Ocean Sailing

After sailing 300,000 miles and weathering dozens of storms in all the world's oceans, John Kretschmer has plenty of stories and advice to share. John's offshore training passages sell out a year in advance, and his entertaining presentations are popular at boat shows and yacht clubs all over the English-speaking world. John's talent for storytelling enchants his audience as it soaks up the lessons he learned during his often challenging voyages. Now you can take a seat next to John - at a lesser cost - and get the knowledge you need to fulfill your own dream of blue-water adventure.

A retired, Canadian firefighter with a dream of adventure sails his new boat from The Virgin Islands to Grenada, and then across the Caribbean Sea to the USA. Picking up his 2 dogs he continues up and down the east coast and across the Bahamas, gaining experience as a dream of circumnavigating the planet begins to form. A true story beginning in 2012, this first half concludes with the Bénéteau 423 being outfitted in North Carolina in 2015, ready to depart for Panama. Dramatic, often moving, or incredibly funny, it is a tale of confronting the unknown, told with heart.

Ever thought of ditching your conventional life to buy a sailboat and go traveling the world as a modern-day sea nomad? Half Fast is the true story of a married couple in their thirties who do just that—a move some of their family and friends consider to be a 'half-assed scheme' at best. With little money and even even less nautical experience they leave their small-town home in Arkansas to embark on an adventure they hope will last for a year or two but which evolves into a quarter-century voyage of discovery spanning half the world. Come along with Randy and Cheryl as they cruise their ...

John Kretschmer is sailing’s practical philosopher - as much a doer as a thinker. And that is the overarching theme of this chronicle of a sailing life. Often amusing, sometimes poignant, occasionally terrifying but always inspiring, his deeply personal account is a welcome reminder of the good life waiting at sea. With hundreds of thousands of nautical miles under his keel, John’s adventures have taken him several times around the world.

Orphaned at five, nothing held Whidden back from embarking on sea life seven years later. Serving as an apprentice, he quickly proved his worth and earned himself a mate's position by his early 20s. Graduating to third, second, and first office, he ended his career in command of, and having part-ownership of, his own vessel. Ocean Life in the Old Sailing Ship Days records a series of real events from his childhood impressions of rough and ready seamen to his thrilling and brutal experiences of war.

Islands, Oceans and Dreams is a true story of a man who, at the age of 33, began dreaming of voyaging with his wife to the South Pacific. He wasn't an adventurer or daring by nature, but he bought a boat and began learning the ways of the sea. Twenty years later, racked with the pain of divorce and still aching to live out his dream, he set off alone for Tahiti. After reaching French Polynesia, he continued cruising for seven years and wound up solo sailing around the world.

The iconic Sydney to Hobart Race, a 723-mile deepwater challenge - often called the “Everest” of offshore ocean racing - is considered one of the toughest in the world. Unpredictable weather and seas make each race demanding, but in 1998, an unexpected “weather bomb” hit the fleet, creating 80-foot waves and 100-mile-per-hour winds. Many bigger, better-equipped boats tried to maneuver around the storm, but the crew of the AFR Midnight Rambler chose to head directly into its path.

A historical fiction book set in the Atlantic Ocean during the late 19th century. Embark on a heart-pounding voyage across the turbulent Atlantic in "The Chancellor's Plight," a gripping tale of survival, desperation, and human resilience. This novel transports you to September 1869, aboard the merchant ship "Chancellor," as it sets sail from Charleston, South Carolina, to Liverpool, England, carrying a precious cargo of cotton and an unforgettable cast of passengers. What begins as a routine journey quickly spirals into chaos and terror as fate intervenes in unimaginable ways. As you delve...

Sailing by yourself, out of sight of land, can be invigorating and terrifying, compelling and tedious—and sometimes all of the above in one morning. But it is also a wide expanse of time in which to think. Sailing Alone tells the story of some of the remarkable people who, over the last four centuries, have spent weeks and months, moving slowly over the world's largest laboratory: a capricious and startling place in which to observe oneself, the weather, the stars, and countless sea creatures, from the tiniest to the most massive and threatening.

The Unfiltered Truth Behind Sailing’s Greatest Madness The Vendée Globe is not just a race—it is a solitary pilgrimage across the planet’s most hostile oceans, a test of endurance, ingenuity, and raw will. In The Epic Story of the Vendée Globe 2020–21, the drama of the world’s toughest sailing challenge unfolds in all its brutal beauty. The 2020-21 Vendée Globe was supposed to be just another edition of the world’s toughest solo yacht race. Instead, it became a white-knuckle psychodrama of shattered boats, broken minds, and the kind of raw human moments that get scrubbed from...

Written some 40 years after Moby Dick, Melville's Billy Budd is a moving tale of good versus evil. Set aboard a British navy ship at the end of the eighteenth century, a young, innocent sailor's charm and good nature put the men around him at ease. Ship life agreed with Billy. He made friends quickly and was well liked, which infuriated John Claggart, the ship's cold-blooded superior officer.

