Boating

It was well after my cruise from Izmir, Turkey to New York in the Fall of 1962 that my real adventures in boating began.  In fact I can attribute my first boating lesson to my years of service in the Navy.

While attending school in San Diego I met a wonderful family that lived on Coronado Island and who were active members of the Coronado Yacht Club.  As their son Jeff and I were good friends, they pretty much adopted me as a member of their family and I learned to sail by dumping a little Penguin sailboat numerous times, much to the amusement of the gathering on the club house deck.

My first boat was not much more than a surfboard with a big sail which saw quite a bit of action around Biddeford Pool because you could stand up after you ran it aground on one of the many sand bars at low tide.

After that I convinced my family that we needed a boat we could all enjoy and we purchased a Penn Yan flying bridge cruiser with tunnel drive to explore Casco Bay.  This began a relationship with many sail and powerboats, but more importunately it also lead to my involvement with the US Power Squadron.

I have enjoyed many great years of teaching and learning the finer aspects of seamanship through this affiliation.  I eventually rose to the position of Squadron Lieutenant Commander and being awarded the Howard Chapman Award for Outstanding Teaching. With the help of friends and members of the Casco Bay Power Squadron I have  taught or offered courses in Public Boating, Seamanship, Sailing and Cruise Planning.

Throughout the years:

I have enjoyed boating with my family on Sebago Lake with my Formula 242 LS out of Brandy Pond.

Boating from Spring Point Marina over many years and with several types and sizes of boats; always one of the first boats in the water and one of the last boats out.  It has been one of my finest memories enjoying the opportunities to experience everything Casco Bay has to offer.

For several years I  sailed out of Tampa Bay on a custom aluminum C&C 44 sloop designed for the Bermuda Cup races.  I still can recall some wonderful memories of  an extended cruise to the Dry Tortugas on the SV Grainna.

I have also kept a couple of smaller powerboats at Marston’s Marina on the Saco River.

My last boat was a classic 36 Nautor Swan sloop which also happened to be outfitted for the Bermuda Cup and is currently for sale.