hull trim efforts are required for different kinds of boats and different conditions. Here are just a few examples. In a lightweight racing dinghy like a Thistle, the hull should be kept level, on its designed water line for best performance in all conditions. In many small boats, weight too far aft can cause drag by submerging the transom, especially in light to moderate winds. Weight too far forward can cause the bow to dig into the waves. In heavy winds, a boat with its bow too low may capsize by pitching forward over its bow (pitch-pole) or dive under the waves (submarine). On a run in heavy winds, the forces on the sails tend to drive a boat's bow down, so the crew weight is moved far aft.
  
  [edit] Points of Sail
  
  The Points of Sail are the most important parts of sail theory to remember. The wind, or "no go zone" is about 45° of direction right where you can feel the wind coming from, the size of the "no go zone" may change due to the size and agility of your boat. Pointing directly into the wind is ill advised, because it puts you into "Irons" or "Luffing" meaning that you will go nowhere (unless you are in a small boat and wish to sail backwards, by holding the boom out perpendicular to the boat). besides the "no go zone, there are 5 other "points of sail". In order from closest to the wind to running they are:
  
  * close haul
  * close reach
  * beam reach (fastest point of sail, 90° to the wind)
  * broad reach
  * running (slowest point of sail, the wind is directly behind)
  
  The sail trim on your boat should be relative to the point of sail you are on: your sails should be halfway out on a beam reach, all the way out while running, and all the way in while on a close haul.
  
  [edit] Heeling
  
  When a boat rolls over to one side under wind pressure, it's called 'heeling'. As a sailing boat heels over beyond a certain angle, it begins to sail less efficiently. Several forces can counteract this movement.
  Boats heeling in front of Britannia Bridge in round Anglesey race 1998
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  Boats heeling in front of Britannia Bridge in round Anglesey race 1998
  
  * The buoyancy of that part of the hull which is being submerged tends to bring the boat upright.
  * Raising the centreboard can paradoxically increase leeway, and therefore reduce heeling.
  * A weighted keel, which can in larger boats be canted from side to side, provides additional force to right the boat.
  * The crew may move onto the high (upwind) side of the boat, called hiking, changing the centre of gravity significantly in a small boat. They can trapeze if the boat is designed for this (see Dinghy sailing).
  * The underwater shape of the hull relative to the sails can be designed to make the boat tend to turn upwind when it heels excessively: this reduces the force on the sails, and allows the boat to right itself. This is known as rounding up.
  * The boat can be turned upwind to produce the same effect.
  * Wind can be spilled from the sails by 'sheeting out', i.e. loosening the sail.
  * The sail shape can be altered to reduce its efficiency e.g. tightening the downhaul (see list of nautical terms)
  * Lastly, as the boat rolls farther over, wind spills from the top of the sail and the angle of attack lessens the wind's force.
  
  Most of the above effects can be used to right a heeling boat and to keep the boat sailing efficiently: if however the boat heels beyond a certain point of stability, it can capsize. A boat is capsized when the tip of the mast is in the water.
  
  [edit] Sailing safety
  
  First and foremost:
  
  1. Stay on the boat
  2. Wear a life vest
  3. Learn to swim
  4. Learn how to recover someone who has fallen overboard
  
  Sailing requires respect for the risks of being on the water. All sailors therefore should be sensibly prepared. Most jurisdictions have certain minimum regulations that must be met as to equipment. When engaged in publicly organized activities they may be required to take additional precautions, as detailed by the authority which regulates the training or racing.
  
  Safety measures may include:
  
  * Appropriate floatation aids, including life preservers
  * Provision of a safety boat for rescue purposes
  * Appropriate first-aid and firefighting equipment
  * Carry a knife suitable for cutting rigging or netting in an emergency
  * Install jacklines and have the crew wear harnesses connected to them, to secure the crew to the vessel.
  * Ensure visibility, use the required running lights and mount at least one radar reflector.
  
  [edit] Man overboard
  
  For more details on this topic, see Man overboard.
  
  Aside from what may be required by law or a sailing organization, real safety on the water comes from an informed awareness of risks involved and the exercise of reasonable steps to avoid dangers. A Man overboard situation is likely to be life threatening for any of several related reasons since the most likely cause is rough waters and weather conditions. These degrade the ability to maneuver easily, result in vastly different rates of drift caused by both wind and current to the boat and the unwilling swimmer, and in rough weather the reduced visibility makes fast and sure immediate action to be paramount as it is easy to lose sight of the swimming person. In many waters, including inland Lakes, hypothermia can be a major threat to life, so quick recovery of unwilling swimmers can be life-saving. This requires practice and situational awareness.
  
  The guiding principle is to stop the boat or slow it, if stopping is impossible
  
  This is naturally achieved on a sailing boat if the helmsman releases the tiller and dumps the mainsheet so slowing dramaticaly.
  
  A better approach is to heave-to. Again this will occur naturally if the helmsman pushes the tiller to leeward immediately and ignores the jib-sheets. He also dumps the mainsheet at the same time. (Spinnaker guy also dumped if applicable). The sailing boat will tend to come up to weather and the jib will back. When this backing happens, the tiller must be reversed to point towards the boom. The boat is now hove-to and sensibly close to the MOB.
  
  At this stage the mainsail is loose and flapping and the jib is backed (or spinnaker floging) and the yacht is now nearly stopped and it is just scant seconds since the loss overboard. (A wheel steered boat would move the wheel to bring the yacht towards the wind and when the jib backs he reverses the wheel rotation promptly, while also dumping the maisheet.)
  
  This should be an instinctive reaction of all helmsmen. It works on all points of sailing.
  
  At that stage the launching of LifeSling can be accomplished by the helmsman, unless another crew member has previously done so. With a bit of luck the yacht will be within the range of the cordage on the recovery apparatus.
  
  * for sailing: Understanding and practice of man overboard procedures such as the Figure 8 or Quick turn and/or the LifeSling technique.
  * for power boats: (Or sailboats maneuvering under (auxiliary engine) power, not sails) Understanding and practice of man overboard procedures such as the Anderson turn, the Williamson turn, and the Scharnow turn is also helpful.
  
  [edit] Rules of the road
  
  Also, know the 'rules of the road':
  
  * Port tack gives way to Starboard tack (when the paths of two boats on opposite tacks cross, the boat with its port side to windward must give way)
  * Windward gives way to the leeward, or downwind boat (if on the same tack)
  * Overtaking boat gives way if above do not apply
  * Non-Commercial Powerboats usually give way to sailboats (but be careful in shipping lanes, and use common sense)
  * It is everybody's responsibility to avoid a collision, and avoiding action must be taken if these rules are ignored.
  
  [edit] Sailing hulls and hull shapes
  Musto Skiff
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  Musto Skiff
  
  Sailing boats can have one, two, or three hulls. Boats with one hull are known as monohulls, while those with two or more are known as multihulls. Multihulls can be further subdivided into catamarans (two hulls), and trimarans (three hulls). A sailing boat is turned by a rudder, which itself is controlled by a tiller or a wheel, while at the same time adjusting the sheeting angle of the sails. Smaller sailing boats often have a stabilising, raisable, underwater fin called a centreboard (or daggerboard); larger sailing boats have a fixed (or sometimes canting) keel. As a general rule, the former are called dinghies, the latter yachts. However, up until the adoption of the Racing Rules of Sailing, any vessel racing under sail was considered a yacht, be it a multi-masted ship-rigged vessel (such as a sailing frigate), a sailboard (more commonly referred to as a windsurfer) or remote-controlled boat, or anything in between. (see Dinghy sailing)
  
  Multihulls use flotation and/or weight positioned away from the centre line of the sailboat to counter the force of the wind. This is in contrast to heavy ballast that can make up to S of the weight of a monohull sailboat. In the case of a standard catamaran there are two similarly sized and shaped slender hulls connected by beams, which are sometimes overlaid by a deck superstructure. Another catamaran variation is the proa. In the case of trimarans, which have an unballasted centre hull similar to a monohull, two relatively smaller amas are situated parallel to the centre hull to resist the sideways force of the wind. The advantage of multihulled sailboats is that they do not suffer the performance penalty of having to carry heavy ballast, and their relatively lesser draft reduces the amount of drag, caused by friction and inertia, when moving through the water.
  
