General Books - Page 12

Mainsail Trimming: An Illustrated Guide (Wiley Nautical)

Felix Marks

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Uncover the secrets to sailing fast whilst remaining in control.

Mainsail trimming is not only a physically and mentally demanding role on a boat; it is also one of the most crucial. You need a deep and subtle appreciation of sail shapes and the controls used to achieve them. Most significantly, the role requires an obsession with acquiring and retaining speed.

This book is here to help and it has been written in a groundbreaking way. Every effort has been made to simplify the subject and explain everything that you need to know without blinding you with science. Sailing terminology has been reined-in as much as possible and only information relating to mainsail trimming has been included.

High quality photographs and illustrations are used throughout to simplify this complex subject. This is achieved by showing the sail shapes needed to make the boat go fast and stay under control. Only one sailing role is dealt with to further simplify the subject and make sailing more accessible to the newcomer.

Getting Started in Sailboat Racing

Adam Cort, Richard Stearns

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Best of 7 books I have read 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

I have raced my 36 ft sloop lightly for the last 5 years and wanted a book to help me improve my finish (2nd every time but only 5 in class). I have now read 7 books on the subject. Most frustrated me as they only talk about racing upwind and downwind. My class races up, down, and reaching. To make matters worse, my class is no spinnaker. So, typically the upwind talk is how to tune a boat with a fractional rig, which I don't have, or a spinnaker, which I don't use. Some only talk about boats so small you can tip them over. This book covers everything, up, down, reaching, no spinnaker. It talks about little and big boats. It does as good a job on tactics as any of the books and in fact better than most. It is an easy read and not full of typos like some of the others. I highly recommend it.

Editorial Review:

A complete course in the fundamentals, Getting Started in Sailboat Racing dispels the sport's elite aura and makes racing accessible to any sailor who wants to give it a try. This illustrated manual takes readers around the buoys, explaining the rules and tactics that govern starts, finishes, mark roundings, and boat-to-boat struggles for speed and advantage.

The Survival of the Bark Canoe

John McPhee

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

In Greenville, New Hampshire, a small town in the southern part of the state, Henri Vaillancourt makes birch-bark canoes in the same manner and with the same tools that the Indians used. The Survival of the Bark Canoe is the story of this ancient craft and of a 150-mile trip through the Maine woods in those graceful survivors of a prehistoric technology. It is a book squarely in the tradition of one written by the first tourist in these woods, Henry David Thoreau, whose The Maine Woods recounts similar journeys in similar vessel. As McPhee describes the expedition he made with Vaillancourt, he also traces the evolution of the bark canoe, from its beginnings through the development of the huge canoes used by the fur traders of the Canadian North Woods, where the bark canoe played the key role in opening up the wilderness. He discusses as well the differing types of bark canoes, whose construction varied from tribe to tribe, according to custom and available materials. In a style as pure and as effortless as the waters of Maine and the glide of a canoe, John McPhee has written one of his most fascinating books, one in which his talents as a journalist are on brilliant display.

Pipe Dreams: A Surfer's Journey

Kelly Slater

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 32 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Six–time world surfing champion, actor, and US heart–throb Kelly Slater tells of the struggles and triumphs he's experienced throughout his life and how they have helped him to become one of the world's most loved sports figures.

From beach blanket bingo to Baywatch, surfing has fascinated people for years, and Kelly Slater is the sport's newest star. He's one of the world's most popular surfers; his radical moves have revolutionised the sport. Born in Cocoa Beach, Florida, in 1972, he found surfing to be a great way to escape problems at home. When he was 11, his parents divorced. Slater and his brother, Sean, were raised by their suddenly single mother, who struggled to support two young sons. After Slater's surfing career took off, he made the transition into acting and modelling. He spent a season starring on the popular television show Baywatch, where he won the hearts of women young and old, including Pamela Anderson, whom he dated for about a year. He has also been featured in Versace ads.

