OCEAN RACE: A Sea Venture

by Peter Burchard ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 8, 1978

Burchard was a crew member on Danny Miller's racing sloop the Blixtar for the 1976 Newport to Bermuda race (""Tommy"" Hoving of the Metropolitan Museum was first mate), and this is his honest but unexciting account of the experience. Though the crew was doubtless busy and at times exhilarated there were no major crises, and so Burchard the author must make do with references to the adventures of other sailors from Columbus to Bill Buckley--and with second-hand shark stories, commonsense rebuttals to Bermuda-triangle scare stories, and a rundown of the procedure that would be followed aboard the Blixtar should a man happen to fall overboard. In actuality there are dolphin sightings and bouts of seasickness, and Burchard takes time out to describe the layout of the boat, the difficulties of navigation, and the importance of deodorant (""goat sticks"") in the cramped cabins. Sailing buffs might appreciate his running references to such operations as shackling the halyard, raising the spinnaker, and furling the main (glossary appended for landlubbers); but no one is likely to feel the swell of the sea.

Pub Date: May 8, 1978

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Putnam

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1978

Categories: NONFICTION