  [edit] Types of sails and layouts
  Traditional sailing off the northern coast of Mozambique.
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  Traditional sailing off the northern coast of Mozambique.
  
  A traditional modern yacht is technically called a "Bermuda sloop" (sometimes a "Bermudan sloop"). A sloop is any boat that has only a single mast. The Bermuda designation refers to the fact that the sail which has its forward edge (the "luff") against the mast (the main sail) is a sail roughly triangular in shape. Addionally, Bermuda sloops only have a single sail behind the mast. Other types of sloops are gaff-rigged sloops and lateen sloops. Gaff-rigged sloops have quadrilateral mainsails with a gaff (a small boom) at their upper edge (the "head" of the sail). Gaff-rigged vessels may also have another sail, called a topsail, above the gaff. Lateen sloops have triangular sails with the upper edge attached to a gaff, and the lower edge attached to the boom, and the boom and gaff are attached to each other via some type of hinge. It is also possible for a sloop to be square rigged (having large square sails like a Napoleonic Wars-era ship of the line). Note that a "sloop of war," in the naval sense, may well have more than one mast, and is not properly a sloop by the modern meaning.
  
  If a boat has two masts, it may be either a schooner, a ketch, or a yawl, if it is rigged fore-and-aft on all masts. A schooner may have any number of masts provided the second from the front is the tallest (called the "main mast"). In both a ketch and a yawl, the foremost mast is tallest, and thus the main mast, while the rear mast is shorter, and called the mizzen mast. The difference between a ketch and a yawl is that in a ketch, the mizzen mast is forward of the rudderpost (the axis of rotation for the rudder), while a yawl has its mizzen mast behind the rudderpost. In modern parlance, a brigantine is a vessel whose forward mast is rigged with square sails, while her after mast is rigged fore-and-aft. A brig is a vessel with two masts both rigged square.
  
  As one gets into three or more masts the number of combinations rises and one gets barques, barquentines, and full-rigged ships.
  
  A spinnaker is a large, full sail that is only used when sailing off wind either reaching or downwind, to catch the maximum amount of wind.
  
  See also Sail and sail-plan.
  
  [edit] Sailing terminology
  
  Sailors use many traditional nautical terms for the parts of or directions on a vessel; starboard (right), port (left), forward or fore (front), aft (rearward), bow (forward part of the hull), stern (aft part of the hull), beam (the widest part). Vertical spars are masts, horizontal spars are booms (if they can hit you), gaffs (if they're too high to reach) or poles (if they can't hit you).
  
  [edit] Rope and lines
  Standing rigging (on the left) and running rigging (on the right), on a sailing boat
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  Standing rigging (on the left) and running rigging (on the right), on a sailing boat
  
  Rope is the term used only for raw material; once a section of rope is designated for a particular purpose on a vessel, it generally is called a line, as in outhaul line or dock line. A very thick line is considered a cable. Lines that are attached to sails to control their shapes are called sheets, as in mainsheet (line that controls the mainsail) or spinnaker sheets. If a rope is made of wire, it maintains its rope name as in 'wire rope' halyard.
  
  Lines (generally steel cables) that support masts are stationary and are collectively known as a vessel's standing rigging, and individually as shrouds or stays (the stay running forward from a mast to the bow is called the forestay or headstay).
  
  Moveable lines that control sails or other equipment are known collectively as a vessel's running rigging. Lines that raise sails are called halyards while those that strike them are called downhauls or cunninghams. Lines that adjust (trim) the sails are called sheets. These are often referred to using the name of the sail they control (such as main sheet, or jib sheet). Sail trim may also be controlled with smaller lines attached to the forward section of a boom; such a line is called a vang, or a kicker in the United Kingdom.
  
  Lines used to tie a boat up when alongside are called docklines, docking cables or mooring warps.
  
  Some lines are referred to as ropes: A bell rope (to ring the bell), a bolt rope (attached to the edge of a sail for extra strength), a foot rope (on old square riggers for the sailors to stand on while reefing or furling the sails), and a tiller rope (to temporarily hold the tiller and keep the boat on course). A rode is what keeps an anchor attached to the boat when the anchor is in use. It may be chain, rope, or a combination of the two.
  
  [edit] Other terms
  
  Walls are called 'bulkheads' or 'ceilings', while the surfaces referred to as 'ceilings' on land are called 'overheads'. Floors are called 'soles' or 'decks'. The toilet is traditionally called the 'head', the kitchen is the 'galley'. Lines are rarely tied off, they are almost always 'made fast' or 'belayed.' Sails in different sail plans have unchanging names, however. For the naming of sails, see sail-plan.
  
  Sailing terms have entered popular language in many ways. "Broken up" was the fate of a ship that hit a "rocky point" or was simply no longer wanted. "Poop" refers to the aftermost deck of a ship, taken from "puppis" the Latin word for "stern". "Pooped" refers to a wave breaking over the stern and filling the cockpit with water. "In the doldrums" referred to being becalmed, windless, especially in the narrow band of hot windless water "the doldrums", near the equator. "Adrift" meant literally that a ship's anchor had come loose, and the ship was out of control near land and therefore in serious danger. "Keel-hauled and hung out to dry." was the rather nasty process of attaching a sailor to a rope, and drawing him under the sailboat while underway, and then hanging him from a yard-arm (under his shoulders usually, not by his neck), where officers and crew could mock him. This was a particularly unpleasant punishment; apart from the risk of drowning, the sailor would be lacerated by the barnacles on the ship's hull.
  
  [edit] Knots
  
  Knots are among the most important things a sailor needs to know. Although only a few are required, the bowline in particular is essential. By also learning the clove hitch and "round turn and two half hitches," one can easily cope with all of the knot requirements of a boat. A more complete grasp of knot-tying includes mastery of the:
  
  * bowline
  * clove hitch
  * round turn and two half hitches
  * rolling hitch
  * figure of eight
  * reef knot
  * sheet bend
  
  Additional knots are available List of knots
  
  Even the most experienced sailors may forget their knots if they are not performed on a regular basis. For this reason, many sailors constantly practice. Forgetting how to tie an important knot can damage a boat or cause injury.
  
  * http://www.tollesburysc.co.uk/Knots/Knots_gallery.htm (Here are some of the most important knots for beginners to learn)
  
  [edit] Sailing regulations
  
  There are three very basic rules for avoiding a collision at sea:
  
  1. Port gives way to starboard.
  2. The more maneuverable vessel gives way to the less maneuverable vessel. It is generally assumed that this means that power gives way to sail, but this is not normally the case. It is always prudent for a small sailing vessel to stay out of the way of large ships by making an early and obvious turn out of the way.
  3. If a collision is imminent both vessels must take immediate avoiding action even if they have the right of way according to normal rules. This means that if you have the right of way and a collision appears imminent that you must take avoiding action. Not to do so, if you have the opportunity, may make you the guilty party at an inquiry.
  
  This first point means that boats that are on a possible collision course with boats approaching on their starboard bow give way. On sailing boats this extended to boats that have their sails set for a breeze coming from the left hand side of the boat (port) must give way to boats that have their sails set for a breeze coming from the right side of the boat (starboard). If both boats have their sails set on the same side of the boat, then the boat closer to where the wind is coming from (the windward boat) must give way to the leeward boat (boat away from the wind). If these rules are purposely not followed, a protest may be called by one of the skippers. The protest will be listened to by an arbitrator on land after the racing day much like a court house hearing, where one will diagram the situation and the other's fault, and the other will have input. Either a form/flyer will be given to diagram the situation, or more commonly with younger sailors, two wooden replicas of boats will be used. The arbitrator will decide who wins the protest.
  
  However there are many other rules besides these, and sailors are expected to know the essentials of boating safety which include;
  
  * The "rules of the road" or International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS) set forth by the International Maritime Organization are particularly relevant to sailors because of their limited maneuverability compared to powered vessels.
  * The IALA International Association of Lighthouse Authorities standards for lateral marks, lights, signals, and buoyage and various rules designed to support safe navigation.
  * The SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea) regulations place the obligations for safety on the owners and operators of any boat. These regulations specify the safety equipment needed and emergency procedures to be used.
  * When racing, all sailing vessels are expected to follow the Racing Rules of Sailing promulgated by the International Sailing Federation as well as any prescriptions (additional rules) given by the national governing body. When a boat that is racing encounters one that is not, the racing boat must comply with the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea with respect to the non-racing boat.
  