In Pipe Dreams, he shares the stories that have influenced his life and have inspired him to overcome both personal and professional hurdles and achieve his dreams.

Fly Fishing in Salt Water (Revised Edition)

Lefty Kreh

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 7 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Twenty years ago, Fly Fishing in Salt Water pioneered this new territory for fly fishers. Now, with over thirty thousand copies sold and in a fully updated, revised, and expanded edition, Lefty Kreh has yet again brought his classic work up-to-date. In clear, practical terms and helpful photographs and line drawings, Fly Fishing in Salt Water treats the techniques needed to catch all the major saltwater species - bonefish, tarpon, striped bass, bluefish, salmon, permit, snook, sharks, cobia, tuna, billfish, and more. The book shows how to fish from boats and how to wade the flats, and fully explains all the tackle needed and how to use it for specific jobs - the rods, the lines and leaders, and the flies (shown in full color). Lefty provides superb advice about how to make the long casts necessary for fishing the fly in salt water, how to "tease" sailfish and other large fish to within fly-casting range, how to chum, and how to tie the necessary knots for saltwater fishing. New chapters include Knots and Leaders, Flies, Tackle, Inshore Fly Fishing, and Boats. Fly Fishing in Salt Water is based on firsthand experience by an acknowledged master. It is the saltwater fly fisher's bible. (7 1/4 X 9 1/2, 344 pages, color photos, b&w photos, diagrams, charts)

Building Outrigger Sailing Canoes

Gary Dierking

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 8 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Unique!! 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

As a sailor, builder, and designer of multihulls, and collector of multihull related books, this one is unique! Dierking presents three simple and attractive designs, from a hard chined plywood outrigger for a first time builder or for a class project; to a strip built asymmetric hulled proa that is also simply described and laid out for a first time builder.
The book also details the construction of amas, akas, spars, and foils; everything is covered. If you are inclined to purchase plans from Dierking, this book would be the perfect primer. Actually, it's a great primer to anyone interested in building a small sailing craft.

Editorial Review:

Build the fastest, most exotic sailboats around!

Popular in Hawaii and throughout the South Pacific and Indian Oceans, outrigger canoes combine the romance of the South Seas with a ruthless efficiency of design and breathtaking sailing performance. This is the first book to present complete plans and building instructions for three outrigger sailing canoes.

Based on traditional Hawaiian and Micronesian types, the designs are lightweight, easy to build, and screamingly fast. Author Gary Dierking shows you how to build these boats using stitch-and-glue and strip-planking construction, explains what tools and materials are required, how to rig and equip the boats, and more.

Mind Over Water: Lessons on Life from the Art of Rowing

Craig Lambert

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 25 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Gaack! Just when I'd given up highlighting my books. . . 5 out of 5 stars.
8 of 8 people found this review helpful.

"Mind Over Water" falls into the category of the memoir, highly personal and considered memories and musings. It's about rowing and, as the subtitle states: "Lessons on Life from the Art of Rowing." If you don't like this kind of book, steer clear. You also won't like "Green Thoughts: A Writer in The Garden." On the other hand, if you do like this kind of book, "Green Thoughts" is also recommended.

"Mind over Water" is about rowing internalized, what it means to row and race and how these lessons can be applied to life. As such, its primary goal is not so much instruction as translation. And translations, of course, are never exact, which may account for some of the animosity of other reviewers.

So what is "Mind Over Water" really about? It's not so much about rowing as it is about what rowing means to the author. As such, you can't really fault it for not being the book you might write about rowing or for not being an instruction manual. It has humbler ambitions. Think of it as an off-water musing.

In any case, I liked it. And, yes, I had to get to get out the highlighter. Among those who like the book, everyone is going to have favorite passages, as some of these reviews attest. Here are some of mine:

"Edges form outlines. If our boundaries determine our identities, then we learn who we are by finding our limits."

"Sliding between dark and shadow, between sunlight and the obscure, is the region of discovery."

