PassageMaker January/February 2021

Editor-in-Chief @andrewtparkinson When I was growing up, our 31-foot Hunter sailboat was a member of the family. As one would take the dog to the vet for annual shots, we would take Ragtime for her annual haul out. Actually, we referred to this pilgrimage as annual, but it was more like every year and a half, since we had divers scrub the bottom on a monthly basis, and it took about 18 months for the ablative bottom paint to wear thin and need replacing. Each time the haul out came around, the big decision was always whether to have the boat serviced professionally or to do the work ourselves. We routinely considered our options, including the venerable practice of careening the boat (an idea that, while a fun thought, never came to…

NAME John Garza AGE 58 HOME PORT Discovery Bay, California CURRENT BOAT Grand Banks Alaskan 46 Bella Niki G YEARS OWNED 9 If you’re ever stuck with someone aboard a boat, you might hope it’s John Garza aboard his Grand Banks Alaskan 46. Garza is a U.S. Coast Guard 100-ton master captain and state fire master instructor. He’s seen a lot over his lengthy career, and he still finds time to give back to the boating community. BEGINNINGS I’ve been boating since I was a child on California lakes and the San Francisco Bay. In the ’90s, I fished and deckhanded on a charter boat on Monterey Bay during the salmon runs, and I always wanted to be a charter captain. My journey in true boat ownership began when I bought a house on the water in 1995 with a 50-foot slip.…

This impressive golden puff of a pancake is baked in a cast-iron skillet in a very hot oven._The pancake will fall a little as you carry it, still in the skillet, from the oven to the table, and it should be eaten right away._While it only needs a dusting of confectioners’ sugar, it is also delicious with maple syrup. My mother-in-law introduced me to oven pancakes when I was newly married. She whizzed up some eggs, flour, milk and a few other ingredients in a blender, and then poured the batter into a pan and popped it into the oven. Mysteriously, it puffed up as it baked. It was one of the most delicious things I’d ever eaten for breakfast. When I started making my own puffy confection, I was hooked._And so…

Helmsman Trawlers has launched the first hull of its second-generation 43 series, the 43E. The new model is a progression from the 38E, a TrawlerFest Best in Show award winner that debuted in 2016. Features of the 43E are not revolutionary, but evolutionary, with key modifications born from experience and customer feedback. Tooling was adapted to adjust the camber of the pilothouse roof, improving rainwater drainage control and altering the aesthetics of the forward windows. The pilothouse windshield has been retracted, enhancing the boat’s appearance without altering the layout or size of the pilothouse. Interior volume was increased in the forward head and guest stateroom by altering the exterior side deck design._Soundown acoustic foam was added as a hull liner beneath the teak joinery in the master stateroom. “In this size range,…

Less than two years ago, U.K.-based boatbuilder Arksen unveiled a vision to accommodate growing demand for sustainable oceangoing adventure. Today, Arksen is on the precipice of its largest hull to date. Construction has begun at Wight Shipyard Company in the U.K. on an 85-footer the builder calls Project Ocean. Project Ocean will accommodate up to 12 guests in four staterooms, including a full-beam master with an adjoining multipurpose room that can be used as a library, study, media room or children’s cabin. Sporting a hybrid propulsion package and an energy management system by Praxis Automation Technology, Project Ocean is expected to have a cruising speed of 9 to 11 knots, a top speed of 14 knots and a maximum range of 7,000 nautical miles. Solar capacity will off er up to 7…

When it comes to troubleshooting and DIY projects, I think of blood. I know, I know—you’re thinking that I have a very strange mind. But troubleshooting and do-it-yourself go together with blood like, well, juggling and chainsaws. Blood, of course, is something many of us get used to from a young age. Skinned knees and elbows are a part of childhood, and Band-Aids are as familiar as a school notebook. Even more, when tinkering with boats, cars and tools, the color red is always in vogue (and not just for topsides and Ferraris). And blood can show up at any time. My wife is a gourmet chef who works with fresh ingredients, which explains why she didn’t understand about can openers. Recently, she held up a thumb sliced by a razor-sharp can. There…