  [edit] Sailboat racing
  U.S. Sailing team at the World Military Games Sailing Competition, December 2003
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  U.S. Sailing team at the World Military Games Sailing Competition, December 2003
  
  Sailboat racing ranges from single person dinghy racing to large boats with 10 or 20 crew and from small boats costing a few hundred dollars to multi-million dollar Americas Cup or Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race campaigns. The costs of participating in the high end large boat competitions make this type of sailing one of the most expensive sports in the world. However, there are relatively inexpensive ways to get involved in sailboat racing, such as at community sailing clubs, and in some relatively inexpensive dinghy and small catamaran classes. Additionally many high schools and colleges offer sailboat racing programs through the Inter-Scholastic Sailing Association and the Intercollegiate Sailing Association. Under these conditions, sailboat racing can be comparable to or less expensive than sports such as golf and skiing. Sailboat racing is one of the few sports in which people of all ages can regularly compete with and against each other.
  
  Most sailboat racing is done in sheltered coastal or inland waters. However, in terms of endurance and risk to life, ocean races such as the Volvo Ocean Race, the solo VELUX 5 Oceans Race, and the non-stop solo Vendée Globe, rate as some of the most extreme and dangerous sporting events. Not only do participants compete for days with little rest, but an unexpected storm, a single equipment failure, or collision with an ice floe could result in the sailboat being disabled or sunk hundreds or thousands of miles from search and rescue.
  
  The sport of Sailboat racing is governed by the International Sailing Federation (ISAF), and the rules under which competitors race are the Racing Rules of Sailing, which can be found on the ISAF web site.
  
  [edit] Olympics course
  
  During the Summer Olympic Games, sailing follows a very common and simple race course. The official course is commonly scaled down and used as a race course by non-professional sailers. The Olympic course is a very simple to set up course, only using four buoys. It takes one upwind mark, one downwind, one gybe mark, and two buoys to mark the start line.
  
  How to set up You start out with two marks perpendicular to the wind (this marks the starting line). Then you set an upwind mark, upwind of the port starting line buoy (distance from the starting line varies according to the desired size of the course). Than you set a gybe mark to the port of the starting line (also has varying distance). Finally the downwind mark is set, it must be lined up with the upwind mark and the port startline buoy (also set at a varying distance.
  
  [edit] Sailing traditions and etiquette
  
  There are many esoteric etiquette rules, traditions, and customs that will demonstrate to others advanced knowledge of boating protocol. Fenders should be taken-in outside ports, a boat should fly the flag of its nation of registry, the flag of a host country should be flown from the starboard yardarm and should be the highest hoisted flag onboard other than a masthead burgee, flags are to be taken down at night, boats are to be referred to as female, a boat should not be renamed (as superstition says it is bad luck to do so), bananas are bad luck aboard sailing vessels, nothing should be deposited into the head (toilet to landlubbers) that has not been digested at least once, etc.
  
  Dinghy sailing is the activity of sailing small boats by using (1) the sails and (2) underwater foils (Daggerboard and rudder+Tiller). It also involves adjusting (3) the trim and (4) balance by changing position of the crew and Skipper or in a one person boat, just a skipper within the boat. Together with (5) 'course made good' (effective choice of route and manoeuvres), these are the five important points of dinghy sailing.
  Contents
  [hide]
  
  * 1 Development of the dinghy
  o 1.1 Early beginnings
  o 1.2 Planing and trapezing
  o 1.3 Post WWII developments
  o 1.4 Modern developments
  * 2 Types of dinghies
  * 3 Dinghy racing
  * 4 List of dinghy classes
  * 5 Reference books
  * 6 See also
  * 7 External references
  
  [edit] Development of the dinghy
  
  [edit] Early beginnings
  
  There has always been a need for small tender boats as transport to and from moored sailing ships. Together with other smaller work craft such as fishing and light cargo, small inshore craft have always been in evidence. Charles II of England had a private sailing boat presented to him when he returned from exile to England in the 17th century, and he sailed for recreation and competition.
  
  Towards the end of the 19th century people began to use these small boats for sport and recreational sailing, utilising the opportunities for leisure afforded by the industrial revolution. Larger privately used sailing boats had developed separately, and have resulted in the yachts of today. There has been some crossover, in that the sloop sail plan was adopted as standard and most convenient by early dinghy designers.
  
  [edit] Planing and trapezing
  A Musto Skiff dinghy on the reach
  Enlarge
  A Musto Skiff dinghy on the reach
  
  The development of the sailing dinghy was helped in the early 20th century by Uffa Fox (1898-1972), an English boat designer and sailing enthusiast. He developed and contributed to many dinghy classes which are still with us nearly a century later: the Albacore, International 14, the Firefly, and the Flying Fifteen.
  
  He also introduced the major advance of hull shapes which can plane, and which can therefore reach beyond the usual speed limits for small sailing boats. In effect, a boat which is planing is skimming along the surface, rising up on its own bow wave. This results in less friction because of reduced waterline length, reduced displacement (the amount of water needing to be pushed aside by the boat), and reduced 'wetted area'. The power given by the sails has to overcome less resistance, and therefore speed increases dramatically.
  
  In 1928 Uffa Fox introduced planing to an astonished racing world in his International 14 boat, the Avenger. He gained 52 first places, two seconds and three third places out of 57 race starts that year.
  
  Another advance in dinghy sailing was introduced in the 1930s, when the technique of trapezing was introduced. This involves using the crew to provide more leverage to keep the sails vertical, by hanging outside the boat on a harness and rope attached to the 'hounds' or upper mast. As a result the boat is easier to keep upright, and the sails can deliver maximum power most of the time.
  
  Trapezing during a race first appeared in 1934, on the Thames A Class Rater Vagabond sailed by Peter Scott (son of the famous Scott of the Antarctic), and John Winter. The owner of the boat, Beecher Moore, of Thames Sailing Club had worked on developing the technique, in discussion with Uffa Fox. Vagabond was spectacularly successful in that race, winning by four minutes.
  
  Sadly, the innovative technique was immediately banned, and received little development until it was reintroduced on the Osprey and Fiveohfive Class (505) in 1954 by John Westell and the Flying Dutchman class in the early 1960s.
  
  [edit] Post WWII developments
  
  During the Second World War plywood had become a major building material for aircraft. After the war, plywood was adapted for building sailing dinghies. Two primary methods of construction were adopted: Stitch and Glue and timber framed construction. Jack Holt designed many dinghies to be built by home handymen using these construction techniques. The Mirror Dinghy was predominantly built using stitch and glue, while the Heron is an example of a boat built using plywood on a timber frame.
  
  [edit] Modern developments
  A 49er skiff in a race
  Enlarge
  A 49er skiff in a race
  
  At the beginning of the 21st century, dinghy sailing is still a rapidly developing sport. It is losing its image of being expensive, time consuming and exclusive. This is because of the earlier work of pioneers such as Uffa Fox, and through the use of modern designs and techniques such as lighter hull materials (eg, fibreglass and foam sandwich hull construction, which eliminate time-consuming maintenance of wooden hulls), more responsive sail materials and design, easily transportable boats (many car-toppable), and simpler rigs such as Gennakers instead of more complex Spinnakers. These advances are more economical in time and money, and have greatly extended the appeal of dinghy sailing.
  
  Increasingly sailing is a young person's sport, and the number of participants is mushrooming. In many dinghy clubs in the UK the adult members are sometimes outnumbered by junior members, and the balance of activities can change from mainly racing to increasingly providing training courses.
  
  Sailing is also becoming more accessible to people with disabilities, partly through new boat designs, and generally through recognition of everybody's right to participate in all areas of life. (See the Sailability website)
  
  In Britain and Europe dinghy sailing has also been considerably advanced by the RYA, the regulatory authority which regulates racing and which provides modular and accredited training courses for leisure and competitive sailing. A basic sailing course can be completed in several days, and participants can be sure that the training is competent and delivered in a safe setting.
  
  
  [edit] Types of dinghies
  
  Skiffs are generally the fastest type of dinghy. The skiff has a flat and narrow hull, and is designed to plane in most conditions with the crew trapezing. It has impressive sail areas including a massive foresail, usually a Gennaker or asymmetric spinnaker. The 18ft Skiff is one example which usually has a crew of three: another is the Musto Skiff, a singlehander.
  