"Staying on course limits your attention to the boat and its rowers, who are, after all, the motor that takes you there. The goal does not disclose itself until it is attained."

"Mistakes shine a spotlight on our model of reality and show us its flaws. Unexpected outcomes help us refine our picture of nature."

"Tall smokestacks rise from the powerhouse and waft plumes of smoke into the sky, the epitaph of fuel burned into power."

If this kind of writing disturbs or bores you, look elsewhere. If not, you might find "Mind Over Water" as enjoyable as I did.

Editorial Review:

In this wise and thrilling book, Criag Lambert turns rowing--personal discipline, modern Olympic sport, grand collegiate tradition--into a metaphor for a vigorous and satisfying life.

Propeller Handbook: The Complete Reference for Choosing, Installing and Understanding Boat Propellers

Dave Gerr

By: Adlard Coles Nautical Amazon Marketplace: 3 new & used starting at $68.61

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 9 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

A must read book 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

It is for the technically minded. Don't buy a propeller without reading it first. And after you've read it, you will probably buy a new propeller, because you will likely to find out that the old one is not right.

The Propeller Handbook 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This is a very practical book in terms of its simple way of guiding the reader through both, the conceptual understanding of propellers and the corresponding calculations.
This book fulfilled all my expectations

Editorial Review:

This is a reference book for all power, sail, working and pleasure boats to serve as a practical aid for the average mechanic, engineer, boatbuilder, yachtsman or naval achitect. The author discusses propeller selection, installation and speed and offers charts and graphs that will enable the user to analyse the speed and powering characteristics of a boat with relation to its propeller requirements. David Geer is a naval architect specialising in the design of yachts and commercial craft to 180 feet. He has worked on a wide range of vessels and is now the owner of his own design firm.

The 12-Volt Bible for Boats

Miner K. Brotherton, Edwin R. Sherman

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 12 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Great Introduction for 12V Use in the Marine Environment 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

Even if you've never worked with electricity, but now need to because you have a boat, "The 12-Volt Bible for Boats" is a great introduction that covers more than just the basics. The early part of the book covers all of the beginner introduction to batteries and electricity. It also explains the differences between 12-Volt car systems and boat systems. This book helps you determine what gauge wire you need for what current demand of your new piece of equipment and length of the wire run. The later chapters cover specifics of how to hook up particular equipment such as solar panels and wind generators. The final section covers test equipment you can build yourself. This book is definitely worth the price.

Editorial Review:

The 12-Volt Bible for Boats is a clear, nonthreatening introduction to the 12-volt electrical systems used on small boats to power everything from reading lights to bilge pumps. This second edition is thoroughly updated with respect to modern batteries, breaker and panel design, alternative energy sources, and troubleshooting equipment, but it retains the fundamental simplicity that is the source of its enduring popularity (more than 100,000 copies sold).

Lost in the Wild: Danger and Survival in the North Woods

Cary J Griffith

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

In the wilderness, one false step can make the difference between a delightful respite and a brush with death.

 

On a beautiful summer afternoon in 1998, Dan Stephens, a 22-year-old canoeist, was leading a trip deep into Ontario’s Quetico Provincial Park. He stepped into a gap among cedar trees to look for the next portage—and did not return. More than four hours later, Dan awakened from a fall with a lump on his head and stumbled deeper into the woods, confused.

 

Three years later, Jason Rasmussen, a third-year medical student who loved the forest’s solitude, walked alone into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness on a crisp fall day. After a two-day trek into a remote area of the woods, he stepped away from his campsite and made a series of seemingly trivial mistakes that left him separated from his supplies, wet, and lost, as cold darkness fell.

 

Enduring days without food or shelter, these men faced the full harsh force of wilderness, the place that they had sought out for tranquil refuge from city life. Lost in the Wild takes readers with them as they enter realms of pain, fear, and courage, as they suffer dizzying confusion and unending frustration, and as they overcome seemingly insurmountable hurdles in a race to survive.