Through the big ditch

AS SEEN IN JULY 2023 SAILING MAGAZINE 

The ups and downs of a transit through the Panama Canal

Of my many madcap boating adventures around the world, transiting the Panama Canal is the one that always elicits the most oohs and aahs. It’s been declared “the epitome of man’s mastery over nature,” and “a mighty symbol of a centuries old dream come true,” by some, but most people just call it a bucket list item.

I’d checked the canal off my bucket list nearly 10 years ago, but that gave me a leg up when friends David and Sheri Normandin were looking for experienced crew for their upcoming passage. It definitely is the kind of experience you would do again and again so I jumped at the chance to revisit the Big Ditch.

READ ABOUT THE WHOLE ADVENTURE HERE

AS SEEN IN ULTIMATE SAILING

WORTH THE WAIT

The pandemic put a lot of things on hold and one of the most significant was the 2020 Olympic Games. Across every nation, the world’s finest athletes were holding their collective breath, waiting for the Games to resume. Along with them: primo photographers Jesús Renedo and Pedro Martinez – working as “Sailing Energy” – official photographers for the 2020 Games!

One of their major, most difficult tasks that year, in fact, was just getting the paperwork completed to enter Japan. Covid had a huge impact on protocol, he added: “The paperwork was crazy and lots of media peers gave up, as it was really complex.”

But Pedro and Jesús persevered. Arriving in Japan, “It was like reaching the summit of a mountaintop! And such a privilege, as many fellow photographers were not able to make it.”

Disembarking to an empty airport was “mind-blowing,” they continued. The country was locked down and in the middle of curfew. “This was our second Olympic Games and it could not have been more different than Rio 2016.”

 FULL ARTICLE

As seen in Sailing Magazine 

RACING THE CHARTER WAY

Spice up a charter by throwing in some competitive fun

Chartering isn’t always about lolling around at anchor in turquoise splendor. For avid racers, bareboat chartering offers a chance to enjoy competition in new and exciting venues, with fresh opponents and an international flair. That’s how we ended up at the Caribbean Multihull Challenge, a relatively new event in the winter racing season, organized by the people who made the Heineken Regatta synonymous with seriously fun racing in paradise.

 FULL ARTICLE