  High Performance dinghies are fast and powerful dinghies designed for racing around an Olympic racing course. The examples of such dinghies are the Flying Dutchman, the Fiveohfive (505), the Fireball, the Osprey, the Javelin and the 470. They are all planning easily including upwind and use trapeze and a symmetric spinnaker. Not all are two handed boats; the Contender and the RS600 are high performance single handed boats equipped with a trapeze, but not a spinnaker, and demonstrate a comparable performance.
  
  Cruising dinghies are designed for leisure and family sailing and are usually more stable than high performance dinghies. This is provided by a 'chined' (less rounded) hull, greater displacement, and proportionally smaller sail area. Examples of these are the Wayfarer, the Mirror, the Laser Stratos and the Laser 16. Sailing these boats can still give much excitement.
  
  Catamarans are fast, high masted and double hulled boats which fall under the definition of dinghy also, usually having adjustable daggerboards. The influential Hobie Cat was developed in America, and this has its keel built into each hull shape. The Tornado is a high performance Olympic class catamaran, not for the fainthearted.
  
  Racing dinghies cover a wide range, and many are descended from Uffa Fox's seminal International 14. People often "travel" with their dinghies to international races in famous sailing spots such as Lake Garda in Italy. The International 14 remains a popular racing class, having acquired racks (for trapezing crews) and a gennaker since its original design. The Laser, Laser Radial and Laser 4.7 are the variants of the Laser dinghy, a single-hander whose combination of simplicity, portability and performance has done much to advance dinghy racing and training. More modern dinghies like the Musto Skiff, RS600 and RS Vareo have also increased dinghy sailing participation around the UK. Two popular dinghies used in high school and college racing are the 420 and Flying Junior.
  
  Sports Boats: These classes are larger off-shore racing dinghies which shade off into classes of yachts with fixed keels. Usually they have several crew members as well as the helm. Melges 24 and Laser SB3 are current examples of this type.
  
  Development classes: Most dinghy classes have a fairly fixed layout of sails and hull design, and changes are very infrequent. However, some classes can compete and sail with less rigid definitions and measurements. This encourages experiment which often leads to innovation in techniques and construction. Examples are the International 14, the International Moth, and the 18ft Skiff. Classes which are not development classes are usually referred to as "One design". The first one design was the Water Wag, which first sailed in Dublin Bay in 1887. The class is still sailed today, over a hundred years later.
  
  [edit] Dinghy racing
  
  Racing is one of the most popular forms of dinghy sailing, and it contributes to the development of sailing skills as well as to improvements in dinghy and sail construction and design. See main article on dinghy racing.
  
  Yacht racing is the sport of competitive sailing. There is a broad variety of kinds of races and sailboats used for racing. Much racing is done around buoys or similar marks in protected waters, while some longer offshore races cross open water. All kinds of boats are used for racing, including small dinghies, catamarans, boats designed primarily for cruising, and purpose-built raceboats.
  Contents
  [hide]
  
  * 1 Types of races
  o 1.1 Harbour or buoy racing
  o 1.2 Offshore racing
  o 1.3 Other races
  * 2 Classes and ratings
  * 3 Classes of Sailing Dinghies, Skiffs, Yachts and Multihulls
  * 4 References
  * 5 See also
  * 6 External links
  
  [edit] Types of races
  
  [edit] Harbour or buoy racing
  
  Harbour or buoy races are conducted in protected waters, and are quite short, usually taking anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours. All sorts of sailing craft are used for these races, including keelboats of all sizes, as well as dinghies, catamarans, skiffs, sailboards, and other small craft. A competition, or regatta, usually consists of multiple individual races, where the boat that performs best in each race is the overall winner. The most famous such event is the America's Cup, but harbour races are common anywhere there is a community of sailors.
  
  This kind of race is most commonly run over one or more laps of a triangular course marked by a number of buoys. The course starts from an imaginary line drawn from a 'committee boat' to the designated 'starting' buoy or 'pin'. A number of warning signals are given telling the crews exactly how long until the race starts. The aim of each crew is to cross the start line at full speed exactly as the race starts. A course generally involves tacking upwind to a 'windward' marker or buoy. Then bearing away onto a downwind leg to a second jibe marker. Next another jibe on a second downwind leg to the last mark which is called the 'downwind mark' (or 'leeward mark'). At this mark the boats turn into wind once again to tack to the finish line.
  
  [edit] Offshore racing
  
  Offshore yacht races are held over long distances and in open water; such races usually last for at least a number of days. The longest offshore races involve a circumnavigation of the world.
  
  Some of the most famous offshore races are the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, the Transpacific Yacht Race, the Fastnet race, the Bermuda Race, and the West Marine Pacific Cup. Several fully-crewed round-the-world races are held, including the Volvo Ocean Race (formerly called the Whitbread Round the World Race), the Global Challenge and the Clipper Round the World Race.
  
  Single-handed ocean yacht racing began with the race across the Atlantic Ocean by William Albert Andrews and Josiah W. Lawlor in 1891; however, the first regular single-handed ocean race was the Single-Handed Trans-Atlantic Race, first held in 1960. The first round-the-world yacht race was the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race of 1968-1969, which was also a single-handed race; this inspired the present-day VELUX 5 Oceans Race (formerly the BOC Challenge / Around Alone) and the Vendée Globe. Single-handed racing has seen a great boom in popularity in recent years.
  
  There is some controversy about the legality of sailing single-handed over long distances, as the navigation rules require "that every vessel shall at all times maintain a proper lookout..."; single-handed sailors can only keep a sporadic lookout, due to the need to sleep, tend to navigation, etc.[1]
  
  [edit] Other races
  
  Certain races do not fit in the above categories. One such is the Three peaks yacht race in the UK which is a team competition involving sailing, cycling and running.
  
  [edit] Classes and ratings
  
  Many design factors have a large impact on the speed at which a boat can complete a course, including the size of a boat's sails, its length, and the weight and shape of its hull. Because of these differences, it can be difficult to compare the skills of the sailors in a race if they are sailing very different boats. For most forms of yacht racing, one of two solutions to this problem are used; either all boats are required to be identical (a one-design class), or a handicapping system is used. A third approach is the use of "open" classes.
  
  In one-design racing all boats must conform to the same standard, the class rules. In this way the boats are as identical as they can be manufactured, thus emphasizing the skill of the skipper and crew. Examples of popular classes include Etchells, Snipe, Star, Soling, Thistle, Lightning, Laser, and J/24. Each class has a detailed set of specifications that must be met for the boat to be considered a member of that class. At important regattas the boats are measured prior to the event to ensure that they do conform.
  
  When all the yachts in a race are not members of the same class, then a handicap is used to adjust the times of boats. The handicap attempts to specify a "normal" speed for each boat, usually based either on measurements taken of the boat, or on the past record of that kind of boat. Each boat is timed over the specified course. After it has finished, the handicap is added to each boat's finishing time. The results are based on this sum. Popular handicapping systems in 2006 include IRC (Sailing), ORR and PHRF. Earlier popular rating systems include IOR and IMS.
  
  An open class is based on a box rule, which specifies a maximum overall size for boats in the class, as well as features such as stability. Competitors in these classes are then free to enter their own boat designs, as long as they do not exceed the box rule. No handicap is then applied. Since it is essentially based on the use of custom boats, such events are generally limited to high-budget racers. Popular examples of open classes are the Open 50 and 60 classes used in single-handed offshore events. However the Moth class is an exception, with boats being no longer than 11 feet.
  
  Yacht chartering is the practice of renting, or chartering, a sailboat or motor yacht and traveling to various coastal or island destinations. This is usually a vacation activity.
  
  Companies that provide yachts for charter usually require guests to demonstrate that they have a qualified skipper and at least one skilled crew member. If the guests cannot provide their own skipper (bare-boat charter), most companies will provide a paid professional skipper. This is known as a "skippered" or "crewed" charter.
  
  Luxury yachts are also chartered out to paying clients per day or week. These are larger charter yachts and will not only include the services of a professional captain but also the services of a full crew. The crew may include a chef, steward and stewardess, engineer, boson, first mate, deck hand and other 'exterior crew' such as scuba dive masters or luxury yacht tender operators.
  
