Zero2Sixty

Atlantic Circuit 2012

2012-04-26T00:00:00Z

After sailing around the Caribbean for the winter, we are ready to complete the Atlantic Circuit and return to Europe. This is a passage that sailors have been making for hundreds of years and we’re excited to be joining that group. Last November we met with the ARC group in Las Palmas di Gran Canaria to make the crossing to the Caribbeanalong with 250 other yachts. You can read about our planning, our preparation and our experiences enroute on this traditional passage westbound from Europe… More

Illusions of Safety ARC 2011

2012-04-20T00:00:00Z

Last November I completed the ARC 2011, a ‘rally for cruisers’ that has been going on for 26 years. The ARC was created by Jimmy Cornwell to provide a way for people who needed help crossing the Atlantic to benefit from the experience of those that already had. A valiant and worthwhile endeavor for a man with incredible experience to pass along. Over the years, thousands of sailors have successfully participated. A number of years ago the franchise of the ARC was sold to a group in the UK and I believe the timbre and focus of the event has changed… More

Whale Spotting in Antigua

2012-04-15T00:00:00Z

While sailing around Antigua today from Carisle Bay on our way to an anchorage in Nonsuch Bay on the east side of the island, Murray spotted a whale breeching up ahead of us. We quickly changed course and motored over to see if we could get close enough for some photos. Luckily this male Humpback Whale was not too worried about our little boat and keep breeching and rolling on the surface to give us a good show… More

Sunset Beach Bar

2012-01-13T00:00:00Z

A visit to the island of St. Martin (French side) and St. Maarten (Ductch side) wouldn’t be complete without stopping in at the famous Sunset Beach Bar. It’s located at the end of the runway at Princess Juliana International Airport You’ve probably seen a picture of it before as the beach is the place where passenger jets cross at 50 feet to land on the runway just on the other side of the beach. Every time a jet passes overhead hundreds of people leap to their feet waving beers and snapping photos… More

Yellowbrick Tracking

2012-01-11T00:00:00Z

On our recently completed transit of the Atlantic from Las Palmas to St. Lucia we were loaned a device called Yellowbrick by the organizers of the ARC. It provided our location (longitude/latitude) every four hours to a website where family and friends back home could track our progress. We liked it so well, we purchased one ourselves.… More

Finish Line ARC 2011

2011-12-07T00:00:00Z

Lots of rain, squalls and no wind in the final few days of the passage followed by the last day or so of dead, flat seas. This rounds out the weather for the trip as we’ve had a wide variety of conditions to work through with both the crew and FG handling them all with aplomb. I’m not trying to minimize the effects of weather on our sailing but this big Hallberg-Rassy yacht was designed to take on these conditions and thrive, and so she has… More

Crew Perspectives ARC 2011

2011-12-02T00:00:00Z

Since we have a number of different nationalities onboard with family and friends following our adventure at home speaking Italian, Spanish and Swedish, I thought it would be great for each of the crew to write something about this passage in their native language. I apologize for not thinking of this sooner. Enjoy and feel free to comment if you are so inclined… More

Life on board ARC 2011

2011-12-01T00:00:00Z

So, we are now on our 11th day at sea having passed the mid-point of our passage across the Atlantic a couple days back. Our day-to-day routines have set in and we are used to life at sea. I wanted to see if I can paint a picture for you of what it is like out here as many of you envision something quite different, perhaps, than what we are experiencing… More