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Jay Friedland



Cowie/GB storm clouds

2019-06-07; 11:30:59 EDT

Member Since

2002-08-24

Posts: 356

My son, Justin, started sailing at 7 on an Optimist in active sail racing, now 33, and took the helm of our R22 standing on the seat. At 10 & beyond, I brought him to a few of  the Atlantic City Boat Shows when I was working Stan’s booth. He, with great enthusiasm, did demos & worked with us pulling the IMF out and furling it in, convincing many on-lookers to consider it even more. He became a fine-tuned sailor on a championship high school sailing team competing nationally in Charleston, SC, and Lake Pontchartrain, LA. 

Now he’s a half-partner with me, originally earning more sailing time proportional to the percent of prep work & maintenance he did each year on our first R22 (Just, You & Me), now our 2nd. Wanderlust, a ’97 vintage gets a very demanding workout, often 800-1,100 nm clocked each year, and in some of the strongest & steadiest winds, on the east coast, even in freezing rain, surfing down large rollers as he posted on our final trip last year. I get afternoon sailing time, during the week, he gets evenings, sunsets and beyond. It is hard to sail together when you have 2 captains, but we always work it out and learning from each other. His sail racing experience has Justin seeing/feeling and adjusting for the next 3 coming wind shifts, which I still can’t fathom.

In any case, a kid and a sailboat is magic wherever it leads.

Chris G., one of my regrets looking back, is the opportunity you offered me to help your son’s boat prepped in Greece. If only... “There is nothing- absolutely nothing- half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats”, unless, of course, you can get your kid involved at any age. Father’s Day is a great time to enjoy it.

Jay Friedland
S/v Wanderlust ‘97



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