  The size of the yacht normally determines the cost of the charter fee. The term Mega yachts applies to larger vessels greater than 100 feet. Over the last 10 years the number of mega yachts available for charter has increased dramaticly. There are hundreds of yachts available between 100 to 200 feet. Fewer beyond that size, but still yachts up to 400 feet are available to charter.
  
  The term luxury yacht refers to a very expensive privately owned yacht which is professionally crewed. Also known as a super-yacht or a mega-yacht, a luxury yacht may be either a sailing or motor yacht.
  Image:Mirabella V.jpg
  An example of a modern luxury yacht; the Mirabella V under sail.
  
  This term began to appear at the beginning of the 20th century when wealthy individuals constructed large private yachts for personal pleasure. Examples of early luxury motor yachts include M/Y (motor yacht) Christina O and M/Y Savarona. Early luxury sailing yachts include Americas Cup classic J class racers like S/Y (sailing yacht) Endeavour and Sir Thomas Lipton’s S/Y Shamrock. The New York Yacht Club hosted many early luxury sailing yacht events at Newport, Rhode Island, during the Gilded Age.
  
  More recently, over the last decade or two, there has been an increase in the number and popularity of large private luxury yachts. Luxury yachts are particularly bountiful in the Mediterranean and Caribbean Seas, although increasingly luxury yachts are cruising in more remote areas of the world. With the increase in demand for luxury yachts there has been an increase custom boat building companies and yacht charter brokers. Luxury boat building and yacht charter companies are predominantly based in the United States and Western Europe but are also increasingly found in Australasia, Asia and Eastern Europe. European manufacturers such as Azimut-Benetti and Lürssen dominate the very top end of the yacht building market. Some yachts are used exclusively by their private owners, others are operated all year round as charter businesses, and a large number are privately owned but available for charter part time. Weekly charter fees range from a few tens of thousands of dollars a week to nearly a million dollars a week. This covers the wages of the crew, but not fuel, food and drink, or other incidental expenses.
  
  Yachts from 23 metres (75 feet) and up qualify for design awards from the Superyacht Society, but at the bottom end of that scale yachts will not necessarily be crewed and many set the minimum length for a superyacht considerably higher. From around 30 metres (98 feet) and up yachts are almost always crewed. A 45 to 50 metres (148 to 164 feet) yacht, the smallest with a generally accepted claim to superyacht status, will usually be a three decker with cabins for 12 guests (that is a preferred number, more common than either 10 or 14, and is found on yachts across quite a wide size range), and for a crew of a similar size. The accommodation on this type of yacht is typically as follows:
  
  * Lower deck: exterior swimming platform at the stern; four (sometimes five) guest cabins with en-suite bath or shower rooms aft; engine room amidships; crew quarters forward.
  * Main deck: sheltered exterior deck aft leading into the salon; dining room and galley; entrance amidships; owner's suite forward, usually includes either a study or a second twin stateroom.
  * Upper deck: exterior deck aft, often used for outdoor dining; second salon (often called the sky lounge); staffed bar inside or outside or both; sixth stateroom will be amidships if it is not on the lower deck or part of the owner's suite; gym (may also be on the lower deck or part of the owner's suite); captain's cabin; bridge.
  * Sun deck: on the roof of the upper deck, often features a jacuzzi.
  
  A 50 metre yacht will have one or more luxury yacht tenders for reaching shore and other "toys" which may include a speed boat or sailing boat, jet-skis, windsurfing and diving equipment and a Banana boat. Up to date yachts have multiple flat screen televisions and satellite communications.
  
  The number of really large yachts has increased rapidly since the 1990s and increasingly only yachts above around 65 metres (213 feet) stand out among other luxury yachts. Yachts of this size are almost always built to individual commissions and cost tens of millions of dollars (most super-yachts cost far more than their owners' homes on land, even though those homes are likely to be among the largest and most desirable). A yacht of this size usually has four decks above the water line and one or two below. It is likely to have a helicopter landing platform. Apart from additional guest cabins, which are likely to include one of more "VIP suites" besides the owner's suite, extra facilities compared to a 50 metre yacht will include some or all of indoor jacuzzis, sauna and steam rooms, a beauty salon, massage and other treatment rooms, a medical centre, a discotheque, a cinema with a film library, plunge pool (possibly with a wave-maker), a playroom, and additional living areas such as a separate bar, secondary dining room, private sitting rooms or a library. There will be more boats and "toys" than there are on a 50 metre yacht.
  
  As of 2006 yachts above 100 metres (328 feet) are still sufficiently rare that many yacht enthusiasts can name them all. They typically have five decks above the water line and two below. The very largest yachts have begun to incorporate such features as helicopter hangars, indoor swimming pools and miniature submarines. The burgeoning number of "small" super yachts has led to the introduction of the hyperbolic terms mega-yacht and giga-yacht to demarcate the elite among luxury yachts.
  
  Dinghy racing is the competitive sport of sailing dinghies. Dinghy racing has been influential in developing all aspects of the modern dinghy, including hull design, sail materials and sailplan, and techniques such as planing and trapezing.
  Contents
  [hide]
  
  * 1 Organisation of dinghy racing
  o 1.1 Single-handed or more than one crew
  o 1.2 One-design or development class
  o 1.3 An Olympic sport
  o 1.4 A Scholastic Sport
  o 1.5 Racing for all ages, sexes and weights
  o 1.6 Handicap events mean anyone can win
  o 1.7 A lifetime sport
  o 1.8 Class, association, club
  o 1.9 Competitive areas
  * 2 See also
  * 3 External links
  
  [edit] Organisation of dinghy racing
  
  Dinghy racing comes under the auspices of the International Sailing Federation. Organisations such as the Royal Yachting Association (UK) and Canadian Yachting Association (Canada) organise and regulate the sport at a national level. Sailing dinghies compete on an international, national, state, association, club and class basis, using the ISAF International Racing Rules of Sailing, which are revised every four years. There are several courses used, such as the Olympic triangle.
  
  [edit] Single-handed or more than one crew
  
  Most racing dinghies can be classified as being either single handed (one person only) such as the Laser, RS Vareo or double handed, such as the 470, 5O5, Heron, Tasar, Flying Junior, International Fireball or the International Fourteen. A few classes of dinghy carry more than two crew whilst racing, typically heavier dayboat types, but also a couple of high performance Australian orginated skiff type dinghies. Some classes allow children to sail double handed until a particular age and then require them to compete single handed. Some double handed boats are ideal for an adult and child like the Heron, while some such as the Tasar have weight restrictions which ensure they are sailed competitively by two adults or near adults. Weight equalisation is also used on certain high performance classes to ensure that comparative levels of performance are attained.
  
  [edit] One-design or development class
  
  Sailing dinghies can be one-design, with virtually no difference between boats and strict rules controlling construction, or development classes like the International Moth which has gone from a wide-hulled scow, to a thin-hulled skiff and now to a hydrofoil-based design. Many people prefer one-design as it mean the competition is more about sailing ability than about who can afford the newest innovation, although the weight of the boat, and sail age and quality, also come into it even in one-design. In practice there are a variety of interpretations of the basic one-design and development class concepts.
  
  One designs may be strictly controlled, as in the ubiquitous Laser (dinghy), with all boats being factory produced from identical moulds, with identical rigs and sails. Strict-one designs suffer from being very crew weight specific.
  
  There are one-design classes such as the Europe (dinghy) and 505 (dinghy) which allow differences in hull dimensions within certain tight tolerances. Despite these tolerances only being intended to allow some leeway for boats built by different builders, this usually results in certain builders boats being perceived as faster due to the way they make use of the tolerances to create a subtly different hull shape. This type of one-design generally allows more freedom in choice of masts, sails and deck layouts.
  
  Some development classes (National 12 (dinghy) and Merlin Rocket (dinghy)) have tightly controlled rules which keep the boats closely competitive while allowing the owner to customise the boat to their preferences and weight. These classes are now considered restricted classes, although previously they were referred to as one-designs.
  
  The most diverse classes are those development classes with more flexible rules (International Moth International C Class Catamaran), these classes represent the cutting edge of the sport, using the latest technology including hydrofoils and solid wings in place of sails.
  
