Our cruisers continue to explore the BVI. The Flanders family strolls an isolated beach then Rich takes his son kayaking across a tranquil cove and into a water-filled cave. After the couple’s boat anchors, Greg points his kayak into the surf, steering it though some heavy waves for a wild ride to the beach. Ashore Janna Flanders and her daughter check out a local craft shop. At days end, the Flanders family meets for some BVI style food and entertainment. Stay tuned for Episode 10, Jost Van Dyke. TheSailingChannel.Com brings Gary Jobson’s outstanding film about sailing the British Virgin Islands to video podcasting. Sunsail, the world’s largest sailing vacation company, wanted to showcase it’s British Virgin Islands fleet. So it ran a contest among its former charter customers. The winners, a family and two couples, would cruise free while staring in a promotional video produced and narrated by sailing legend Gary Jobson–not a bad deal! Be sure to subscribe to this free video podcast series and our other podcasts for cruising sailors at TheSailingChannel.Com. We are surveying our podcast viewers to learn more about you and the sailing content you want. If you could give us a few minutes of your valuable time, we would greatly appreciate it. Click here for the survey or visit www.TheSailingChannel.Com.

Pleasure Craft Operator Card changes
Transport Canada is moving to restore credibility to the Pleasure Craft Operator Card (PCOC) program by tightening up testing standards requiring boat operators to prove competency to operate a boat. The program has been plagued by problems, with reports of various abuses. Currently, “approved trainers” charge fees to take a multiple-choice exam of 36 questions (on 149 key learning points) and provide the government card if you pass. Changes promised include more auditing, new rules for exams, a national registry of card holders, and possibly a tougher exam.All boat operators in Canada require the card is by the fall of 2009. About two million of Canada’s estimated seven million boaters already carry the card that is supposed to certify them as safe, knowledgeable mariners. The card is good for life. [Globe and Mail 07Aug4 | PCOC information] [ boatinginCanada.com | boating in Canada News & Archives ]

BMW Oracle Yacht Racing Keel
The BMW ORACLE America’s Cup racing yacht features a state-of-the-art keel that accounts for 19 of the vessel’s 24 legal tons. Designing and manufacturing the keel posed an exceptional engineering challenge. Engineers needed to balance strength with maximum hydrodynamic efficiency. The keel’s bulb or “bomb” must be heavy enough to keep the yacht upright and stable. At the same time the keelfin and bulb must have limited resistance to water flow to maintain maximum boat speed. Further complicating the design is the fact that the keel tends to vibrate as the yacht increases speed. These vibrations transfer to the hull affecting the yacht’s structural integrity. To improve the yacht’s stiffness, BMW engineers have applied similar technology used in stiffening the companies motor cars. They’ve also refined the shape and position of the keel wings to increase boat speed. Watch SailTV to see live events and special features from the 2007 America’s Cup in Valencia, Spain, full screen on your PC, 24×7x365. Be sure to subscribe to this free video podcast series and our other sailing podcasts at TheSailingChannel.TV.

Ice Blink Free Video Preview
TheSailingChannel presents an exclusive video preview of a major new sailing documentary, Ice Blink: A Family Navigating Life’s Ice-Clogged Waters. Ice Blink is the remarkable story of a conventional family of five living a very unconventional life afloat. Follow Dave and Jaja Martin, and their crew of three children from their beginnings aboard a 25-foot day sailor circumnavigating the globe to their most recent voyage on a 33 foot steel sloop to the Arctic. There they encounter new friends, icebergs, and polar bears. Share the Martins’ voyage into opportunities that test their physical and mental limits… discover that self-sufficiency is the key to survival… and that the rewards of the world can be had with a commitment to family, a simple lifestyle, and the courage to choose differently. Ice Blink is a film by Gregory Roscoe, Seaworthy Productions, Falmouth Maine. If you like this preview you’ll love the 56 minute documentary available on DVD. Buy the Ice Blink DVD for $17.95 (plus $5 S&H for US buyers and $9.50 S&H for Int’l & Canadian buyers) and get a music video extra set to Jamie Cullum’s All at Sea from his Twentysomething album. US BUYERS: INT’L & CANADIAN BUYERS: Buy the companion book that inspired the documentary. Into the Light: A Family’s Epic Journey is full of humor and fun. Dave and Jaja Martin’s inspiring narrative delves into a family s choices and ultimate goals. Read the details of their sailing adventure to Iceland, Norway, Spitsbergen, the Faeroe Islands, and Scotland. $22.95 (plus $8 S&H for US buyers and $12 S&H for Int’l & Canadian buyers). US BUYERS: INT’L & CANADIAN BUYERS: Buy the DVD/Book combo and get the best deal for just $35.95 (plus $8 S&H for US buyers and $12 S&H for Int’l & Canadian buyers). US BUYERS: INT’L & CANADIAN BUYERS: You can also purchase the Ice Blink DVD and Book on TheSailingChannel.tv and watch our exclusive interview with Ice Blink Producer, Greg Roscoe at the 2006 US Sailboat Show in Annapolis, MD. Subscribe via iTunes to the Ice blink Preview and our other free video podcasts for cruising sailors from TheSailingChannel.tv. To Subscribe with other Podcatchers, visit TheSailingChannel RSS Feed Page. And be sure to watch more sailing coverage from our partner, SailTV on TheSailingChannel.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 4th, 2007 at 3:05 am and is filed under Boating Information. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.