I am a middle school teacher, and father of 4 boys. My wife and I, with our family, live in Chilliwack, BC, Canada. We have our own trailerable sailboat, a 1989 Macgregor 26D. It’s great. We enjoy sailing all around local lakes as well as the infamous Pacific Northwest. Our “home” sailing area is Harrison Lake, about a 30 minute drive away.
My goal with this site is to provide a rich informational resource for those new to sailing. In my writing I try to be accessible to as many new sailors as possible, and that means keeping things simple and easy to understand. I want to inspire people to take up this amazing lifestyle, and grow in their joy in sailing as they grow in knowledge and experience.
Sailing is a passion for me. I enjoy talking about sailing, networking with others who sail, troubleshooting problems on sailboats and then fixing those problems, I enjoy writing about sailing, shopping for sailing related gear, learning new things about sailing, and of course sailing itself!
I have been sailing every summer since 2002, with the exception of two summers when we had babies. I skipper a sailing camp on the Pacific Coast every summer. Sailing campers learn all the basics of sailing in the week they attend the camp. I thought I’d put into words some of the key concepts we teach each week, and voila, this website! Nearly all of my training and experience has been through these adventures; however I have done a few formal courses in sailboat piloting and navigation over the years.
In the last 17 years of sailing, I’ve gained a great deal of experience with the process of sailing and also a ton of products related to sailing. This website is intended to be a resource not only for those wanting to learn the basics of sailing, but also be a resource for those wanting a shortcut to the actually used and valued products and gear out there that make sailing safer, more fulfilling and ultimately more fun.