  [edit] An Olympic sport
  
  Sailing is an Olympic sport in both Men's and Women's divisions and for both keelboats (small yachts), windsurfing and dinghies. One of the most recent additions, for the Sydney Games, was the 49er skiff, bringing cutting edge technology to the top end of the sport.
  
  Other Olympic dinghy classes include the Laser, Finn 470 and Laser Radial, Tornado catamaran. The current Olympic keelboats are the Star (men) and the Yngling (women).
  
  A variety of other dinghies and keelboats have been used in previous Olympics, including the Soling, Flying Dutchman, Firefly and Europe. Key reasons for choosing new designs are to keep competitors' costs down and to make the boats accessible to people of all builds and strengths.
  
  [edit] A Scholastic Sport
  
  Many secondary schools and universities worldwide have adopted dinghy racing as either a club or varsity sport. In the United States secondary school sailing is governed by the Inter-Scholastic Sailing Association. College sailing in Canada and the US is governed by the Intercollegiate Sailing Association. Both organizations have been in continuous existence since the early 20th century and, indeed, college racing began in 1928. [1]
  
  Most school programs own fleets of at least 6 dinghies, and the well funded programs often have more than 20 dinghies in addition to support boats and paid coaches. Often schools cooperate with local yacht clubs to share fleets. The schools compete in both the fall and spring within regional districts and then, if they qualify through district championships , at a national championship regatta. Additionally, schools also compete in Team racing regattas where they are able to compete one-on-one against other schools.
  
  Examples of College Sailing Programs:
  
  * Vanderbilt Sailing Club, Vanderbilt University
  * Wheaton College Sailing Team, Wheaton College
  
  [edit] Racing for all ages, sexes and weights
  
  Most races and regattas are organised based on a class of dinghy, and within the class there may be several divisions such as Masters (older sailors), Ladies and Juniors.
  
  [edit] Handicap events mean anyone can win
  
  Races involving mixed fleets (different classes of boat, different ages, weights and abilities of sailors) can be organised on a handicap basis. The most commonly used handicapping system is the Portsmouth yardstick, which assigns a different rating to each class of boat in a mixed fleet and (at least in theory) gives every boat an equal chance of winning. Handicaps can also be personal (sometimes called a back-calculated yardstick), taking into account the results of the sailor over past races, so an inexperienced person who sails significantly better than previously over a season or regatta can win on handicap.
  
  [edit] A lifetime sport
  
  Because of the use of handicap events, sailors of any age can be competitive. In the Concord & Ryde Sailing Club in Sydney, New South Wales Australia the youngest crew is 5, the youngest skipper is 10 and the oldest crew is 73 and the oldest skipper is 72.
  
  [edit] Class, association, club
  
  Clubs generally have a number of different classes competing on any one day, often sailing the same course at the same time, or sometimes with each class starting a few minutes apart. Keen club sailors join and compete in events with their State and National Associations. Associations generally cater for only one class of boat, but generally have competitors in several divisions.
  
  [edit] Competitive areas
  
  The UK has one of the most vibrant and diverse dinghy racing scenes in the world with over 100 different classes of dinghy and strongly supported clubs all around the coast.
  
  Other competitive areas include the Eastern seaboard of the United States and Southern California. In these areas the junior programs are well funded and provide excellent training experience. The most popular boats are Naples Sabots, the Flying Junior, the Laser, 420's, and 29ers.
  
  Cruising by boat is a lifestyle that involves living full-time on a boat while traveling from place to place. Cruising generally refers to trips of a few days or more, and can extend to round-the-world voyages. Cruising is done on both sail and power boats, although sail predominates over longer distances, as ocean-worthy power boats are considerably more expensive. Many cruisers are "long term" and travel for many years, the most adventurous circling the globe over a period of three to ten years. Many others take a year or two off from work and school for short trips and the chance to experience the cruising lifestyle.
  
  This article focuses on cruising in the sense outlined above. In addition, there are two other possible meanings of cruising in a maritime sense, as listed below under Other types of maritime cruising.
  Contents
  [hide]
  
  * 1 History
  * 2 Techniques
  * 3 Other kinds of maritime cruising
  * 4 Further reading
  * 5 See also
  * 6 References
  * 7 External links
  
  [edit] History
  Cruisers can see traditional life in remote areas of the world; here, a Kuna local paddles a dugout canoe in the San Blas Islands.
  Enlarge
  Cruisers can see traditional life in remote areas of the world; here, a Kuna local paddles a dugout canoe in the San Blas Islands.
  
  One of the first people to carry out a long-distance voyage for pleasure, and who inspired many others to follow in his path, was Joshua Slocum, who circumnavigated the world between 1895 and 1898. Despite widespread opinion that such a voyage was impossible and despite being a retired sea captain, Slocum rebuilt a derelict 37-foot sloop Spray and sailed her single-handed around the world. His book Sailing Alone Around the World is still considered a classic adventure, and inspired many others to take to the seas.[1]
  
  Other cruising authors have provided both inspiration and useful instruction to would-be cruisers. Key among these during the post war period are Miles and Beryl Smeeton, Bernard Moitessier, and Eric & Susan Hiscock. During the 1970's - 80's, Robin Lee Graham, Lin and Larry Pardey, Steve & Linda Dashew and Hal & Margaret Roth have provided inspiration for people to set off voyaging. Most recently, Beth Leonard has been writing both inspirational and technical books about voyaging.
  
  [edit] Techniques
  
  As well as normal sailing and seamanship skills, cruisers use a variety of equipment and tehniques to make their voyages possible, or simply more comfortable.
  The solar panels on this 28-foot yacht can keep her self-sufficient in electrical power.
  Enlarge
  The solar panels on this 28-foot yacht can keep her self-sufficient in electrical power.
  
  One of the key areas is providing the electrical power to keep the boat's systems (lights, communications gear, etc.) running. Although most boats can generate power from their inboard engines, and some carry generators, carrying sufficient fuel for these over a long voyage can be a problem; and so many cruising boats are equipped with generating devices such as solar panels, wind turbines, etc.
  
  While it is quite possible (and, until relatively recently, normal) to cruise without long-distance communications equipment, such gear is becoming more common on cruising boats. Many boats are now equipped with satellite telephone systems; however, these systems can be expensive to use, and may operate only in restricted areas. Many cruisers still rely on the older short wave maritime SSB radio standard, which has no running costs, and can (with suitable equipment) allow sending and receiving of email.
  
  [edit] Other kinds of maritime cruising
  
  * Dinghy sailors may be cruisers. In this case the word refers to someone who sails just for fun, maybe to go from A to B, but equally likely just to sail around for a few hours - in fact, any sailing activity that does not involve racing.
  
  * Travel on cruise ships may be referred to as cruising. Those who take frequent cruise ship vacations (multiple times per year) may be called cruisers.
  
  [edit] Further reading
  
  * Mary Blewitt, Celestial Navigation for Yachtsmen - just the facts.
  * Nathaniel Bowditch, The American Practical Navigator - A classic, prefessional reference, continuously updated.
  * William F. Buckley, Jr., Atlantic High - an account of an Atlantic passage.
  * William F. Buckley, Jr., Racing Through Paradise - etc. about a Pacific passage.
  * Michael Carr, "Weather Prediction Simplified"
  * Don Casey, Dragged Aboard: a Cruising Guide for the Reluctant Mate
  * Linda and Steve Dashew, Offshore Cruisers' Encyclopedia - expensive but so useful it has been compared to Bowditch and Dutton. Easy to read.
  * Steve and Linda Dashew, Mariner's Weather Handbook
  * Robin Lee Graham, Dove - The story of a 16-year-old boy who sails around the world in a 28 foot sloop in the nineteensixties
  * Eric Hiscock, Cruising Under Sail - just the facts, a classic.
  * Beth A. Leonard, The Voyager's Handbook - a useful up-to-date guide on blue-water sailing
  * Elbert Maloney, Dutton's Navigation and Piloting - a classic, professional reference, continuously updated.
  * Lawrence and Lin Pardey, The Self-Sufficient Sailor - The Pardey's message is wonderfully encouraging: Go simply, go cheaply and in a small boat, but go.
  * Lawrence and Lin Pardey, Cost Conscious Cruiser - more hints and tricks
  * Lawrence and Lin Pardey, Storm Tactics.
  * Merle Turner, Celestial Navigation for the Cruising Navigator - some theory.
  * U.S. Naval Institute, The Bluejackets' Manual - the navy way; the authority on Morse, flags, courtesies, fire-fighting at sea, jury-rigging, ship handling and basic sea law.
  * Alan Villiers, Cruise of the Conrad. Scribner's, 1937. Reprinted, Seafarer Books, 2006.
  * Jeff & Raine Williams Around the World in Eighty Megabytes
  
