On The Wind Sailing

#223. Paul Exner is one of our best friends, and easily the best sailor I’ve ever sailed with. Paul is Isbjorn’s Racing skipper, and is the only person - besides mad dad - who I’ve trusted to sail Isbjorn offshore without me being aboard. He’s been a regular on the podcast, so if you don’t know his backstory - how he grew up as a Gringo living in Puerto Rico, went on to coach the racing team at the University of Wisconsin, had his own mapping business, built his Cape George 31 Solstice from a bare hull and eventually sailed it to the caribbean - listen to one of his past episodes on On the Wind. Paul & I talk today about surviving Hurricane Irma and how it’s changed the lives of his young family. -- On the Wind is presented by Forbes Horton Yachts. And also supported by Broadreach, and Offshore Passage Opportunities.

#222. Carlton Goldthwaite is the visionary founder & owner of Broadreach, a North-Carolina based company that offers adventure travel and cultural immersion programs for students worldwide, a company very close to my heart - my first official captain’s job was in 2008, as a Broadreach skipper based out of French St Martin and co-leading three-week sailing & diving trips around the Leeward Islands. Carlton & I spoke in-person at the Broadreach HQ in Raleigh about his seaside childhood on the coast of New Jersey, his vagabonding experiences as a young adult, his stint on Wall Street as a junk bond trader, and the origins and evolution of Broadreach itself.

#221. It’s been a LONG time since I talked much about the business on here, and, now three years in (almost) and at the dawn of a new year, I feel like this is as good a time as any. I’m writing and recording this in real-time, by the way - as I write this, it’s just before 1000 SWE time on Tuesday January 2, the day this will release. Mia & I spent a lot of yesterday afternoon, January 1, reflecting on 2017 and planning ahead for 2018, across the business. The big question that we kept reminding ourselves of was the overall mission statement of 59 North. What, exactly, do we do, what do we WANT to do, and HOW do we accomplish that without getting sidetracked. -- On the Wind is Presented By Forbes Horton Yachts, longtime supporter of both 59 North in general and the podcast specifically. I’ve known Forbes for many years, and he indeed helped us buy Isbjorn back in 2015. Remember, Forbes can help you buy ANY boat on the market, not just ones he’s listing. To contact Forbes and start looking for your dream

SV Delos & 59 North announce their joint expedition to sail around Spitsbergen onboard Andy & Mia's Swan 48 'Isbjorn.'

John Martino is the former owner of 'Isbjorn', then 'Patriot', and he's also the founder of the Annapolis School of Seamanship. I spoke to John in Eastport at the school's headquarters about his history as a sailor, how he founded the school, and of course how he came to own 'Patriot' and what he thought of her as a boat! -- On the Wind is presented by Weems & Plath, makers of fine nautical & weather instruments since 1928. The CrewWatcher MOB beacon is now available online at westmarine.com. Visit weems-plath.com for all their tools and gifts.

Jessie Zevalkink is half of the 'Katie & Jessie On a Boat' duo that sailed the Great Loop in their early 20's, and had a popular blog that documented the journey. Mia & I met Jessie and her partner Luke (Katie was absent) at the Annapolis Sailboat Show in October and talked about that Great Loop trip, Jessie & Luke's recent trans-Atlantic passage, and their plans to sail around the world. -- On the Wind is presented by Weems & Plath. The new CrewWatcher MOB beacon is now available online at westmarine.com. For all of Weems & Plath's catalog, visit weems-plath.com.

Taylor Grieger & his friend Stephen O'Shea make up 'Skeleton Crew Sailing.' They're on a mission to raise awareness for veteran's suicide by 'taming Cape Horn' in their 36' sloop. Taylor is a former Navy Rescue Swimmer who did tours in the Pacific. Andy spoke to him while the crew were stopped in Panama for repairs before continuing on towards Cape Horn.

#217. Tamara Puhovski stowed away on the ARC Europe rally in 2017 onboard the Turkish-flagged 'Morton' to get across the Atlantic. She'd never sailed before, and nobody onboard the boat shared a common language.

#216. Brion Toss, the Master himself, joins Andy Schell at Cruiser's University 2017 in Annapolis for a seminar on offshore yacht rigging.

#215. Gary Adams is the new owner of Oban Marina, in Scotland, which we visited on Isbjorn in June. He's also a former Clipper Race crewmember, who sailed with our friend - and podcast #184 guest - Ollie Cotterell. Gary & Andy sat down on the island of Kerrera to talk about Gary's sailing & business background, his Clipper Race experience and what it's like owning a marina. -- On the Wind is presented by Weems & Plath, makers of fine nautical & weather instruments. weems-plath.com.

#214. Brittany Meyers is the author of Windtraveler, the hugely popular blog about her experience transitioning from 'land to sea to the tropics with three.' She's an accomplished sailor, a mom, an adventurer, and now, after sadly losing her beloved boat 'Legato' to Hurricane Irma, a philanthropist. She tells her story to Andy this week on the podcast. -- On the Wind is presented by Weems & Plath, makers of fine nautical & weather instruments since 1928. Check out the brand new Crewwatcher MOB device online at weems-plath.com. Sail offshore on a Swan 48 with Andy & Mia at 59-north.com/offshore.

#213. Andy Jamieson joined the crew of Infinity, a 120-foot hand-built schooner, on a voyage towards Antarctica. The adventures that ensued were filmed and recently released as 'Sea Gypsies: The Far Side of the World,' easily one of the best sailing movies we've seen. Go to seagypsiesmovie.com to watch for yourself. -- On the Wind is presented by Weems & Plath, makers of fine nautical & weather instruments since 1928. Go to weems-plath.com. -- Join Andy & Mia on the ocean sailing adventure of a lifetime and sail offshore on their Swan 48 'Isbjorn.' Head to 59-north.com/offshore to see routes & dates for 2018, 2019 & beyond.

