Product Description

Since the publication of the widely hailed first edition in 1983, The Annapolis Book of Seamanship has set the standard by which other books on sailing are measured. Used throughout America as a textbook in sailing schools and Power Squadrons, The Annapolis Book of Seamanship thoroughly and clearly covers the fundamental and advanced skills of modern sailing. This edition of Annapolis is a major overhaul. Over half the book has been revised; old topics and features have been updated, and many new ones have been introduced. The design has been modernized, and many color illustrations have been added.

As big and detailed as Annapolis is, the wealth of technical information (including dozens of step-by-step instructions) is presented here in a way that is uniquely readable; it's both useful and easy to use. This is because John Rousmaniere and artist Mark Smith bring to Annapolis decades of experience both as sailors and as professional communicators.

Annapolis emphasizes the standard skills and proven methods that eliminate error and confusion, ensure security in emergencies, and allow every sailor more time for enjoyment on the water. Much has changed on the water since 1983 when this book was originally published. Black buoys are now green, the Global Positioning Satellite navigation system (GPS) is almost universally used, new types of anchors and sails have appeared, safety skills and gear are vastly improved, many more women are commanding boats, and catamarans and trimarans are common where only monohulls used to sail.

But for all these modern developments, the basic skills and spirit of sailing have not changed at all. Sail trimming, keeping up steerageway, maintaining the dead reckoning plot, heaving-to -- these fundamentals are as important now as ever and receive much attention here. Among the innovations in this edition are:

* Basic skills in early chapters: Fundamental sailing and boat-handling skills and gear, which are introduced in chapters 1, 2, and 3.
* "Hands On" segments: Three dozen special sections, each devoted to a particular seamanship problem and an expert solution.
* More how-to tips: Additional rules of thumb that guide a crew quickly and successfully through seamanship problems.
* New coverage of multihulls: Advice on evaluating, anchoring, and handling catamarans and trimarans under sail (including in storms).
* More on emergencies: New material on emergencies, safety, and heavy-weather sailing, including a section on preparing a docked boat for a hurricane.
* Equipment updates: Expanded coverage of the use and care of modern gear and hardware, including radar, GPS, rescue devices, and asymmetrical spinnakers.
* Terminology: Full definition and illustration of major terms when they're first introduced, with alternative language provided in parentheses.
* Gender: The use of feminine personal pronouns, which reflect the fact that more women are captaining and sailing boats than ever before.

From navigation and seamanship to boat and gear maintenance, from pleasure cruising to heavy-weather sailing, here is the definitive, state-of-the-art guide that provides systematic step-by-step techniques to see you through every situation on deck and in the cockpit.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7386 in Books
• Published on: 1999-10-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 403 pages

Amazon.com Review
First launched in 1983, Annapolis remains the sailor's bible, a comprehensive chapter and verse guide to all aspects of seamanship from the simplest ABC's to the most advanced skills and latest electronics. And while much of the original edition has been left in dry dock to make way for the many changes on the water since 1983--like multihull vessels, satellite tracking, and the reality that while all ships remain "she," there is no longer the assumption that it's a "he" at the helm--Rousmaniere still emphasizes what he's stressed from the first tack: the importance of mastering sailing's fundamentals. This means knowing every inch of your boat and how to handle her, understanding the importance of safety on the seas and preparing for all emergencies, reading the weather, learning to navigate, knowing essential boat maintenance, and being aware of the traditions every sailor steps into whenever he or she sticks feet in a pair of topsiders. Clearly organized and presented, cleanly and smoothly written (given how much technical information he presents, Rousmaniere's prose is blessedly jargon-free), and thoroughly illustrated with photos and drawings, Annapolis is as essential as a good wind, perhaps the one volume no sailor should leave port without. --Jeff Silverman

Review
Yachting magazineA volume that any sailor or would-be sailor simply must own.

American Sailing AssociationThe beauty of the book is that it is both a superb reference manual, which any sailor -- regardless of experience -- will want to own, and a readable, practical introduction to sailing for the beginner, A joy to behold. The most complete and best reference book on the sport that has ever been available.

