Self-Sufficient Sailor (Hardcover)

by Larry Pardey (Author), Lin Pardey (Author) "It's April and the bulletin boards in Malta are sprouting signs like: "Crew needed this week for passage to Athens"; "Charter boat seeks cordon bleu..." (more)
Key Phrases: rough weather harness, mechanical bilge pump, underwater putty, United States, Suez Canal, Gulf of Suez (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
........for the beginner or experienced offshore cruising sailor who is contemplating a voyage, this book by one of Americas most famous sailing couples is a must. The valuable information includes ....practical, innovative ideas to better outfit any sailboat. -- Shirley Herd Deal, Sea Magazine, 1985

I think it wisest to learn from other peoples experience, by reading books. I like Glenans Sailing book and also know an excellent American book written by Lin and Larry Pardey, the Self Sufficient Sailor. -- Bernard Moitessier - Sailor, Author and Adventurer, 1989

Nothing can keep you cruising longer, safer and on a lower budget than self-sufficiency, and no one knows more about the subject than Lin and Larry Pardey. They draw on 29 years of cruising to reveal how to handle your boat under sail and at anchor; how to build trust and teamwork in your crew, and how to fortify your boat with backup systems - advice that will keep you sailing onward instead of stuck in port waiting for repair parts. -- Tom Linskey -Editor, Sail Magazine, 1996

We all have something to learn form this book, from authors who have put into practice a principle that applies to all of us. -- Denny Desoutter, Editor, Practical Boat Owner, 1997

Product Description
This book is what the title says. It is the distillation of what the Pardeys have learned in 150,000 miles of sailing on board their two cutters, Seraffyn and Taleisin and on scores of other boats they have delivered or raced. Lin and Larry tell how they have sailed in comfort and safety without large cash outlays on a pay-as-you-earn-as-you-go plan and by simplifying.

A sailor who relies on expensive equipment - radios, radar, safety harnesses, emergency flares, or liferaft - is risking disaster. A sailors reliance must be on self first and on electronics and mechanics last. For example, do not count on your safety harness to keep you attached to the boat. Do, however, learn the how,why, and what of not falling overboard in the first place. Know the proper layout and gear that will eliminate the need to take risks in any weather.

How to learn basic sailing and seamanship, to choose a boat and equipment designed for safe, comfortable voyaging: how to learn m! aintenance and repair, inspection of rigging and equipment, sailing without an engine - these are what the Pardeys teach.

This is an essential book for coastal and offshore sailors alike.

In its first edition, this invaluable text has seen nine reprints. Now Lin and Larry have updated and revised the information to make it current and a valuable addition to any sailors library right up to the millennium.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 317 pages
• Publisher: Paradise Cay Publications; 2 edition (March 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0964603675
• ISBN-13: 978-0964603677
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #46,411 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #58 in	Books > Nonfiction > Transportation > Ships
  #61 in	Books > Outdoors & Nature > Outdoor Recreation > Sailing
  #68 in	Books > Outdoors & Nature > Outdoor Recreation > Boating

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical knowledge for the serious sailor, June 20, 2000

By	Ryan McNabb (Ooltewah, TN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Lin and Larry's reprint/update is well worth the investment. Yes, the chapters here, like many of their books, started off life as magazine articles and, yes, they were published many years ago, but that is completely beside the point. Their advice is timeless because it deals with real knowledge and experience about techniques and material that will never go out of practical use. Varnish, sailcloth, kerosene lamps, dinghies, three strand rope, planes and chisels, none of these or the hundreds of other topics will ever disappear from sailing, unlike a long dissertation on LORAN or RDF or epoxy, or other topics rapidly becoming obsolete. A hundred years from now there will still be sailors on engineless boats with kerosene lamps and sextants, because simple things work. Period. Always have, always will. If this truth appeals to you, then these are your books.

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The essential how-to cruise and survive, October 25, 1999

By	Robert S. Mellis (Florida) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As usual, Lin and Larry Pardey have captured in their non-preachy, no-nonsense way the essence of cruising and surviving on the high seas...as well as when you drop the hook in a foreign port. This book is fairly old ('82) but they've done a good job of updating and adding info that applies to cruising in the 90s. I'm a fan because I've owned the big boats and now I've down-sized to the more manageable 30-footer range. So I know whereof they speak. Your chances of unhooking from the land are MUCH greater if you are not plowing every cent you make into a 40-45 foot boat. Life becomes sweeter when you manage on your own to make the repairs and adapt some fix-it scheme to your boat so it doesn't cost an arm and a leg. I'm working my way through their books and I truly see them as the embodiment of the modern Hiscock.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like the sea, this book is never out of date, February 19, 1999

By A Customer

I read the Pardey's Cost Conscious Cruiser first, then I met them at a seminar, listened to their absolute logic - they never said anyone else was wrong, but they did make it clear that people who write about fixing their boat too often, may have complicated their life beyond what they could handle. Self Sufficent sailor has more good advise, logical ideas and fun reading, not sure if it is better than Cost Conscious Cruiser, more like in addition to. The Pardeys made it clear at their seminar that they kept learning as they cruised. It is no wonder they need to write a new book every three or four years. Glad they take the time to do it.