What are the magazines missing?

[Charlie]

My favorite mags are Latitude 38, 48 North, Practical Sailor, and Cruisng World. In that order. I don't like reading off of a computer screen. When the family is watching tv I read a magazine or book. Ok reasons. Lat 38 my favorite part is the letters and changes in lattitude. Editorial content is pretty good and there are tidbits that I pick up thru out the magazine. There is alot of content and the ads aren't jammed down your throat like the glossies. 48 North I like for similar reasons. Articles are more cruise oriented. Practical Sailor is good b/c I am outfitting my boat. Some of their articles are not very useful but the seasoned veteran articles are ones that I find very useful. Crusing World I like b/c of the pictures. The articles are Ok but they do a good job with the camera work.

[Therapy]

Originally Posted by maxingout

Forums like this one also get you in contact with other sailors around the world. You get first hand information on a timely basis rather than hoping that someday someone would write an article on a subject in which you are interested.

And this is the best one I have found!
I have found 5 altogether that have regular attendees but not like this one!
I have learned much here and look forward to my continuing education.

Thanks much to you specifically maxingout!!

[drh1965]

As someone new to the cruising scene, I can say that I enjoy reading Practical Sailor and water sailing">Blue Water Sailing quite a bit. The one from BoatUS is pretty good. There are some ariticles that I like in Cruising World but only usually a few. The rest I've looked at, Sail, Sailing, and Yachting World. Bleh!

[scallywag]

Just let my last magazine expire. This forum answers questions where as magazines give information and many times is not relevant to your situation. Even newspapers are looking to on line sources for distributing news. Paper is too expensive.

[libellula]

I do not like articles about the cruising attitude of sail someplace and get drunk. Oh yes, I drink when I sail but that is not the focus. I look to mags that can provide useful information about cruising destinations , living aboard and seamanship (and I mean living not just partying).

[Maddog]

Originally Posted by rtbates

Less articles about boats like Bruce Hood's $1.7M 55 footer. It sure isn't aimed at me!!
I'll be letting my subscriptions to CW, Sailing and Latts&Atts expire and keeping just Good Old Boat. It's the only one in which I can relate to all the articles in one way or another.
It's also the only one that isn't 80% adds.

I'm with you. I do like the DIY mags that have popped up, DIY & Boatworks. I will always keep Practical Sailor. I find more timely info in BoatUS.

[JohnnyC]

I agree, boat or product reviews that do nothing but pimp a product are a great reason to avoid buying a magazine. I want to spend my hard earned cash for stories written with my best interest in mind, not the best interest of the magazine's advertisers. The only thing more aggravating than sensing how gullible the editors of those shiny magazines think we are is realizing that in all too many cases they are correct.
I just picked up a couple issues of "Living Aboard" at (forgive me) West Marine. They contained stories by, for and about living aboard. As a wannabe live aboard the magazine is far more appealing to me than Cruising World etc. More like the old Tom Neal stuff someone mentioned above. Kind of selling the lifestyle rather than stuff. I only hope my wife starts reading them too...
I can't say how useful the articles would be to folks already living on their vessels full time.

[Reality Check]

I also have no use for articles about Mega yachts... or ads poorly hidden as product reviews.

I would like to see more stories with wit, good writing skills, something that will make me laugh and learn something new even if it is how NOT to do something. I agree Log Book post are dry... really dry in print when you paid $$ for the magazine... at least on line I can avoid them or click to another page when I come across another of the Realllllllly boring ones... as most are.

I do like good photographs of places but not snap shots of people saying I was Here... or things that remind me of a freshman's dorm party.

Real articles on real places with real photos not just the exotic locations. A good article about a local gunk-hole location or recent well written info on an island hop that didn't involve bad judgment at the start... such as heading out in a storm would be more interesting than the "I saved myself from my own Stupidity" type articles some magazines seem to require.

Wonder if any such magazine would every get printed. Probably not.

[starfish62]

Fatty Goodlander! He is the sole reason to subscribe to CW for us. I love his articles and hope to find him in an anchorage beside us someday! If you read this....."we love you Fatty and Caroline"!

[jdoe71]

Aye aye to Fatty! Best part of Cruising World, especially now that Ithaka is gone.

[Ex-Calif]

I would rather do it than read about it. That's why most blogs, not all, are a waste of bandwidth.

Information that helps me do it, is much more apealing. Boat maintenance and repair, practical sailing advice, and "here are the ins and outs of getting in and out of X and Y."

I don't need ads in my face. When I am looking for something I can find plenty of options for it.

In fact this place is pretty perfect ;-)

[Celestialsailor]

I agree with everything everyone has said about those shiny covered sailing rags. One in particular could be renamed "Advertising World". When I lived in Ca. We had a S.F. based rag called Latitude 38. Great stuff. They can be found on line. The biggest loser of a rag for me was that latitudes and attitudes. A biker editor turned sailor over-night and it showed.

[Boracay]

My beef with sailing mags is they don't talk about the weather.

[mickmul]

That's in case some twit puts to sea and does himself a serious injury. Weather training is probably the most important but under publicised element of sailing. That's because it's not shiny with a profit margin - Met training ain't sexy enough for the magazines, not the glossy ones anyway . . .

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by Boracay

My beef with sailing mags is they don't talk about the weather.

See the Nov/Dec 2005 (Issue 45) of “Good Old Boat” magazine, for “Weather Basics” (how to read weather maps),
or goto: http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...arts-4087.html