Our crew consists of 4 guys:

The crew

Marek, Mike, Scott and John

  • Scott – a sailor, the captain, and s/v Dawn Treader O’Day 34′ owner
  • John – a sailor and s/v Marylee O’Day 40′ sailboat owner
  • Mike – a longtime friend, and since he hasn’t filled out his bio – the guy who will go up the mast if the need arises during the Trip
  • Marek – a sailor, The Big Sail Blog admin, and owner (hey, I’ve got to own something …)

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Scott’s Story:

My sailing experiences started when I was about 8 or 9 years old on a lake near Minneapolis, MN. My uncle had a 16 or 20 foot scow, and I still remember the feeling I got when the boat heeled and the spray came over us! Throughout my teen years, I had many opportunities to practice my sailing skills on various Sunfishes, sailboards and other wind driven conveyances.

A few years later I had married, and Dianne and I had moved into our own house, when one day our neighbor brought home a nearly derilect C-Scow which he aptly named Death Boat. Among it’s better features were the fact that it floated, and it had a baggy sail commensurate with it’s age, so that getting it to heel to the point of tipping wasn’t a problem. Our neighbor also crewed on a Schock New York 36 that raced out of Chicago, and on a few occasions, when they were very desperate for crew, I would be invited to “help”. Although my activities were limited to turning a winch, sitting on the rail, and guarding the boat at night, these experiences were what kindled a love for the water and a passion for sailing. Unfortunately, shortly after convincing me sailing was really cool, my neighbor took up rock climbing, sold the Death Boat, and quit racing. I had lost my ticket!

In the meantime, my wife and I started a family that grew to include three daughters, and sailing was forgotten as scuba diving, biking, and golf occupied my free time.

Then, for our 20th anniversary, Dianne and I took a vacation to St. Thomas. Although I spent most of my time gazing adoringly at my wife, I couldn’t help noticing the sailboats. Hundreds and hundreds of sailboats – in every post card bay – some anchored in water so clear they appeared to hover above the white sand bottom, others gliding effortlessly over gentle swells propelled by silent breezes. It was then an ember was rekindled, and I began to yearn to be sailing again.

So, Dianne (who is a hopeless romantic) and I are together in paradise for 10 days. No kids. No cooking. No dishes. No laundry. Private villa. Strolling white sand beaches, hand in hand while the warm surf laps at our feet. Candle lit dinners for two at secluded tables in expensive restaurants. Sleeping until we had to decide if we should eat a really late breakfast or just get lunch a little early. All the stuff hopeless romantics dream about – against that backdrop how hard could it be to convince her we should have a sailboat? Piece of cake, as it turns out! What might not be so easy is explaining that OUR boat isn’t going to look like all those glistening hulled 70 foot Hinkleys with paid crew, maintained by other paid crew, that probably cost more to keep per week than a year’s worth of property taxes on our humble abode. So after a little reality check, I decided a practical approach was in order. Recognizing the fact that boats are not something to buy as an investment (at least not a monetary one) I decided perhaps it would be best to start at the other end of the spectrum – something we could use to see if the rest of the family was as enamored with the idea as I was. Boat 101 if you will.

It took 3 months, but I found the perfect starter boat – a Barnett 1400. The Barnett is like a simpler version of a Laser, and my 3 girls and I spent a summer sailing it on inland lakes, and in the Milwaukee Harbor. One of my daughters and I even sailed it from Oak Creek up to Milwaukee, about 13 miles.

Our experience with the Barnett convinced us that we all liked sailing enough to take the plunge into a bigger boat. Thus began months of online research, and lots of looking at different boats. After just missing a great deal on an Oday 25, we decided that was the model we preferred and limited our search to finding the right one. In the fall of that year, we found the one we wanted in Northern Wisconsin. A deal was struck, and we pulled Hejira home and parked her on her trailer in the back yard. I erected a towering structure with a tarp to cover her (to the consternation of the neighbors, I suspect – and I only say that because the first thing they asked, rather alarmedly, when I said we got a 34 was “where are you going to keep it?”) so I could work on her over the winter, and over the next few months we replaced all the standing and running rigging, and basically spruced her up stem to stern for summer. We sailed her several hundred miles on Lake Michigan, and spent many weekends and overnights on her. It was on the return from one particular weekend when Dianne uttered the magic words “it sure would be nice to have a little more room”. And so began again the hours of online research, and lots of looking at boats all over again.

The story of how we ended up with Dawn Treader, an Oday 34, after we started out looking at 30 foot boats is another story. In the course of a couple months last winter, we sold Hejira to a couple from Wyoming, (delivering her to them in LaCrosse, Wisconsin on a 6 degree December day with -20 windchill) and bought Dawn Treader 400 miles away near Detroit Michigan. The first few months of this year have been taken up with trips to Michigan to get her ready and planning for the Trip home. We look forward to this summer and many more sailing with friends!

John’s story:
Read John’s story on his sailing blog.

Mary, John does not stop talking about you… he even kisses the air when he mentions your name…


John to Mary

Marek’s sailing story…

Where did it all begin? Well… as all good stories go, a long time ago… when I was a kid my father took me to a sailing camp and left me there for 3 weeks. There I began to learn the skill of sailing, using small sailboats. There I also fell in love with the wonderful adventure of sailing. There is just something special about the full sail, the wind, the water, the waves and the feeling of peacefulness and quiet all around, while you are under the sail, sailing. I was 13 years old then, and every year I went to a sailing camp. My passion for sailing grew every year and I was blessed with many sailing opportunities. I spare you from talking any more about it here.

Two years ago I caught “the sailboat bug” and set out to find and buy a small sailboat so that I could exercise my sailing passion right here on Lake Michigan in Milwaukee, WI. I shared this “bug” with my buddy Scott who already had been suffering from the same bug for a while. We both looked at some boats but nothing materialized for me… For Scott on the other hand did. Scott bought a nice 25′ O’Day in the fall of 2004. I am sure he can share more about it later.