Mad Mariner won four writing awards in Boating Writers International's annual writing contest, the results of which were announced today at the Miami boat show.

Mad Mariner's article on Two Stroke Versus Four Stroke, by writer Lenny Rudow, won second place in the Gear, Electronics and Product Tests category. A story on Testing Chartplotters, also by Rudow, won third place in the Electronics category. A story on cruising to Anagada, by Kim Kavin, won a certificate of merit in the Boating Travel or Destination category.

Mad Mariner's Boat Show Blog, perhaps the only publication to offer a stream of live coverage from the major boat shows, won a certificate of merit in the Online Original Content category.

Mad Mariner has a new toy for those of you who have the iPhone bug.

The MadApp launched this week, a free application that allows you to access the latest Mad Mariner articles, news, photos and blog posts wherever you go—including our coverage of the Miami boat show starting next week.
 
Our team of reporters will be posting dozens of items and scores of photos and video on The Boat Show Blog, and you can catch it all live on the Mad Mariner website—or on your iPhone, where we have a special feed.

Mad Mariner is proud to announce that we have acquired DIY Boat Owner magazine.

DIY Boat Owner, which was owned by BoatUS, is a quarterly print magazine for do-it-yourself boaters, offering expert advice on maintenance, repairs, upgrades and projects. Published since 1995, the magazine has an archive of more than 1,500 articles and tips.

We feel it is the perfect addition to Mad Mariner. DIY’s focus on learning and self reliance will significantly strengthen our ability to serve readers. 

Fans of The Docking Game have been waiting a long time for a sequel—and it is finally here.

Mad Mariner launched The Cruising Game today, our second free, web-based video game in the last two years. If boaters greet it as they did the first game—The Docking Game was played more than 300,000 times — it should provide a lot of fun.

Mad Mariner is now publishing in Spanish.

Marinero Loco, which also has a Twitter page, is the first Spanish-language consumer boating magazine to be published daily worldwide. The site features the same high-quality journalism, world-class photography and independent spirit that readers have come to appreciate on Mad Mariner.

Mad Mariner is proud to announce that Kadey-Krogen Yachts, whose reputation in the trawler market is unsurpassed, has joined us as an advertiser.

Kadey-Krogen has the distinction of being the first boatbuilder to advertise on Mad Mariner, and they have a great deal to show our readers. The new Krogen 55 Expedition has received a great deal of attention, and the new Krogen 64 Expedition is on its way. As the company puts it, "Kadey-Krogen designs prove themselves — one handcrafted yacht at a time." 

Moreover, the company — one of a small few whose vessels have attained cult status — has recently created a newsletter to keep owners and fans updated on the latest news. Sign up and you could win a trip to Trawler Fest, the popular boat show and conference for mariners who are serious about their boats — and where those boats might take them.

The results of Mad Mariner's Second Annual Reader Survey are in — and they could not be more helpful.

More than 300 people took the Web-based survey in the last two weeks, providing comments and feedback that will be used to redesign the Mad Mariner Web site this summer.

In most cases, the news was good. Fully 97.5 percent said they were satisfied with Mad Mariner, and 85 percent said the same about our weekly newsletter. When we asked for volunteers to help us with the redesign, more than 80 people signed up.

But we are not getting lazy. More interesting than any vote of confidence were your preferences for editorial content and ideas for new features – and we plan to act on them.

After almost two years of daily publication — delivering nearly 2,000 stories — Mad Mariner is launching an effort to redesign our website, beginning this week with a survey to find out what  exactly readers would like to see.

Mad Mariner has been successful since its launch, drawing more than a million readers to the site. But creating a compelling magazine is a constant effort — and getting input from our readers is a vital component.

Mad Mariner's Second Annual Reader Survey was launched today to find out more about our readers and what kinds of features they might find useful, from home page and editorial changes to the way we opearate the weekly newsletter.

The MadCast is upon us.

Mad Mariner’s podcast launched Wednesday, featuring a new 30-minute interview each week with people from all corners of the boating universe.

The goal is simple: to give Mad Mariner readers direct access to people they might not ordinarily meet, including CEOs, designers, authors, testers, cruisers, rescuers – and some ordinary boaters doing extraordinary things.