Mad Mariner is proud to announce that WxWorx, the data provider for XM WX Satellite Weather, is our latest advertiser.

XM is the nation's leading sattelite-delivered weather service. It gathers weather data from the Department of Defense, the National Weather Service and commercial sources; interprets and  verifies the information; and then packages it for distribution via satellite.

That means sophisticated weather data can be available onboard in real time, viewable on a computer, a chartplotter or another mobile device.

Mad Mariner announced this week that it has signed a deal to manage advertising sales and placement on Panbo, the largest marine electronics blog on the internet.

The signing of this deal unites two-highly respected websites, each with an active readership, and creates a combined marketplace that averages roughly 150,000 unique visitors each month.

Quickline USA, which offers innovative products for mooring, anchoring and many other boating needs, has joined us as Mad Mariner's latest advertiser.

Quickline offers some unique products, including the Quickline Flat Rope & Reel, a stainless steel reel that bolts to a stanchion and dispenses flat line — either Dynemma or polyester — in a way that prevents fouling. The reel is available in multiple sizes and the line can be used for towing, light anchoring and other duties.

Mad Mariner is shaking things up in the New Year: We want you to tell us a story.

We are sponsoring the first Mad Mariner Essay Contest, an opportunity to tell some tales and win some gear as we wait for the weather to let us get back on the boat.

AutoTether, maker of the wireless man overboard safety lanyard, has come aboard as Mad Mariner's latest advertiser. And they did not show up empty handed.

As a holiday promotion, AutoTether is offfering 10 percent off any order from Mad Mariner readers. Simply input the coupon code MAD-0010 at purchase to receive the discount.

Mad Mariner is proud to announce that the Dallas Boat Show is its latest advertiser.

For those not familiar with the show, it is without a doubt the best little boat show in Texas. Except, it's not so little. In fact, with hundreds of boats and booths, one might say it is Texas-sized.

G.W. Medley, a Coldwell Banker real estate agent in San Diego, has joined Mad Mariner as our latest advertiser.

Mad Mariner launched its annual Boaters Gift Guide this week, a listing of products and deals — even a few steals — that will make holiday shopping easier.

All of the products listed in the guide can be purchased online, and in many cases they represent the lowest prices available. One example is West Marine's Raiatea Binoculars (you know, the blue ones), which usually cost $169.99 but can be purchased in the guide for $89.99. Another is the SPOT Satellite Messenger, which usually costs $149 for the unit and another $99 for a year of monitoring. We found a package for $149 that includes monitoring -- and there's an additional $50 rebate from the manufacturer.

Keith Ammons, better as The Boating Guy for his work on the Discover Boating website, is now a blogger on Mad Mariner. His blog, called – you guessed it – The Boating Guy, will be updated weekly.

Keith's popular Ask The Boating Guy feature on the Discover Boating website has helped scores of boaters get answers to common questions. His blog on Mad Mariner will follow a similar format, drawing questions from the large pool submitted by Discover Boating readers each week.

There are few things prettier than a boat on the water – and we have a few thousand pictures to prove it. In an attempt to share them, Mad Mariner has started a Flickr Page with a few hundred of our best photos and will continue to update it every week.

For the uninitiated, Flickr is an online community of people from all over the world who share photos. If you are interested in a topic, you'll find like-minded people on Flickr, eager to share their pictures. In order to join this community, Mad Mariner also setup a Flickr Group, in the hope that we might meet some fellow boating addicts who also have a few good photos laying around.