Power or Sail?
Latitude 38, an excellent magazine devoted to cruising, has as its motto: We go where the wind blows. This captures the romance of sailing – being caught up by the wind, and blown all over the earth. No smelly diesel engines for you, no tiresome engine problems, no wearying contact with the outside world, just you and your significant other against the wind and the world. Sailing also has significant cost advantages – normally, you only run your engine an hour or so a day, to take care of essential power needs like refrigeration. Because of that, it’s much cheaper to run a sailboat than a powerboat; your primary source of energy is the wind, which nobody has figured out how to charge for. A long-range powerboat often has a diesel tank of 1,000 gallons or more; that’s a lot of money even if it can be stretched to last a good long time. So sail has romance and cost all covered, which is especially important considering that many cruisers eventually try to prolong their trips by earning m
