I’ll bore you with a little of my origin story on how I got hooked on sailing and then maybe comment on discovering my first of many YouTube sailing/cruiser channels. I’m confident we share some similarity to our courses, but ultimately our destinations are the same: sharing the more simple life of sailing.
A number of years ago, my sister and her (at the time) fiancé, let’s call him Allen, planned a visit to my home in southern California. I didn’t know a lot about my soon to be brother-in-law but I did know he loved to sail. He had exclusively lake sailed at that time and this gave me the inspiration to learn. I had always wanted to know what it was like out on the sailboats as they passed by watching from the beach. There wasn’t a lot of opportunity to experience either, growing up in Kansas. Now that I had a reason I jumped at the chance to learn to sail my own boat!
After some research, Aventura Sailing Association offered it all in nearby Dana Point Harbor. I even found a Groupon for half priced lessons. After 4 weekends of classroom lectures and group sails I was a new member of the charter club and ready for my first adventure.
I have to admit, I was extremely nervous captaining the first time and probably only survived thanks to Allen. My shaky confidence was no match for a little breeze and a busy channel pulling the 30′ Catalina out of the slip for the first time. Knowing I could rely on his knowledge and experience was the only reason I didn’t turn around after the first paddle boarder streaked across the bow out of no where. Knowing I was supported by a solid crew and couldn’t screw up too bad, made my first time unforgettable. I was also absolutely hooked!
Since then my wife and I charter a boat every couple of months and anytime someone comes to visit. We haven’t taken the big step of buying our own just yet. I’ll touch on that reasoning in another post. I wouldn’t describe me as obsessed but let’s say I’m extremely interested in all things sailing which then led me to discovering all of the amazing YouTube channels.
SV Delos probably wasn’t the first of their kind but Brian and Brady pulled me in and I couldn’t escape. Their adventures and lifestyle sparked a fire that cannot be put out. From there I discovered Adventures of an Old Seadog, Sailing LaVagabonde, Distant Shores, Gone with the Wynns and so many more. All of them spoke to me in different ways and only led me to find more and more great content.
I’m sure we all can agree this past year has been downright insane and probably added a couple years to all of our plans to set sail for good. So in the meantime, I thought why not gather up all the families I’ve been watching for years and make it easier for others to discover. LetsRaftUp was born from the idea of community and sharing. So many of the channels talk about the people they meet all around the world and how hospitable and happy the cruisers are. I promise I will find out for myself someday, but for now let’s just raft up online, pop a beer and enjoy!