Chuck Husick Marine Technology Award

One thing every reader of this magazine knew about our late contributing editor Chuck Husick: he loved marine technology. Everything from raw water strainers to batteries to engines to electronics — they all were fodder for his active, inquisitive mind. Chuck knew how everything worked, and could take anything apart and rebuild it. He often did rebuild gear and usually added his own unique modifications to make them work better.

To honor Chuck and his outstanding contributions to explaining marine technology to mariners everywhere, Ocean Navigator has instituted the Chuck Husick Marine Technology Award. This annual award will be given to a product the board of judges thinks advances the field of marine technology for recreational voyagers. And there is one more criterion for the winner, as well. It has to be an item of marine technology that Chuck would have been excited about!

Our judges for the 2011 Husick Award are Ben Ellison, of the marine electronics site Panbo.com; Scott Bannerot, voyager and author; John Kettlewell, voyager, editor and author; Jeff Williams, marine writer and circumnavigator; Lawrence Husick, sailor, marine writer, patent attorney and son of Chuck; Peter Stoops, voyager and marine writer; Roger Marshall, sailor, marine writer and designer; Dean Travis Clark, Executive Editor Bonnier Marine Group, host of Sport Fishing TV; Philip Gallman, sailor and retired defense electronics expert; Roger Hellyar-Brook marine systems program manager at the Landing School in Kennebunk, Maine.

The finalists for this year’s Chuck Husick Award, which will be presented on Oct. 6 at the Annapolis Sailboat Show are:

• Lasdrop Gen II shaft seal
• EP2000 copper-free bottom paint from ePaint
• DeLorme inReach
• Raymarine e7 Multifunction display
• Alltekmarine AMEC  
• Camino-101 AIS
• Inmarsat IsatPhonePro
• Navionics charts for the iPhone, iPad and Android
• Digital Yacht AIS
• Imtra LED replacement bulbs
• Harken Rewind winch
• Simrad BSM-2 sounder with CHIRP technology
• FLIR First Mate MS night vision
• G2 diesel fuel optimizer
• EchoMax Active-XS dual band RTE

By Ocean Navigator