Ronnie Simpson Podcast

Ronnie recently lost his boat after a rig failure off Argentina in a solo race around the world. Head to Sailing Arnachy to hear Ronnie talk about the rescue and his future in the racing world. I have been following Ronnie's sailing endevours since the beginning about 15 years ago. Over the years, he has lost a rudder, a keel, 2 rigs and more. Check it out.

Hate my neighbors!

Vital Bridge Hit By Tanker in MD

A container ship rests against wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge on Tuesday, March 26, 2024, as seen from Pasadena, Md. The ship rammed into the major bridge in Baltimore early Tuesday, causing it to collapse in a matter of seconds and creating a terrifying scene as several vehicles plunged into the chilly river below.

How Long Have Humans Been Sailing?

Sailing is the oldest of our recreations, with the exception of hunting and fishing. The history of our sport is not hundreds, nor thousands, but hundreds of thousands of years older than tennis, golf, biking, or skiing. The earliest undoubted evidence of human voyaging is the settling of Australia by the aboriginal discoverers. They could not have reached it without an ocean passage of twenty-five miles or more. Further back, there is trustworthy evidence of human habitation on Crete 130,000 years ago, before Homo sapiens were in Europe, which implies those explorers were Neanderthals. Crete has been an island sixty miles from the mainland for millions of years. But the most radical possibility for early voyagers is the case of Homo floresiensis, also known as the “hobbit people,” who inhabited the island of Flores in Indonesia a million years ago. As to the common theory that any of these folks were accidentally blown by storms to these destinations, this ignores the fact that in order to gain a sustained foothold, which is what they did, you need quite a number of fellow pioneers to start, including, obviously, females. It required repeated, planned trips in some kind of boat. Despite all the fluctuations in weather, sea level, and human interaction since those early times, the ocean waters you sail on now are the same as those faced by these early voyagers. Besides boats, another ancient technology is cordage. On my first day at Tradewinds as a beginner, I was struck by the fact that in the twentieth century, ropes were being used to control the boat. Ropes? We have servos and actuators and hydraulics. What is with this primitive gear? Like the first boats, ancient cordage, made of organic things like vines or sinew, doesn’t survive through the ages so we lack archaeological proof. The earliest hominid technology we have evidence of, over three million years ago, is stone tools. Knapping stone tools is not easy, and takes skill and foresight. It is much less difficult to strip leaves off a vine, creating a rope. Again, nameless people, who weren’t yet human, thought up a simple contrivance to help with their lives that we still use today. The connection to these earliest technological innovators is part of the heritage I became aware of through sailing.

Post 3000! A Fish Story

I have been looking forward to this post for some time. I started the blog almost 20 years ago on a different platform. Found Blogger and have been here ever since. In honor of this auspicious occasion, I give you my favorite fish story: After a 7 day passage from San Diego to Cabo, it's early morning and I am at the bow of my sloop looking at the sunrise. Thinking about how sailing has enhanced my life and all the people I have met. I am having a moment of clairity. Out of nowhere, a flying fish comes out of the water and hits me on the tip of my penis. I am shocked. God, are you talking to me? Anyway, it’s about 8 inches long (the fish not my penis). It’s flopping on the deck and so I pick it up and toss her into the ocean. They call that crotch and release! True story. Oh yeah, the blog has well over a million views!! I am pretty proud of both accomplishments. Took one hellava long time!

Flying fish are ray-finned fish with highly modified pectoral fins. Despite their name, flying fish aren’t capable of powered flight. Instead they propel themselves out of the water at speeds of more than 35 miles (56 kilometers) an hour. Once in the air, their rigid “wings” allow them to glide for up to 650 feet (200 meters). The winglike pectoral fins are primarily for gliding—the fish hold the fins flat at their sides when swimming. Their streamlined bodies reduce drag when the fish are “flying.” Another interesting characteristic of the flying fish is its unevenly forked tail, which has a top lobe that’s shorter than the bottom lobe. Flying fish can be up to 18 inches (45 centimeters) long, but average 7 to 12 inches (17 to 30 centimeters).

How Fast Can You Sail Solo Around the Planet?