Storm Tactics Video

Rating:
Summary: Amazing amount of info here, highly recommended
Review: Bought this as an Xmas gift for my partner and it has cost me a bundle. We both found it so encouraging he asked me to buy more copies for several friends who are getting ready to go cruising.The Pardeys not only discuss their ideas of what to do in a storm, but also try to put it all in perspective - taking a lot of the scare out of being at sea. I liked seeing some of the ideas used to secure gear inside boats, liked their detailed discussion of storm sails. Though they mention thier voyage around Cape Horn, they show that with planning they always had loads of searoom around them when they hit the worst storms. Though it would have been great to see shots of thier boat battling around the Horn, I know this would have meant hiring Heliocopters, camera men etc. This program is definitely not Hollywood, nor Discovery channel, it is good solid how to stuff. Hope to get to one of thier seminars if they ever do one in our area.

Rating:
Summary: not only informative, but entertaining too.
Review: I got this program to gain some confidence because I want to head off sailing soon. My wife is really concerned about getting out in strong winds. She watched it with me and came away smiling. Said it made her really want to get going soon. Grand sailing shots, just enough stormy stuff and excellent demonstrations of how to use storm sails, how to heave to. These folks really are encouraging. Loved the Irish sailing boats and the music that ran through the whole program. Best of all are the small tips I kept gleaning, from lock down systems to rigging ideas. I'm not loaning this one out.

Rating:
Summary: ParaAnchor Usage
Review: The Pardeys are awesome and inspirational, especially to small boat sailors. In this day of big, high tech yachts, they remind us that 15 years ago, a 30ft cutter was way more than anyone needed. And the Sea hasn't been the one changing.
This video was advertised on the Pardey website as having footage of their 29ft yacht rounding Cape Horn in extreme conditions, safely and competently, east to west. The DVD however, fails to show more than a few brief seconds of intermittent sea time and leaves the route and journey, in Lin & Larry's memories alone. It does show the deployment and theoretical use of a para-anchor along with a good review of hove-to principals. Both of which are done in what appears to be a windy lake or at the dock. Yep, much of the film is at a dock or inside their boat via monologue. Their yacht is beautifully shown shouldering through some swell, chop, and a fresh breeze, but as to rounding the Horn the wrong way against even 20ft seas and 60kt winds, that film has yet to be made.
I'll keep the video and my para-anchor, but $15 would have been much more appropriate from the authors of "The Cost Conscious Cruiser" for so little content.