We've Gone Digital!

We’re adding even more value for the sailing community by digitizing past Good Old Boat articles and making them freely available online each week. You’ll also enjoy full access to Sailrite’s comprehensive boat and sail database—making it easier than ever to plan your next sailmaking project or simply learn more about your sailboat. Visit often for fresh content, and sail smarter with Sailrite and Good Old Boat!

Recent Posts

Years of tender care revived a wilting Watkins Issue 90: May/June 2013 Her name is Sundew. She’s a 1978 Watkins 27 shoal-draft cruising sloop. She was named after an award-winning tulip in Holland. Sadly, when we found her she looked more like a faded rose than any kind of award winner. Her interior was crammed...

Compound errors add up to a bump in the night Issue 91 : Jul/Aug 2013 Accidents are supposed to be nasty moments that come out of nowhere. Yet in 1983, when I had more than 20 years’ sea time under my keel, a serious accident happened despite every step leading up to it being glaringly...

Where you are depends on where you measure from Issue 91 : Jul/Aug 2013 A chart datum is a reference from which data or information displayed on a nautical chart is measured. One type of chart datum, the vertical datum, is the reference used for the charted water depth. A common water-depth reference datum is...

Variety is the spice of the sailing life Issue 92 : Sept/Oct 2013 One of the greatest aspects of offshore and coastal cruising is meeting other like-minded souls out there who are sailing the world’s oceans, dealing with the same logistics and difficulties, and reaping many of the same rewards as we are. There’s no...