I began sailing as a child on small lakes in Michigan mostly on our family Sailfish and Snipe.  My father’s sense of adventure and love for all things water permeated our upbringing.  Growing up with four brothers gave me courage.  I had to keep up with them or miss out on all the fun.  From May to September, we spent our waking hours in the water or on boats.

I moved away from the water when I headed off to college in upstate New York, but came back to sailing in 1997 when one of my brothers bought an Ericson 46.  She was a classic racing boat from the 1970s and he was anxious to see what she could do.  He reunited the family as his crew and for five years we raced together on the Great Lakes, including the BayView Mackinac Race.  I began as bilge rat and worked my way up to mainsail trim and helm.  We often spent the week after the Mackinac Race cruising the North Channel, where I learned the basics of navigation.

It soon became clear that the only way I was going to get good at racing was to buy my own boat. So, in 1998 I became the owner of Morning Mist, a pampered Catalina 25 that gave me years of joy and experience. We sailed the first two years on the Susquehanna River then moved her to Annapolis and explored the Chesapeake Bay.  We enjoyed many three-day weekend cruises and at least one week long cruise every year.  

During that time, I began to informally teach friends how to sail, first on my boat, then on their boats.  Since I enjoyed teaching so much, my friends encouraged me to become certified. In 2007, we developed an All Women’s Basic Sailing course and offer the class one weekend each month.  It is so rewarding to see women develop their confidence and comfort on the water.

In 2007, I received my USCG Captain’s License OUPV and ASA instructor.  I have traveled to the Virgin Islands for three seasons to serve as Captain on charter boats and to teach.  In 2006, I traveled to New Zealand for a sabbatical in March and April and, while there, enrolled in a Royal Yachting Association Coastal Skippering Course on the Hauraki Gulf.  The first three days of the course were in a cyclone, and I re-discovered that courage I had learned so many years ago as I child.   

In my other life, I am a folklorist and I love combining an understanding of the culture and folklore of the sea with the skills to sail it.