I have been messing around in boats all my life, something about my mother water skiing at eight months pregnant with me they say caused “water on the brain”. My family has raced and cruised locally on the Great Lakes in a variety of boats for over 30 years. College racing at the University of Wisconsin, and multiple trips south in the winter to race have rounded out the adventure. Solo sailing began in high school when I would run out of patience waiting for friends to show up to sail on the few warm days we would get on Lake Superior. This led to local solo day races and eventually the Great Lakes Singlehanded Society’s Races on Lakes Huron, Michigan and Superior.

I work in large full service marina managing the service staff and repair/refit projects. While outfitting the boat to get ready for this event is a normal days work, just like everyone else, I struggle with finding the time to get it all done and pulling together the details! I want to thank my wife Sarah for the enthusiasm, my father Nelson for all the help and the lists, my mom Margaret for the sails, Justin for the endless hours of help, and the rest of the crew for all their help and support.