Topic: Boating

This isn't a joke. April Fools Day is well behind us, and there really are opportunities out there to buy lighthouses. We're not sure when the Montauk Lighthouse will be available, but get ready to start bidding.

Apparently lighthouses are going the way of the horse and buggy. With the advances in navigation technology these days, lighthouses aren't really necessary anymore, according to the Coast Guard. So the question arises: what do you do with all these extra lighthouses?

The first solution they've come up with is to give them away to local town and county governments. Only problem is, the local town and county governments don't want them. So they've resorted to putting them up for auction. "It's kind of an interesting real estate dynamic... We can't give it away, so we sell it."

Montauk Lighthouse may not be on the auction block anytime soon, but just think what you could do with the place. Chances are though you'd get out bid by Ralph Lauren.

Coast Guard Auctions Off Lighthouses [USA Today]

If you haven't noticed, we're on an island. And there's nothing better than getting out on the water with Sag Harbor Sailing, where they offer sailing lessons, boat rentals, fly fishing, and sailing accessories in the perfect place to do it.

Sag Harbor Sailing School
51 Pine Neck Avenue
Sag Harbor, NY 11963
631-725-5100

www.sailsagharbor.com

> Full coverage

When the American Hotel team won the third annual Sag Harbor Charity Cup while aboard the 12-meter sloop American Eagle, it wasn't the first time the yacht landed its captain and crew a trophy– it was also the victorious sea vessel in the first-ever World Ocean Racing Championship). This most recent win, however, meant the world to the Child Development Center of the Hamptons– who the Hotel crew sponsored and brought a substantial portion of the over $100,000 raised for the event.

In total, twelve charities benefited from the race as twelve teams boarded six yachts that were once participants in the historic America's Cup sailing races of the late '50s to early '80s.

The Bay Street Buccaneers couldn't catch the Hotel team on their vessel, the Intrepid– which won two America's Cups races and beat out five others in the first race of this year's Sag Harbor Charity Cup. But they and the other teams still brought significant support to local organizations.

To see more event coverage like this, check out the Porsche Performance Series for additional video and interviews.

In no particular order, here comes the video...

All anyone could talk about at the beginning of the summer was the Social Concert Series and the tickets that cost $15,000 for five concerts. Bryan Boyhan went to the first concert—Prince, no less—and...he actually had a good time.

Chris got totally tongue tied by supermodel Selita Ebanks while Olivia got giggly with model/polo player Nacho Figureas.

We likes to party—and so does Russell Simmons. The man must have thrown, hosted or been at 217 parties this summer. Checkout his annual Art for Life benefit where Olivia chatted up Forrest Whitaker. Olivia also talked to Russell about his new book. Basically, Olivia and Russell hung out all summer.

While all about you are losing their heads, try a little fishing. There's something calming about waiting for the bite.

Just a couple miles away is this little island called Block Island. They used to send criminals there. So we sent Plum's John Birdsong. To be nice, we gave him a video camera. Which he used to shoot a lot of video of sailboats during Block Island Race Week. It was good stuff so we let him come back to the Hamptons.

You know what's cool? Opening a bottle of champagne with a giant knife.

Chris got all the good assignments. Especially when he got to hang out with the Beatles in India. (Full disclosure: that's a total lie. He didn't get to hang out with the Beatles in India. But he did interview a guy who hung out with the Beatles in India.)

Who knew socialites could surf? We had no idea and even after we were told they can surf we didn't believe it. Then we watched this video. And we learned that Fabiola Beracasa can wakeboard too. Will wonders never cease?

It wasn't all fun and games. Every once in awhile we tackled a few weighty matters. Like when former Editor in Chief of Time Inc., Norman Pearlstine came on to talk about the current state of journalism. Serious stuff. And just for the record, Carl Bernstein is no lightweight either.

Those crazy kids, what will they think of next? Not content to lay on a surfboard and paddle with their hands, now they want to stand on a surfboard and use a canoe paddle. Next thing you know, they'll be riding surfboards attached to kites.

Against all odds, Drew found poetry in pastry. The Gentle Donut, his tribute to the artery clogging magic of the fresh donut brought tears to our eyes and the comfort of assured future business to cardiac specialists everywhere.

Who will win? Artists? Writers? Neither? Both? Like a night at the opera, this year's Artists Writers Game was too much drama. But it was all for a good cause so try and suffer through Mort Zuckerman's pitching and Christie Brinkley's batting and place your bets.

Judith Miller did not start the War in Iraq.

Plum went to the dogs this summer—literally. Dog of the Month was the contest to win and we had two very deserving winners complemented by two hilarious "Dogumentaries." We're still trying to figure out if Amber is a dog or a diva and we know that Sophie proves the maxim that a dog is a man's best friend.

Say it with me girls, Super Saturday 10! Shop til you drop. Olivia talked to everyone from the Giulianis to Beth Ostrosky. Then she bought presents for all of her coworkers at Plum...or she should have.

Formula for TV magic: 1 Intern + 1 Camera + 1 Microphone + Hundreds of Odd Questions= Man on the Street. That's all it takes. And we were able to answer tough questions like, If you were a firework, what kind would you be? And, What is Fashion? Or, Do you wish you knew magic like Harry Potter?

Just give Michael Moore a mic and he'll give you an interview.

Sometimes in the Hamptons there are too many houses. If you're rich enough, you just give the extra houses on your property away. That's what happened here.

Interns: sometimes they talk to horses.

Over 2,000 sailors and nearly 200 boats competed just a few miles east of Montauk in the 2007 Block Island Race Week. From across the sound in Connecticut to across the country in California (and even across the Atlantic in the United Kingdom), the masters of the sea came and battled fluctuating winds and currents, thick fog, and heavy rain.

The event takes place every other year, and is not your average competition. Opponents who battle the elements by day become buddies who pass the time together at night, as the stories and tips are swapped over drinks while images of the day's race are flashed across the bars. Still, their eyes remain on the prize(s): from Rolex watches to having their name inscribed in the coveted Island Sailing Club of Cowes Perpetual Trophy– which commemorates the link between Block Island Race Week and Britain's Cowes Week.

There were winners in each of the 18 different categories. For an up-to-speed track of who won what, click here.