Pass Your Yachtmaster

Publisher: Adlard Coles Nautical, £10.49

Publication Date: 4th ed., 2006

CA Library Reference:

More than 30,000 sailors have now received Yachtmaster certificates from the R.Y.A., and many more have completed the combined shorebased course. There is therefore a thriving market in reference books to assist those undertaking the course. This being the fourth edition of the title, published over a period of twenty four years, it has already succeeded in a competitive market. The reason is that it is a very easy book to use. The information is well set out, important areas are highlighted, each chapter is succinctly summarised and there is a good index. Fifteen of Mike Peyton’s cartoons are also included.

The authors are both experienced yachtsmen, and this is reflected in the contents. Especially good is the comprehensive chapter on Collision Regulations, which takes up a quarter of the book, and gives good and clear guidance to an important part of the syllabus. The revision questions at the foot of each page, with the answer on the following page, are a constant challenge. It is also good to see that the tidal calculations are shown in a clear and easily understood manner and not treated as some complicated black art. Two areas where I feel more information may be useful are Passage Planning and the effective use of electronic charts and G.P.S., although these may be considered to be adequately covered for the syllabus. And the cartoons? They are relevant to the subject, may even linger in the mind longer than the text, and as always remind you of what sailing is really like. - PL