  Yacht racing is the sport of competitive sailing. There is a broad variety of kinds of races and sailboats used for racing. Much racing is done around buoys or similar marks in protected waters, while some longer offshore races cross open water. All kinds of boats are used for racing, including small dinghies, catamarans, boats designed primarily for cruising, and purpose-built raceboats.
  Contents
  [hide]
  
  * 1 Types of races
  o 1.1 Harbour or buoy racing
  o 1.2 Offshore racing
  o 1.3 Other races
  * 2 Classes and ratings
  * 3 Classes of Sailing Dinghies, Skiffs, Yachts and Multihulls
  * 4 References
  * 5 See also
  * 6 External links
  
  [edit] Types of races
  
  [edit] Harbour or buoy racing
  
  Harbour or buoy races are conducted in protected waters, and are quite short, usually taking anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours. All sorts of sailing craft are used for these races, including keelboats of all sizes, as well as dinghies, catamarans, skiffs, sailboards, and other small craft. A competition, or regatta, usually consists of multiple individual races, where the boat that performs best in each race is the overall winner. The most famous such event is the America's Cup, but harbour races are common anywhere there is a community of sailors.
  
  This kind of race is most commonly run over one or more laps of a triangular course marked by a number of buoys. The course starts from an imaginary line drawn from a 'committee boat' to the designated 'starting' buoy or 'pin'. A number of warning signals are given telling the crews exactly how long until the race starts. The aim of each crew is to cross the start line at full speed exactly as the race starts. A course generally involves tacking upwind to a 'windward' marker or buoy. Then bearing away onto a downwind leg to a second jibe marker. Next another jibe on a second downwind leg to the last mark which is called the 'downwind mark' (or 'leeward mark'). At this mark the boats turn into wind once again to tack to the finish line.
  
  [edit] Offshore racing
  
  Offshore yacht races are held over long distances and in open water; such races usually last for at least a number of days. The longest offshore races involve a circumnavigation of the world.
  
  Some of the most famous offshore races are the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, the Transpacific Yacht Race, the Fastnet race, the Bermuda Race, and the West Marine Pacific Cup. Several fully-crewed round-the-world races are held, including the Volvo Ocean Race (formerly called the Whitbread Round the World Race), the Global Challenge and the Clipper Round the World Race.
  
  Single-handed ocean yacht racing began with the race across the Atlantic Ocean by William Albert Andrews and Josiah W. Lawlor in 1891; however, the first regular single-handed ocean race was the Single-Handed Trans-Atlantic Race, first held in 1960. The first round-the-world yacht race was the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race of 1968-1969, which was also a single-handed race; this inspired the present-day VELUX 5 Oceans Race (formerly the BOC Challenge / Around Alone) and the Vendée Globe. Single-handed racing has seen a great boom in popularity in recent years.
  
  There is some controversy about the legality of sailing single-handed over long distances, as the navigation rules require "that every vessel shall at all times maintain a proper lookout..."; single-handed sailors can only keep a sporadic lookout, due to the need to sleep, tend to navigation, etc.[1]
  
  [edit] Other races
  
  Certain races do not fit in the above categories. One such is the Three peaks yacht race in the UK which is a team competition involving sailing, cycling and running.
  
  [edit] Classes and ratings
  
  Many design factors have a large impact on the speed at which a boat can complete a course, including the size of a boat's sails, its length, and the weight and shape of its hull. Because of these differences, it can be difficult to compare the skills of the sailors in a race if they are sailing very different boats. For most forms of yacht racing, one of two solutions to this problem are used; either all boats are required to be identical (a one-design class), or a handicapping system is used. A third approach is the use of "open" classes.
  
  In one-design racing all boats must conform to the same standard, the class rules. In this way the boats are as identical as they can be manufactured, thus emphasizing the skill of the skipper and crew. Examples of popular classes include Etchells, Snipe, Star, Soling, Thistle, Lightning, Laser, and J/24. Each class has a detailed set of specifications that must be met for the boat to be considered a member of that class. At important regattas the boats are measured prior to the event to ensure that they do conform.
  
  When all the yachts in a race are not members of the same class, then a handicap is used to adjust the times of boats. The handicap attempts to specify a "normal" speed for each boat, usually based either on measurements taken of the boat, or on the past record of that kind of boat. Each boat is timed over the specified course. After it has finished, the handicap is added to each boat's finishing time. The results are based on this sum. Popular handicapping systems in 2006 include IRC (Sailing), ORR and PHRF. Earlier popular rating systems include IOR and IMS.
  
  An open class is based on a box rule, which specifies a maximum overall size for boats in the class, as well as features such as stability. Competitors in these classes are then free to enter their own boat designs, as long as they do not exceed the box rule. No handicap is then applied. Since it is essentially based on the use of custom boats, such events are generally limited to high-budget racers. Popular examples of open classes are the Open 50 and 60 classes used in single-handed offshore events. However the Moth class is an exception, with boats being no longer than 11 feet.
  
  Electric Boat is sometimes used as a colloquial abbreviation for the US Electric Boat Corporation. This article is about electric boats themselves, rather than this corporation.
  
  While most boats on the water today are powered by diesel engines, and sail power and gasoline engines are also popular, it is perfectly feasible to power boats by electricity too.
  
  Electric boats were very popular from the 1880s until the 1920s, when the internal combustion engine took dominance. Since the energy crises of the 1970s, interest in this quiet and potentially renewable marine energy source has been increasing steadily again. With the present state of technology so developed, many believe that the time is right for electric boats to become popular again.
  Contents
  [hide]
  
  * 1 Components
  o 1.1 Charger
  o 1.2 Battery bank
  o 1.3 Speed controller
  o 1.4 Electric motor
  o 1.5 Drive chain
  * 2 Types
  * 3 Lifetime pollution and energy costs
  * 4 See also
  * 5 External links
  
  [edit] Components
  
  The main components of the drive system of any electrically powered boat are similar in all cases, and similar to the options available for any electric vehicle.
  
  [edit] Charger
  
  Electric energy will have to be obtained for the battery bank from some source.
  
  * Mains charger allows the boat to be charged from a shore-side power point when one is available. This calls into question claims that the boat is 'non-polluting' and uses 'renewable energy', but at least it does not directly pollute the water in which it sits as would the use of any petroleum-based motor. Shore-based power stations are subject to much stricter environmental controls than the average marine diesel or outboard motor.
  
  * Solar panels can be built into the boat in reasonable areas in the deck, cabin roof or as awnings. Modern solar panels, or photovoltaic arrays, can be flexible enough to fit to slightly curved surfaces and can be ordered in unusual shapes and sizes. It is still true that the heavier, rigid mono-crystalline types are more efficient in terms of energy output per square meter. The efficiency of solar panels rapidly decreases when they are not pointed directly at the sun, so some way of tilting the arrays while under way is very advantageous.
  
  * Towed generators are common on long-distance cruising yachts and can generate a lot of power when travelling under sail. If an electric boat is to have sails as well, and will be used in deep water (deeper than about 15 m or 50 ft), then a towed generator will help build up battery charge while sailing (there is no point in trailing such a generator while under electric propulsion as the extra drag from the generator would waste more electricity than it generates). Some electric power systems use the free-wheeling drive propeller to generate charge through the drive motor when sailing, but this system, including the design of the propeller and any gearing, cannot be optimised for both functions. It may be better locked off or feathered while the towed generator's more efficient turbine gathers energy.
  
  * Wind turbines are also common on cruising yachts and can be very well suited to electric boats. There are safety considerations regarding the spinning blades, especially in a strong wind. It is important that the boat is big enough that the turbine can be mounted out of the way of all passengers and crew under all circumstances, including when alongside and when coming alongside a dock, a bank or a pier. It is also important that the boat is big enough and stable enough that the top hamper created by the turbine on its pole or mast does not compromise its stability in a strong wind or gale.
  