Chuck HawleyWest Marine ProductsThe Annapolis Book of Seamanship is thorough, well written, and nicely illustrated. Not just a repeat of tired old sailing methods of thirty years ago, it integrates the classic techniques (storm tactics. navigation) with the modern (Crew Overboard Recovery, modern anchors, and electronics). I highly recommend this book and encourage anyone to buy it if they want to improve their sailing skills.

Sail magazineThe Annapolis Book of Seamanship is about practically everything that has to do with sailing and sailboats.

Yachting magazine[Rousmaniere's] chapters on sail trim and weather, in particular, are the best that I can recall reading.

Sea magazineThe piloting part is unusually thorough and understandable and could serve as a text all by itself. The individual chapters on sailing in heavy weather and handling emergencies are recommended reading for all who sail.

Great Lakes Sailing Scanner magazineIf you buy one book on sailing this year, this is the one of get.

Sailing Canada magazineMark Smith's line drawings are models of the kind -- clean, clear, and vital. It is not just one of the very best available.

Tony GibbsDolphin Book Club NewsOnce in a great while a book comes along which is so original that is stands outside normal comparison. The Annapolis Book of Seamanship is such a work....A remarkable achievement, a first-rate book in every way. It will almost certainly become -- in short order -- the standard to which succeeding volumes are compared.

About the Author
John Rousmaniere (pronounced Room-an-ear) has more than 30,000 miles of water in his wake since he started sailing in Maine more than forty years ago. One of the sport's acknowledged authorities, he has written fifteen technical and historical books, including The Illustrated Dictionary of Boating Terms, Desirable and Undesirable Characteristics of Offshore Yachts, and "Fastnet, Force 10." The latter book is about the infamous 1979 Fastnet Race, in which Rousmaniere sailed, and was hailed as "a narrative worthy of the best sea literature" by the Los Angeles Times.

Rousmaniere is the host and writer of the acclaimed Annapolis Book of Seamanship Yacht Video Series, is a former editor at Yachting, and has served as the regular seamanship columnist for Sailing World magazine and SailNet, an Internet sailing magazine. He has lectured at more than thirty Safety-at-Sea Seminars sponsored nationwide by Cruising World magazine, the U.S. Sailing Association, and West Marine. He won the Captain Fred E. Lawton Boating Safety Award for outstanding contribution to boating safety through the media. He and his wife, the mystery writer Leah Ruth Robinson, live in Stamford, Connecticut.

Customer Reviews

If You Are A Sailor, You NEED This Book!
As a sailor on every type of floating scrap of wood, fiberglass, steel and aluminum you can think of, I have sailed thousands and thousands of miles. I continually turn to this book as a source of reference and it is never out of close contact.

Even now, as I have no boat but race quite often, I pick up the book because I have questions or ideas about something. It is a wonderful source and the most complete reference I have ever seen.

This book would be especially useful to beginning sailors, but NOTHING can teach you like getting on the water. Use this book to be prepared, but get out there!

I have recommended this book even to some power boaters whom I thought I might convert. They have all enjoyed it and felt it was worth the money.

If you are on the fence, just trust me and buy the book. You will not be disappointed. Worst case scenario is that you put it on your coffee table for your guests to enjoy!

Every sailor�s essential guide
There are few books as excellent in explaining both basic sailing skills and advanced procedures as the Annapolis Book of Seamanship. From boat handling, equipment, and terminology to weather and emergencies, this book covers all the fundamentals of sailing in clear, easy to grasp terms. Novices will find value in that the book assumes no prior knowledge of sailing, while old salts will appreciate the book's encyclopedia-like thoroughness.

If you only have one book in your sailing library, I recommend this be the one.

This should be the number 1 book on a sailors bookshelf
This is simply the best book on sailing you can buy. The illustrations are fabulous and the writing is clear and to the point. Buy it if you don't have it. Better yet, buy two copies and give one someone starting out in sailing. If this is the only sailing book on your bookshelf, you have choosen wisely. Perfect for the beginner and essential for all sailors.