His recent interview with Captain AJ Smith from Swan 48 Bella Luna after the 12th Annual NARC Rally.

Two days after they were plucked from roiling ocean waters some 450 kilometres off the coast of Hawaii, three Canadians — including a 9-year-old boy — are safe on dry land and telling a compelling story about their dramatic rescue.

In, 1990 I sailed to Hawaii from Victoria BC to Hawaii and cant fathom what that experience felt like for those three.  Brave 9 year old boy | that will make a hugh impression on his life.

The vessel’s engine overheated and its forestay — a piece of rigging designed to secure the mast — was badly damaged. When the trio of Canadians, all from Alberta, tried to rig a makeshift sail, they lost their mast.

Brad James used a satellite phone to call for help as waves rolled over the deck of the sailboat.

The coast guard then contacted the Horizon Reliance, a container ship that was about 240 kilometres away, to come to the rescue.

“They got closer and they got bigger. I didn’t really have any perspective as to how big this boat was,” James recounted. “I said, ‘It looks like we might hit the boat.’ ”

At that point two huge waves came at the sailboat, pushing them right up against the huge container ship.

The three Canadians, all wearing life-jackets and struggling to stay on deck, then saw the waves drop before a part of the container ship’s underside shot straight up and went right through the tiny sailboat.

“I said, ‘We’re not going to die, but we are going to sink,’ ” James recalled. “The boat went down, we jumped overboard and we started swimming.”

Thank god for search/rescue and the men & women that work at sea…

Sailing offshore | Need to teach the family while you sail offshore

Just came across this site and you should bookmark it for sure.  Sail Kids Ed is a great site for the cruising family.  Sailing can be a rich educational experience – but valuable, transferable learning won’t just happen by itself. This website provides sailing and cruising families with educational materials, resources, and tips so that sailors can make the most of a unique learning opportunity. For detailed lesson plans that any family can follow on a boat  

MahinaExpeditions’s channel

Sailing Apps

The new smartphone app is the first rope information app to be released for the iPhone allowing the user to browse Marlow products, read technical data, watch videos and gain access to further rope information at the touch of a button. The App makes running rigging research quick and easy when its all available on your smart phone.