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Jan 09, 2016
Offshore Cruising Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition - ROCKS!
1 of 1 found this helpful I've been sailing for over 4 decades, much of it professionally, including ocean racing at the highest levels of the sport. As well as "driving" big ships & submarines for as a bridge officer, for quite a while.. So I've learned a Lot about boats, & things maritime along the way. And when I first read this book, when it rolled off of the presses, I was astounded at the quality & quantity of OUTSTNDING information which it contains. In addition to how said knowledge is conveyed to the reader.
It covers things on most every topic that there is, when it comes to the technical aspects of boats. As well as huge amounts having to do with life at sea, & visiting distant lands.
My thoughts on it, years ago, when I first read it (& now), is that it would take you several decades of sailing full time, professionally, in order to even begin to gain all of the knowledge in it. Even with me having much formal (& informal) education on many of the topics which it conatins.
Despite being 2 decades old, it's still one of the top 5 "go to" books for me. And it's stood the test of time, without much of it's contents becoming dated.
When it first hit the shelves, it went for over $100. And after spending an hour with it, I didn't much begrudge the fact that it was THEE most expensive book I'd ever purchased. So with what they're priced at now, it's foolish not to own a copy, if you spend much time on the water, IMO.
Bottom line, buy it (and their other semi-recent publications). They'll quickly become staples in your sailing library. In addition to being both very educational & entertaining, if you like boats & or cruising.