Category: Uncategorized

One reason it’s hard to cut military budgets is that the services often come up with some pretty cool gear. Here’s the latest boat show candidate from the U.S. Navy, the “Sea Fighter” (Uh, guys? Don’t you think you could come up with a name that is slightly more creative?) It’s a 262-foot aluminum catamaran patrol boat that allegedly will do 50-knots. Not sure what else it will do, because it looks like a car ferry. But I’m sure there is something interesting inside. Picture slide show here. Video here (Of course there is an annoying ad. This is America, after all)…

Ever wonder where an ex-America’s Cupper is? Well, Scuttlebutt Europe (which has an excellent nose for cool websites) has unearthed an excellent feature on the America’s Cup website. Called–okay, no points for originality here–Where Are They Now?, you can follow the fate and destiny of a variety of iconic AC boats, starting with America herself. Each profile includes a detailed fact sheet. Here’s the skinny on America, for example:

Since her launching, May 3rd 1851 until July 27th 1901 – 51 races, 12 wins.

1851, September 1st: sold to Lord John de Blaquière, England.
1856: sold to Viscount Templeton, RYS. Renamed Camilla.
1858: sold to Henry Sotheby Pitcher, England.
1860: sold as Camilla to Henry E. Decie, Royal Western YC.
1860 (Autumn): cruise of West Indies.
1861: arrived Savannah, Georgia, USA. Then returned to Europe.
1861 (December): sold at Jacksonville, Florida, to Confederate States Navy by Decie.
1862: found by Federal Navy, then involved in the civil war.
1870: refitted to sail the first America’s Cup challenge.
1870-1873: shoolship at United States Naval Academy
1873: sold to General Benjamin F. Butler
1893: Paul Butler (son of General), owner
1897: Butler Ames, owner.
1917: sold to company headed by Charles H. W. Foster, NYYC.
1921: owned through America Restoration Fund – thanks to E. Jared Bliss – by Naval Academy. America berthed at Annapolis.
1942, March 29: during record Palm Sunday snowstorm, shed over America’s hull collapsed.
1945: remnants of America and collapsed shed removed by clamshell crane and burned…

The list includes boats like Columbia, Ranger, and the first winning Kiwi Black Magic. It’s not comprehensive (maybe they’ll add more). But what’s there is very cool…

Regal Ranger: “I was broken up in 1941. Can you believe it…?”

I’m not sure why Volvo is developing this boat, and whether it will pay off for them in the end. I mean, isn’t one of the world’s most exciting ocean races enough? But I’m no marketing whiz, and the boat itself is pretty cool–they claim 40 feet of cat that will do 40 knots. The first one was launched yesterday, and hit 22 knots. Click here to visit the Volvo Extreme 40 site (where’s the video, Volvo suits?), and make up your own mind about this pocket rocket…

Mother of God, this regatta is huge. As in there are more than 1000 boats duking it out on the narrow confines of the Solent. Here’s what some of them looked like, courtesy of the Zelig-like James Boyd of the always excellent Daily Sail (subscribe, all you remaining freeloading cheapskates!). The regatta runs all week, and then the biggest, fastest boats there will go head-to-head in the famed Fastnet Race. It’s real, and it’s spectacular…

That’s Italian for One Hundred Miles, and it is the name of a sprint race around the famed Lake Garda (the 2004 winner averaged 20 knots). But it really translates as “shredded sails and upside down boats.” At least that’s how I would translate it after looking at the video Alden Bugly (sailing’s Garrison Keilor) found of the race. You can watch it here. And you can subscribe to Bugly’s execellent weekly newsletter here. “Cento Miglia.” Maybe it should also be called “Mille Dollare”…

Crazy Cento Miglia: “Mamma Mia! It’s blowing hard enough to flatten Sophia Loren’s chest…”

South Africa is looking for a few good divers, who are happy to cut whales free from entangling ropes and gear. Faint of heart need not apply. Here’s how one diver, who freed a humpback whale, describing what’s involved:

“I got hold of the ropes and pulled myself along to about four metres behind the tail and started to cut the ropes. I think he knew I was there because after I cut the first rope, he suddenly increased speed.

My biggest worry was becoming entangled myself and going down with the whale. It was going quite fast, so I had to cling to the ropes as I cut them.

“There is some rope left high up on its tail, but to get that off you would have to get on to the whale and I would not risk that.”

Nice work. Outdoors. In the water. And you’ll feel good when you get home (if you get home)…

“Finally! I sure hope these guys know what they are doing…”

It’s Friday, and on Friday nothing goes down better than a nice wet beach cat video. Ahh, refreshing…

“No, the other kind of beach cat, you moron…”

You have to love the Russians. When they need cash they come up with some crazy-ass ideas. While Richard Branson slaves away trying to get his Virgin Galactic–a $200,000 ride into sub-orbital space–off the ground, the Russian space agency is considering offering a trip, wait for it, AROUND THE F*CKING MOON! And that includes a nice week-long vacation on the International Space Station. Now that is what I call adventure travel. Okay, it’s a bit pricey, costing, err, $100 million, which is a lot of money even for Dr. Evil. But if you want to go into space and have a few billion bucks lying around, you have to go for the moon shot. C’mon, no one, and I mean no one will ever be able to top that story at a cocktail party…

“Wow, it’s almost 5. Time for a game of shuffleboard, a bowl of borscht, and then I’d better pack for the moon…”

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. BASE jumpers make some of the best videos out there. And here’s a great one, a compilation of one man’s BASE jump tour of the world’s greatest locations. Stunning imagery, plus a musical bonus: the video is set to “Paint It Black,” by Mick, Keith and the gang…

“Nice, Mick! This will make great blog music some day…”