Prepare to embark on a breathtaking voyage as Dan and Alison sell everything they own to pursue their shared dream of sailing around the world. Join Dan and Alison as they embrace the unknown with unwavering resolve, transforming doubt into triumphant victories. Their laughter will echo through your soul, their tears will tug at your heart, and their story will beckon you into a world where destiny unveils its splendor. Set sail with them, and let their experiences become yours, as you discover the exhilaration of living boldly but not always fearlessly.

All alone for 193 days in his purpose-built yacht, New Zealand yachtsman Graeme Kendall crossed 28,000 miles of ocean, facing some of the Earth's most challenging seas. An enthralling adventure, To The Ice and Beyond will inspire you to live your dreams and to never give up. During his extraordinary solo circumnavigation, Kendall became the first person to sail the Northwest Passage solo nonstop. Sailing east to west, he knocked off the "Everest of sailing" in just 12 days - the fastest recorded. This is a story of determination, meticulous planning, and rugged courage.

Fifteen tropical islands, fifteen chapters filled with adventure. This book lets you hop aboard a little sailboat and join the author on a three-year-long voyage across French Polynesia, where you will discover some of the most interesting places, people and wildlife of the South Pacific. From the world-famous island of Bora Bora to the remotest atolls of the Tuamotus, experience the challenges and rewards of the seafaring life as you dive with dolphins and sharks, sail under the stars, drink from fresh coconuts in the company of heavily-tattooed men, brave heavy storms and violent currents...

Have you ever parachuted in the moonlight and juggled work with play? In 1995, Steve set himself the goal to sail across the North Atlantic. Saint Lucia and the Caribbean island chain were the prize. He had to master sailing in spring Scottish waters, keep up with his military training and undergraduate life. It was hard keeping a romance alive with so many distractions, like landing a gig as a swordsman in a Hollywood movie. There were other commitments—a jaunt to Pamplona in Spain, and a camp in the United States before he could join his crew. How will he get to the tropics and have ...

In 1870, a man took a bet. He said he could sail a twenty-foot yawl across the Atlantic. East to west. The hard way. Most men would have laughed. He didn’t. He just went. The Ocean Wager tells the true story of Captain Nikola Primorac, a quiet sailor from Dubrovnik who risked everything to cross the sea in a boat smaller than most lifeboats. No engine. No charts worth trusting. No backup. Just sails, salt, and the will to endure. This is not a tale of glory. There are no parades here. No medals. Just storms and silence. Just two men and a dog, soaked and half-mad, crawling across a grey ...

Das Ocean Race ist der härteste Teamwettbewerb im Segeln: Über sechs Monate auf sieben Etappen führt das Rennen um die ganze Welt, und die längste Etappe umfasst unglaubliche 23.000 Kilometer, von Kapstadt über Kap Hoorn nach Itajaí in Brasilien. Der deutsche Weltklassesegler Boris Herrmann und sein Team Malizia sind mit der neu gebauten Yacht "Seaexplorer" gegen vier andere Teams angetreten: fünf Menschen auf engstem Raum, die sich aufeinander verlassen, jeder Handgriff muss sitzen, bei Sturm wie bei Flaute.

Two Soviet engineers. One abandoned sailboat. A promise made in vodka and brotherhood—to bring her home, no matter the cost. In the early 1990s, Alexei and Nikolai hand-built a sleek racing yacht—Gonta—crafted with grit, sweat, and dreams of freedom on the open sea. But after it’s shipped to Australia under orders from a powerful Soviet director, Gonta is left behind and forgotten. Years later, lost in post-Soviet monotony and cheap vodka, the friends make a pact to retrieve her—an oath that will test the limits of courage, friendship, and survival. What begins as a drunken dream ...

Frank Johnson no longer fits in the army. The world he'd built up over twenty years of service to the USA doesn't work anymore, as much because of what the Merge did to him as what it did to the world. Francisco wasn't one for following inconvenient rules, and following the rules following orders, is central to what a modern soldier is. Meanwhile, Francisco, his other self, the other side of his Merge, is trying to do something important. Something that Frank fully approves of, But to do it, Francisco desperately needs supplies and a link back to Earth. So Frank takes his twenty, hocks his ...

A nautical adventure novel set in the Atlantic Ocean near Sable Island during the late 18th century. In "The Secrets of Sable Isle," join Captain Jeremy and his spirited crew aboard the Antelope as they navigate the treacherous waters of the Atlantic. Adrift and desperate, they encounter the infamous Sable Island, a haunting silhouette against the horizon that could either be their doom or a promise of refuge. As the intrepid crew approaches the island, they are met with the unexpected hospitality of the local Governor, who shares tales of the island's shipwreck-laden history. Captivated by...