Current News
Abby Crosses Equator
As Aussie Jessica Watson, 16, nears South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope and settles into the second — and arguably more difficult — half of her nonstop solo circumnavigation, Southern California’s Abby Sunderland, also 16, has crossed the equator. More »
School Ship Concordia Sinks Off Brazil
For nearly 20 years, Concordia has sailed the world, educating young trainees along the way.
© 2010 Class Afloat
As the 188-ft barquentine Concordia sailed down the South Atlantic last week, Captain Bill Curry warned his crew, and the 44 high school and college-age student sailors aboard, to prepare for unsettled weather. More »
Judge an Island by Its Magazines?
Based on our opinion, you can tell a lot about an island by the magazines that get distributed to the visitors. Some are all about rental cars outlets and bars, others are about cheap hotels and jungle trips, while others feature overpriced watches, expensive jewelry and jets for rent. More »
Why Wait Until 16 To Circumnavigate?
One of the reasons Kiwis are such good sailors is that they start young in life. Take these little guys, who are the grandchildren of New Zealander Ken Beashel. The oldest is 18-months-old. More »
New Storm Threatens in Wake of Rene
"We took a direct hit," reports Joel Stern, who rode out category 2 Cyclone Rene in Tonga earlier this week aboard his San Diego-based Vagabond 47 Paradise Bound. "Rumor has it we had 90 knots steady with gusts to 143 knots. More »
Surfin’ Bonita Channel
Half Moon Bay wasn’t the only spot to watch monster breaking waves last weekend. Rob Macfarlane watched from the safety of the main shipping channel as huge rollers broke across the entire width of Bonita Channel. More »
Tonga Battered by Cyclone Rene
Having punished Tonga, Rene is expected to pass south of Fiji today. (Note: Lying beyond the International Dateline, it is currently February 16 in Tonga.)
© 2010 US Navy / NLR
The "friendly kingdom" of Tonga was walloped yesterday by Cyclone Rene, the most powerful storm to strike this South Pacific cluster of 179 islands in the past 50 years. More »
A Ride on the Plastic Fantastic
Plastiki, a 60-ft catamaran made entirely of recycled — in the form of used irrigation pipes for the masts and old soda bottles for flotation — and recyclable materials, is nearly ready for an offshore shakedown cruise. More »
Cyclone Rene Bears Down on Tonga
Hang onto your hats. Here comes Rene.
© Fiji Met Service
As we go to press with this edition of ‘Lectronic, we’ve just been informed that a nasty category 2 cyclone, dubbed Rene, is bearing down on the Kingdom of Tonga and is expected to build in intensity. More »
Abby Sunderland Leaves Cabo
Just five days after sailing into Cabo San Lucas to effect repairs to the charging system of her Open 40 Wild Eyes, Marina del Rey’s Abby Sunderland, 16, set off again on Saturday in her bid to become the world’s youngest non-stop solo circumnavigator. More »
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