50 Years of SAIL

Adam Cort, Principal Editor for SAIL magazine, reflects back on the past 50 years.

Back in early 1970, Bernie Goldhirsh and the recently founded “Institute for the Advancement of Sailing,” publisher of an annual sailboat and gear guide, launched something called SAIL. A half-century later, a look back at the magazine’s first few years provides a glimpse into a whole other world—albeit a world that still looks refreshingly familiar.

Long Live the Cup
Here in the second decade of the 21st century, it’s hard to imagine just how important the America’s Cup once was. Before the advent of such events as the Whitbread race (now The Ocean Race) and the Vendée Globe, the Cup was the world’s premier sailing competition, bar none.

Twelve-meters represented the sport’s cutting edge; sailors like Ted Hood and Ted Turner (near left) were larger than life; the boats were crewed by amateurs from their country of origin; and corporate logos were strictly verboten. A simpler time, perhaps, but a no less competitive one! – Full report