Cruising Kitty’s Reading List for 2012

The Cruising Kitty’s Reading List for 2012

Here’s what the Captain snoozed on during 2012 
(and that were subsequently assigned to and read by the Can Opener too):

1. Maiden Voyage, by Tania Aebi
2. How to Sail Around the World, by Hal Roth
3. 20 Small Boats to Take You Anywhere, by John Vigor 
4. The Racing Rules 2008-2012, by Bryan Willis
5. Psychology of Sailing, by Michael Stadler  
6. Care and Feeding of the Sailing Crew, Lin Pardey
7. World Cruising Survey, by Jimmy Cornell
8. Sell Up & Sail: Taking the Ulysses Option, by Bill and Laurel Cooper
9. RYA VHF Radio text 
10. The Seaworthy Offshore Sailboat, by John Vigor
11. Day Skipper for Sail and Power, by Alison Noice
12. Yachtmaster for Sail and Power, by Alison Noice
13. RYA Day Skipper course book
14. RYA Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster course book
15. RYA Weather Handbook, by Chris Tibbs
16. The Reluctant Mariner, by Joana Hackett 
17. Come Hell or High Water, by Clare Francis
18. Come Wind or Weather, by Clare Francis
19. Cruising in Seraffyn, by Larry and Lin Pardey
20. Against the Flow, by Dee Cafari 
21. Taking on the World, by Ellen MacArthur 
22. The Racing Rules of Sailing, by Paul Elvestrom 

–Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Rules, Rules, Rules!

Goodbye 2008~2012, helloooooo 2013~2016!

One of the books always on the First Mate’s bedstand is The Racing Rules of Sailing, by Paul Elvestrom. And last week at the Red Tabby Yacht Club, at the racing section’s most recent lecture, this was exactly the topic of the day. 

So I spruced up the Can Opener, climbed up on his shoulder and steered him downtown to the club. (My ears are still stinging from your firm grip on them, Furrball!)

The discussion, led by a most able and illuminating umpire old cat, focused on what‘s new in the rules for 2013~2016.

So what’s the big deal? 
As usual, there are some significant changes coming down the pipe. And it’s not just that there’s new rules to learn.  It’s that the interpretation of these rules takes a while to iron out. It’s not a speedy process or all cut and dried. It‘s a seeing and doing on the race course. 

How hard will your competitors push the rules? How will the umps interpret them this time? Will the umps in other countries play them the same way? Or even the umpires at the next yacht club…

Once things settle down and there’s some kind of precedent established then you can really get down to figuring out how to use these rules to best advantage tactically. 

So what’s new?
Some highlights:

• inclusion of a new section on environmental responsibility
• new definition of boats overlapping
• changes to definitions of mark room and room to round it – again
• ‘ownership of the zone’ is gone
• clarifications on ‘room to hail’, responsibilities, hailing at the finish line and hand signals added
• more clarifications to the definitions and implementation of ‘un/seamanlike’ conduct 

The new The Racing Rules of Sailing 2013~2016, by Paul Elvestrom is already on sale. The Rules in Practice 2013-2016 by Bryan Willis goes on sale Friday. We’ll be honing our boat handling skills next year on racing boats as well as cruising boats so I am requiring the First Mate to zip online today and order new copies of both.  

This is detailed stuff to absorb and he‘ll need the winter to absorb it. 

Have you got your new copy of the rules? Mmph? – not yet??  That new toy rodent may be good, but these rules take ages to sink in… Time to get cracking and assign it to an adoring and motivated underling like I did.

–Captain Cat 

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

The Reluctant Mariner – Reviewed

Book the Captain has snoozed upon:  
The Reluctant Mariner, by Joanna Hackett   

Another book review from the Can Opener! He certainly has been burning the night oil. This one’s a gripping travelogue on the voyages of an Australian couple…

Topics Covered

This travelogue covers the circumnavigation of Joanna Hackett and her husband, Lindsay, through 37 countries over 5 years.
 
The Best Part
Hackett’s writing style is addictive. Her relentless dry sense of humour and determination to portray the mundane to the quirky from new angles makes you reconsider your assumptions about… just about everything. 

