WHAT WE WRITE ABOUT
Our View on Maritime Safety
We share our insights on maritime safety for pleasure sailors – from coastal cruising to offshore passages. Drawing from our direct sailing experience and technical expertise, we write about what we’ve learned, what we believe needs to change, and how technology can make sailing safer without adding complexity. The sea obeys physics — and so should we, finally.
Anchoring Physics: The Real Chain Reaction, Explained February 12, 2026 - Anchoring Physics: The Real Chain Reaction, Explained On catenary curves, Captain Brown’s revenge, and the Sunday skipper’s 3:1 delusion There is a moment, in every anchorage in the Mediterranean between June and September, that repeats with the reliability of a Greek tragedy. A gleaming white charter catamaran motors in, drops… ... Read More
Heels and Heeling: The Physics of Looking Good While Going Bad February 10, 2026 - Heels and Heeling: The Physics of Looking Good While Going Bad Anyone who has ever attempted a cobblestone street in 10-centimetre heels already understands, intuitively, that maintaining a steep angle requires disproportionate effort, causes disproportionate damage, and impresses only people who don't understand the physics involved. Sailing at 45 degrees… ... Read More
From Silence to Spam February 5, 2026 - From Silence to Spam How we went from "lost at sea" to "you have 47 unread messages" Sailors used to dream of being connected. Now they pay extra not to be. This is the story of maritime communication—a tale of progress so complete that we barely notice it anymore, like… ... Read More
When Everything Beeps, Nothing Matters January 4, 2026 - When Everything Beeps,Nothing Matters How commercial shipping learned that fewer alarms save more lives - and what pleasure sailors can take from a billion dollars of maritime research. The Organisation That Investigates Every Accident When a commercial vessel runs aground, collides, or sinks, it doesn't simply become a tragic story… ... Read More
Your Phone Won’t Save You: Why Smartphones Make Terrible Alarm Systems January 3, 2026 - Your Phone Won't Save You: Why Smartphones Make Terrible Alarm Systems Your smartphone can video-call someone on the other side of the planet, process payments, navigate you through unfamiliar cities, and access the sum of human knowledge. It's arguably the most capable device ever created. So when a marine electronics… ... Read More
Lost on Paper, Even More Lost on Digital Charts\! November 18, 2025 - Lost on Paper, Even More Lost on Digital Charts! With a paper chart spread across the nav table, the eternal question was "Where am I?" With a glowing plotter screen showing your position to the metre, you'd think we'd have it sorted. Instead, we've traded one mystery for another: "Where… ... Read More
MARPA vs. ARPA: When More Is Less August 12, 2025 - MARPA vs. ARPA: When More Is Less "Our radar has MARPA." — Every marine electronics salesperson, confidently overselling what that actually means. The Acronym Confusion Walk into any chandlery, and you'll hear radar systems marketed with impressive-sounding acronyms. ARPA. MARPA. Target tracking. Collision avoidance. The brochures show crisp displays with… ... Read More
AIS: Powerful Against Collisions, But Only If Everyone Plays Along June 20, 2025 - Automatic Identification System technology can dramatically reduce collision risk. But what happens when fishing boats turn it off, recreational vessels don't have it, and small boats become invisible sea mines for others? ... Read More
Radar: The Safety Equipment Most Sailors Don’t Actually Use May 5, 2025 - About a third of boats at anchor have radar installed. But how many of those sailors actually use it while sailing? And of those who do, how many understand its significant limitations? ... Read More
What Maritime Safety Can Learn from Aviation: The Story of TCAS and TAWS April 15, 2025 - What Maritime Safety Can Learn from Aviation: The Story of TCAS and TAWS How aviation tackled the challenge of collision avoidance—and what lessons apply to the sea. When we think about improving safety at sea, we would be foolish not to look skyward. Aviation operates in a far more unforgiving… ... Read More
The Multifunction Display Paradox: Essential Equipment We Barely Understand April 1, 2025 - The Multifunction Display Paradox: Essential Equipment We Barely Understand We all love our B&G MFD. It's probably one of those assets that simply cannot be absent from a boat—like the rudder, the anchor, or the sails themselves. Together with GPS, multifunction displays have genuinely improved navigation to a level of… ... Read More
The NMEA 2000 Paradox: A Mountain of Data Nobody Uses March 10, 2025 - Modern boats are equipped with sophisticated NMEA 2000 networks that gather incredible amounts of data. So why do most boat owners have no idea what's actually available to them? ... Read More The Great Fuel Gauge Lie: Why Your Boat Has No Idea How Much Diesel Is Left February 1, 2025 - The Great Fuel Gauge Lie: Why Your Boat Has No Idea How Much Diesel Is Left In aviation, they say there are two types of pilots: those who have landed gear-up, and those who will. The maritime world has its own version: those who have run out of fuel at… ... Read MoreWant to learn more about our technology?
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