On the Wind Sailing

#225. Henrik Engblom is the bosun on the tall ship Pommern, one of the classic Cape Horn clipper ships that sailed out of the Aland Islands in the early 20th century. Aland is a Swedish-speaking but legally Finnish archipelago in the Baltic Sea, about 40 miles northeast of Stockholm, and home to a rich cultural & maritime history. Only in his 20s, Henrik, a native Alander Islander, is already a Master Rigger and in charge of Pommern’s restoration. Mia & I visited the ship back in 2013 when we sailed to Aland on Arcturus. I was excited to be back last summer aboard Isbjorn, when in August Henrik gave me a tour of the ship and talked to me at length about his career. -- Want to work for the podcast? We're hiring! Email andy@59-north.com.

#224 / #173 Recycled. The Reverend Bob Shepton, now 81, got his start shortly after WWII as a climbing instructor in the British Armed Forces, where he used the outdoors to teach leadership & scripture. He didn’t start sailing until much later in life, but got real serious about it real quickly. I sat down with him at the Southampton Boat Show to talk religion, spirituality, his early days as a climber, losing his boat during an Arctic winter, his 15 Atlantic crossings, meeting the Wild Bunch, and the story behind the film series ‘Vertical Sailing Greenland.’ The music in this episode is courtesy of the Wild Bunch. This episode is sponsored by Forbes Horton Yachts. Visit forbesyachts.com. Bob Shepton might not be a household name in the US, but he certainly is in the UK. He was honored as ‘Yachtsman of the Year' in 2014, which may sound irrelevant until you realize the winners in 2013 & 2015 - that would be Sir Ben Ainslie & Sir Robin Knox-Johnston. Good company indeed. Anyway, Bob is one of the most accomplished and yet most humble sailors I’ve ever met. My interview with him was like sitting down with your favorite grandfather and hearing him tell old stories. We could have talked for hours, and Bob seemed to enjoy every second of it. Before you listen to this episode, take five minutes and watch Episode 2 of Vertical Sailing Greenland - you'll find it in the show notes below. That film is what initially inspired me to reach out to Bob, and he tells the behind-the-scenes story of it at length about halfway through our chat.

#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 boat, visit forbesyachts.com - that’s F-O-R-B-E-S. forbesyachts.com. -- On the Wind is also supported by Broadreach and Offshore Passage Opportunities.

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.