Her understated approach to what must have been insanity-inducing immigration and border control bureaucracies made us smile and smile. If we thought we’d already seen the most challenging, we clearly haven’t seen anything yet. 

Informative. Also balanced. Joanna was also quick to highlight moonlit nights aboard and truly magical meetings with people, flora, fauna and places.

Wishes

Perhaps we haven’t grasped the real purpose and meaning of a travelogue but we did long for some kind of red thread running through this narrative. Something to work towards so we knew how far along in the tale we were. We like a plot arc. We did get the feeling that new places unrolled endlessly before us. 

But maybe that’s what travelogues are about.

Conclusion
Been there. Done that. And glad we bought it. Would definitely buy it again. 

Are we gonna keep it? Nah. We‘ll probably donate it to the Red Tabby Yacht Club library so someone else can enjoy it too.


Ever read The Reluctant Mariner, by Joanna Hackett? How did you find it? Any good recommendations for other books for the sea library?

–Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener) 

Previously: Cruising in Seraffyn

In the US
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Cruising Study List – 1st Half 2012

The Cruising Kitty’s Reading List 
   
Cruising Study – 1st Half 2012

Here’s what the Captain snoozed on during the first half of 2012 (and that were subsequently assigned to and read by the Can Opener too):

• Maiden Voyage, by Tania Aebi
• How to Sail Around the World, by Hal Roth
• 20 Small Boats to Take You Anywhere, by John Vigor 
• The Racing Rules 2008-2012, by Bryan Willis
• Psychology of Sailing, by Michael Stadler  
• Care and Feeding of the Sailing Crew, Lin Pardey
• World Cruising Survey, by Jimmy Cornell
• Sell Up & Sail: Taking the Ulysses Option, by Bill and Laurel Cooper
• RYA VHF Radio text 
• The Seaworthy Offshore Sailboat, by John Vigor
• Day Skipper for Sail and Power, by Alison Noice
• Yachtmaster for Sail and Power, by Alison Noice
• RYA Day Skipper course book
• RYA Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster course book
• RYA Weather Handbook, by Chris Tibbs

–Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

 

Cruising Flashcards

Yes indeed, the First Mate is buckling down and doing some serious cruising and navigation study. He’s so motivated he even created flashcards to review with! 

Flashcards are great to tuck in a pocket before we get on the tube. And a lot lighter than dragging around those hefty cruising textbooks in the man bag.

Knew there had to be some good purpose for all those useless Wharton business cards…

–Captain Cat 

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Study Books for: Coastal Skipper Exam

Just ordered some more of the Can Opener’s favourite things… books! 

These ones are to help him review for his Coastal Skipper exam later this year. He’s got the old RYA study texts but in my opinion – it’s not enough. I want him to be 150% ready. 

I’ll probably order some more practice exercise books later too. Serious review starts now…

• Day Skipper for Sail and Power, by Alison Noice
• Yachtmaster for Sail and Power: The Complete Course for the RYA Coastal and Offshore Yachtmaster Certificate, by Alison Noice 
• Reeds Nautical Almanac 2012: With Marina Guide 2012 by Andy Du Port and Rob Buttress 
• RYA Weather Handbook – Northern Hemisphere by Chris Tibbs and Sarah Selman
• Coastal and Offshore Navigation, by Tom Cunliffe

Book reviews coming soon! 

–Captain Cat 

 (transcribed by the Can Opener)

What’s On The First Mate’s Nightstand?

What’s On The First Mate’s Nightstand these days?

Books, books and more books to read…

The Can Opener has been toiling away at his studies and we are pleased with his progress. 

Here are the books piled sky high on his night table that are in various stages of being read:

• La Longue Route, by Bernard Moitessier
• Cruising Under Sail, by Eric Hiscock
• Mettre Les Voiles, by Antoine
• Coastal and Offshore Navigation, by Tom Cunliffe
• Ocean Sailing, by Tom Cunliffe
• The Racing Rules of Sailing, by Paul Elvestrom
• Offshore Sailing, by Seifert & Spurr
• Don Casey’s Sailboat Maintenance Manual, by Casey & Compton
• Yachtsman’s Emergency Handbook, by Hollander & Mertes
• The Voyager’s Handbook, by Beth Leonard
• The Seaworthy Offshore Boat, by John Vigor

Any other recommendations for good books for the Can Opener to read?

–Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Cruising Texts
Previously: A Big Bunch of Book Reviews

A Big Bunch of Cruising Book Reviews

The Cruising Kitty’s Book Reviews

Here’s what the Captain has snoozed on and reviewed so far (and that were subsequently assigned to and read by the Can Opener as well).

Cruising Texts / Book Reviews

• Cost Conscious Cruiser

• Capable Cruiser

• Self Sufficient Sailor

• Maiden Voyage

• How to Sail Around the World

• Twenty Small Sailboats to Take You Anywhere

• Psychology of Sailing

• Care and Feeding of the Sailing Crew

• Bryan Willis, The Rules in Practice

• World Cruising Survey

• Sell Up & Sail

   

   

  –Captain Cat
  
  
  (transcribed by the Can Opener)

  Cruising Texts

  Next: What’s on the First Mate’s nightstand?

Care and Feeding of the Sailing Crew – Reviewed

Links below at bottom of post

Book the Captain just finished for the third time: The Care and Feeding of the Sailing Crew, by Lin Pardey

On a 49 day voyage (49 days!), from Yokohama, Japan to Victoria, Canada, Lin Pardey wrote down just about everything you could want to know about food and crew care on a boat.

The stuff we loved

• specific info on how long each kind of fruit, vegetable, dairy, meat, whatever, lasts in a boat without refridgeration
• how to store food so it lasts as long as possible
• how to get the right kind of food in the first place
• how to track what you’ve got
• managing the galley organisation and layout
• planning meals for voyages
• how to cook with salt water – adapting recipes to make use of ocean water (and save your fresh water supplies)!
• managing meal prep and crew care across a variety of weather conditions…
• Actually, we loved it all.
  

Wishes

We wish this could be provided in digital form with spreadsheets for tracking inventory and how long each type of foodstuff probably lasts riiiight in that spreadsheet.

Conclusion

We loved every bit of this book without reservation. Heck, we’d buy two copies if it meant we could get even more info out of it! But Lin seems to have already covered it all.

Any other crew care/provisioning/cookbooks you would recommend for cruising? 

I am always researching the next round of additions for our sea library…

–Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Book Reviews
Next: Bryan Willis, The Rules in Practice – Reviewed 
Previously: Psychology of Sailing

  
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Psychology of Sailing – Reviewed

Book the Captain just finished snoozing on: Psychology of Sailing, by Michael Stadler 

Trolling the internet for books on improved First Mate management and motivation, I found Psychology of Sailing, by Michael Stadler, and decided to give it a whirl.

Since this is an out-of-print book, the used prices range from nearly free to seriously insane. By checking Amazon weekly, we finally found an offer for less than £7, shipping included. 

Topics covered

• sensory illusions at sea – what sights and sounds can ‘trick you’ at sea and why this happens
• how seasickness happens and why
• crew psychology – interactions of crews on ships, leadership and motivation

The best part 
For us, it was the crew psychology – interactions of crews on yachts, leadership and motivation. That’s why we bought it. 

Wishes 
We were hoping that the whole book would be about crew interaction on yachts and long distance passages – and how to optimize that. Unfortunately, only 45 pages (out of 120 pages) covered this. 

While this section was interesting, I’d like to find a much deeper and lengthy analysis of crew psychology. But this book is the best ( – and the only – one specifically focused on voyaging) that  we can find so far. 

Maybe analyses of parallel or similar situations would be helpful? For example, analyses of interaction of crews on submarines? Or other groups in confined spaces? 

Conclusion 
So – it’s still a good add to the sea library. 

It gives a bit of insight on what I’m doing right in Can Opener management and some ideas about where to investigate to improve even further. I’d really like to find more expert coverage of this topic, however. 

Got any good recommendations on ‘crew psychology’ for the sea library? 
What other books are a must for the cruising life? 

–Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener) 

Book Reviews
Previously: How to Sail Around the World – Book Review

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