#212. RECYCLED. Sara Hastreiter sailed in the previous Volvo Ocean Race aboard the all-women Team SCA, skippered by Dee Caffari. Sara's off mountaineer for this year's event, set to sail on October 22. But Dee Caffari is heading up the mixed-crew team on 'Turn the Tide on Plastic,' so you know who I'll be rooting for this year! Mia & I met and sailed with Sara in NYC a few years back, and I had a chance to talk to her on Skype immediately following the last Volvo.

#211. Hank & Andy sat down at the Annapolis Sailboat Show to discuss the ongoing relief efforts in the Caribbean due to Hurricane's Irma & Maria. The successive storms destroyed two of Hank's favorite islands - St. Martin & Dominica - also the places he calls home aboard 'Avocation' during the winter sailing season. Hank discusses his focused effort to help the people of those islands rebuild, and how YOU can help. -- On the Wind is presented by Weems & Plath, makers of fine nautical & weather instruments since 1928. Don't miss their newly announced Crew Watcher Man Overboard system for smartphones. Visit weems-plath.com.

#210: Skip Novak is a leader in the expedition sailing world, and his Pelagic expeditions based in Patagonia are world-class, and a huge inspiration to our business at 59 North with Isbjorn. Skip & Andy spoke about his career in the Whitbread Race, growing up in Chicago, building an expedition business, sailing with Magnus Olsson and much more.

#209: SOOO, while we’ve been sailing around Sweden on Isbjorn, I’ve been working behind the scenes to finalize production on the first-ever published book by 59 North, Yves incredible ‘Jean du Sud & the Magic Byrd,’ a beautiful & philosophical book about Yves’ journey to sail solo & nonstop around the world, written in a style I find very similar to the legendary Bernard Moitessier, a sailor I know Yves admired himself. Yves will be joining us at the Annapolis Sailboat Show next week for the duration, and we’ll be selling a limited quantity of his book, signed by Yves himself who will be there for you to meet! Which brings us back to today’s episode, which is the first chapter of Yves’ book, narrated by Yves himself. ‘Jean du Sud & the Magick Byrd’ will officially launch as Season 2 of Sailing Stories next Thursday, October 5, Day 1 of the Sailboat Show, and run weekly as usually through it’s completion. The show is free to listeners, but we’re again asking for donations if you like it - go to

#208: As I record this, Isbjorn is stuck in medieval Visby, on the island of Gotland smack in the center of the Baltic. We’ve only made it about 100 miles south of Stockholm, on this our 11th and LAST passage of 2017, due to horrendous weather. Recent guests the Veber family reported gusts over 50 knots in their homeport of Falsterbo, on the Swedish southwest coast about 200 miles from here and on our route. So we’re sitting tight. What follows is a roundtable meeting recorded about 6 weeks ago with Isbjorn’s crew from our PREVIOUS passage, when we were similarly stuck in Marstrand, waiting out a gale. If you want to learn more about offshore weather forecasting, head over to morganscloud.com, where right now there is a series of detailed articles coming out that John Harries & I wrote. -- On the Wind is presented by Weems & Plath, makers of fine nautical & weather instruments since 1928. weems-plath.com. Sail offshore with Andy & Mia on Isbjorn, a Swan 48. Routes & dates at 59-north.com/o

#207. Jake Albano, who’s still in his 20s, is a longtime friend of mine and has been an integral part of sailing Isbjorn and managing the cruising rallies I used to be involved with. I first met Jake at the ARC Europe rally in 2014 when he was sailing aboard Persistent Lady, the dramatic story of which you’ll hear in the episode. Jake then sailed with me as mate on our first ‘test’ trip for our business model on Serenity, a Shannon 43 ketch we were loaned before we bought Isbjorn, and he’s sailed with us since on many occasions. Jake & I recorded this conversation at-sea aboard Isbjorn in the Azores earlier this summer, and we talk about how he got into sailing as a young person, and his tips for other young people on following in his tracks. -- On the Wind is presented by Weems & Plath, makers of fine nautical & weather instruments since 1928. Visit weems-plath.com for their online catalog. -- Sail offshore with Andy & Mia on Isbjorn, their Swan 48. Visit 59-north.com/offshore for the routes

#206. Mia & I met the Veber’s in Horta in the Azores back in may, where the family of four had just completed their return Atlantic crossing in their 30’ “Anna Lisa.” The Veber’s had set out from Sweden the year before towards the Caribbean, and after a winter cruising & exploring the Caribbean, were headed home. We invited the whole gang aboard Isbjorn, including the kids Trulls & Mathilda, where we talked about sailing as a family, leaving home, friends and school, the challenges of living on a small boat peacefully, what it was like to be filmed on the Swedish TV-show ‘Familjer pa Aventyr’ and how they felt about returning home. -- On the Wind is presented by Weems & Plath, makers of fine nautical & weather instruments since 1928. weems-plath.com. -- Come ocean sailing with Andy & Mia aboard the Swan 48 Isbjorn at 59-north.com/offshore.

#205. Bruce Scwab is the first American sailor to complete the legendary Vendee Globe race. Bruce grew up in northern California and started sailing with his dad a young age, eventually working at a rig shop for many years where he honed his as a solo racing sailor, winning the first event he ever entered. Bruce now lives in Maine and specializes in outfitting cruising boats with alternative energy sources and is on the forefront of marine energy technology. I’m running this recycled chat today ahead of another chat I have planned with Bruce in October about the more technical side of outfitting & managing onboard energy systems. Find Bruce online at oceanplanetenergy.com.