  * If the boat is to have an internal combustion engine anyway, then its alternator will of course provide significant charge when it is running. This does rather defeat the original purpose, however. The weight saving that we would expect by not having this engine and all its associated tanks, pipework and other fittings would help to add to the efficiency that electric propulsion needs.
  
  In all cases, a charge regulator will be needed. This is to ensure that the batteries are charged at the maximum rate that they safely can stand when the power is available. It must also ensure that they are not overcharged when nearing full charge and not overheated when they are discharged and a great deal of charge current becomes available.
  
  [edit] Battery bank
  
  There have been significant technical advantages in battery technology in recent years, and more is to be expected in the future.
  
  * Lead-acid batteries are the most viable option at the moment. Deep-cycle, 'traction' batteries are the obvious choice. There is no denying that they are heavy and bulky, but not much more so than the diesel engine, tanks and fittings that they may be replacing. They need to be securely mounted, low down and centrally situated in the boat. It is essential that they cannot move around under any circumstances. Care must be taken that there is no risk of spilled, strong acid in the event of a capsize as this could be dangerous or even fatal. At the same time, venting of explosive hydrogen and oxygen gases is also necessary. Finally, typical lead-acid batteries must be kept topped-up with distilled water.
  
  * Valve-regulated lead-acid (VRLA) batteries, usually known as sealed lead-acid, Gel, or AGM batteries, minimize the risk of spillage, and gases are only vented when the batteries are overcharged. These batteries require minimal maintenance, as they cannot and usually do not need to be refilled with water.
  
  * Nickel metal hydride and other hi-tech, solid-state batteries are becoming available, but are still expensive. These are the kind of batteries currently common in rechargeable hand tools like drills and screwdrivers, but they are relatively new to this environment. They require specialised charge controllers.
  
  * Fuel cells are going to provide significant advantages in the years to come, and one day heavy lead-acid batteries will seem 'pre-historic' by comparison. Today (2005) however they are very expensive and require specialist equipment and knowledge, making them all but impractical for any but their dedicated enthusiasts.
  
  The size of the battery bank will determine the range of the boat under electric power alone. The speed that the boat is motored at will also affect this - a lower speed can make a big difference to the energy required to move a hull. Other factors that affect range include sea-state, windage and any charge that can be reclaimed while under way, for example by solar panels in full sun. A wind tubine in a good following wind will help, and motor-sailing in any wind could do so even more.
  
  [edit] Speed controller
  
  To make the boat usable and manoeuvrable, a simple-to-operate forward/stop/backwards speed controller is needed. This must be efficient - i.e. it must not get hot and waste energy at any speed - and it must be able to stand the full current that could conceivably flow under any full-load condition.
  
  [edit] Electric motor
  
  Electric motor technology is also complex and changing. Permanent magnet, brushless motors are considered very suitable by some specialists.
  
  [edit] Drive chain
  
  Depending on the size of the boat and the choice of electric motor, a standard propeller shaft, bearings and propeller may be available. In some cases some reduction gearing may be required, but from the point of view of efficiency, wear-and-tear and routine maintenance this should be avoided if at all possible, perhaps by choosing a different propeller.
  
  As in other kinds of electric vehicles, electric drive on boats offers the opportunity of direct drive, removing the expense, bulk, weight and inefficiency of a transmission. This is especially true given the limited range of speeds on most boats, on which the transmission only provides forward and reverse, which with most electric motors can be accomplished electrically instead.
  
  [edit] Types
  
  There are as many types of electric boat as there are boats with any other method of propulsion, but some types are significant for various reasons.
  
  * Historical and restored electric boats exist and are often important projects for those involved. See the Mary Gordon Electric Boat for example.
  
  * Canal, river and lake boats. Electric boats, with their limited range and performance, have tended to be used mostly on inland waterways, where their complete lack of local pollution is a significant advantage. Electric drives are also available as auxiliary propulsion for sailing yachts on inland waters.
  
  * Electric outboards and trolling motors have been available for some years at prices from about $100 (US) up to several thousand. These still require external batteries in the bottom of the boat, but are otherwise practical one-piece items. Most available electric outboards are not as efficient as custom drives, but are optimised for their intended use, e.g. as an ideal drive system for inland waterway fishermen. They are quiet and they do not pollute the water or the air, so they do not scare away or harm fish and birds. Combined with modern waterproof battery packs, electric outboards are also ideal for yacht tenders and other inshore pleasure boats.
  
  * Cruising yachts usually have an auxiliary engine, and there are two main uses for this engine. One is to power ahead or motor-sail at sea when the wind is light or from the wrong direction. The other is to provide the last 10 minutes or so of propulsion when the boat is in port and needs to be manoeuvred into a tight berth in a crowded and confined marina or harbour. Electric propulsion is ideally suited to both cases, but not for prolonged cruising at full power. Regarding the first case, the power required to motor slowly is so small that many hours of operation are possible even with a small battery capacity. Regarding the second case, electric drives can be so finely controlled that it is easier to perform difficult manoeuvers than with combustion engine drives. Additionally electric motors can be used at several times their rated power for short periods, so that even quite small motors can provide adequate thrust when required.
  
  * Diesel-electric. There is a third potential use for the trusty diesel auxiliary and that is to charge the batteries, when they suddenly start to wane far from shore in the middle of the night, or at anchor after some days of living aboard. In this case, where this kind of use is to be expected, perhaps on a larger cruising yacht, then a combined diesel-electric solution may be designed from the start. The diesel engine is installed with the prime purpose of charging the battery banks, and the electric motor with that of propulsion. There is some reduction in efficiency if motoring for long distances as the diesel's power is converted first to electricity and then to motion, but there is a balancing saving every time the wind-, sail- and solar-charged batteries are used for manoeuvring and for short journeys without starting the diesel. There is the flexibility of being able to start the diesel as a pure generator whenever required. The main losses are in weight and installation cost, but on the bigger cruising boats that sit at anchor running large diesels for hours every day, these may not be too big an issue, compared to the savings that can be made at other times.
  
  * Solar powered. A boat propelled by direct solar energy, almost always converted to electricity by solar cells, temporarily stored in accumulator batteries, and used to drive a propeller through an electric motor. Power levels are usually on the order of a few hundred watts to a few kilowatts. Solar powered boats started to become known around 1985 and in 1995 the first commercial solar passenger boats appeared.[1] Solar powered boats have been used successfully at sea. The first crossing of the Atlantic Ocean commenced in December 2006 by the solar catamaran sun21.[2]
  
  [edit] Lifetime pollution and energy costs
  
  Of course, all the component parts of any boat have to be manufactured and will eventually have to be disposed of. Some pollution and use of other energy sources are inevitable during these stages of the boat's life and electric boats are no exception. The benefits to the global environment that are achieved by the use of electric propulsion are manifested during the working life of the boat, which can be many years. These benefits are also most directly felt in the sensitive and very beautiful environments in which such a boat is used, by a careful and caring owner and crew.
  
  A bareboat charter is an arrangement for the hiring of a boat, whereby no crew or provisions are included as party of the agreement; instead, the people who rent the boat from the owner are responsible for taking care of such things.
  
  There are legal differences between a bareboat charter and other types of charter arrangement, such as crewed or luxury yacht charter, commonly called time or voyage charters. In a voyage or time charter the charterer charters the ship (or part of it)for a particular voyage or for a set period of time. In these charters the charterer can direct where the ship will go but the owner of the ship retains possession of the ship through its employment of the master and crew. In a bare-boat or demise charter, on the other hand, the owner gives possession of the ship to the charterer and the charterer hires its own master and crew. The bare-boat charterer is sometimes called a "disponent owner". The giving up of possession of the ship by the owner is the defining characteristic of a bare-boat or demise charter.
  
  There are also hundreds of bareboat yacht charter brokers or agent companies. These companies offer yacht finding and travel organisation services similar to travel agent only more specialised. Their purpose is to use their experience and networks to locate a client's ideal bareboat in terms of price and location.
  
  Bareboat hire has become increasingly common over the last ten years and in particular the last 2 years. There has been increasing demand for yacht vacations and many experienced and semi-experienced ‘yachties’ now consider it easier and cheaper to hire a bareboat, rather than own their own yacht. While both the international leisure travel industry (particularly outdoor activities based vacations) and the boating industry has both boomed in the last decade, so too has the bareboat charter industry which incorporates both of these pursuits.
  
  Info by Wikipedia link