PAGE 20 • SUMMER 2007 THE JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SAILING ASSOCIATION
ASA MEMBER BOOK REVIEW • DAVE COLEMAN
Title: The Sailor’s Handbook grounds exposes the reader to each of the major cruising
Author: Halsey C. Herreshoff grounds around the world and how to plan for them.
Publisher: International Marine/McGraw Hill 2006 “Safety” starts with the necessary minimums and shows
Pages: 224; Paperback $22.95 where these items should be stowed along with the
hazardous locations on your boat. Distress signals are
explained, and a method for recovering a man overboard
H
alsey C. Herreshoff is a naval architect and is included. There are also informative sections on
marine engineer, President of the Herreshoff steering and rigging failures, fire hazards, abandoning
Marine Museum and of the America’s Cup Hall
ship, survival and medical emergencies aboard.
of Fame. Educated at Webb
Institute of Naval
Since none of us have a maintenance-free boat, “Boat
Architecture with a Master’s
Care and Repair” covers hulls, seacocks, fittings, decks,
degree from Massachusetts
rigging sails, engines, electronics, tools, paint and
Institute of Technology, more
everything inside the boat. “Boats and the Law” covers
than 10,000 vessels have
buying, selling, berthing/mooring, chartering, insurance,
been built to his designs.
salvage and collisions. In the back of the book are the
Halsey Herreshoff has
international signal flag pictures and Morse code, 18
skippered his own racing and
reference tables of facts and figures useful for boaters
cruising boats and has
and a glossary of sailing terms.
participated in yacht races
around the world. He was a
This handbook condenses many volumes of information
member of the crew of the
into an easily read handbook that can be read in a
1958 America’s Cup
couple of hours. Each topic is covered in sufficient detail
Defender Columbia, and was
to lead the reader into finding and exploring areas of
navigator in three America’s
interest in greater detail.
Cup defenses: Courageous in 1974, Freedom in 1980;
and Liberty in 1983. Halsey C. Herreshoff is the
Dave Coleman was born in Florida and has been sailing since
consulting editor for this compilation of contributions
he was 16. He presently owns a Catalina 30 and a Chris Craft
from many experienced sailors.
33, is the race committee chairman for Port Royal Yacht Club,
Director of Redondo Beach Yacht Club and a member of King
This handbook is an excellent introduction into all
Harbor Yacht Club, ASA, IOBG and US Sailing.
aspects of sailing; each section exposes the reader to the
fundamental aspects of sailing topics: history, boats,
wind and power, cruising boats, mooring and anchoring,
WHERE AM I?
navigation and weather, cruising grounds, safety at sea,
boat care, laws and international signals. I recommend
this book to introduce new sailors to all of the different
aspects of boating and as a reference for experienced
sailors. Each section reads like a cliff-notes version of
larger volumes on each topic.
The section on history introduces some of the pioneers of
sailing and the first yacht clubs. Next comes the parts of
a sailboat, construction materials, rigging and ropes.
“Wind and Power” covers sails, engines, and how to
handle each in light and heavy weather. “Choosing the
Right Cruising Boat” includes cabin layout, personal
security and clothing. “Mooring and Docking” explains
the vagaries of wind direction when maneuvering into
and away from a dock and leads to anchoring choices
and procedures. “Navigation and Weather,” the bane of
new sailors, receives 32 pages of coverage with charts,
graphs, tables and pictures covering compasses, charts,
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soundings, tides, radar, buoys, GPS, electronic charts,
weather and visual clues! The section on cruising
ANSWER ON THE ASA WEBSITE AT WWW.ASA.COM
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