So, it begins.
I started sailing as a kid of 6 or 7. In just a decade, my brother and I would be crew on our parent’s boat for a 6-year circumnavigation that would change my life.
For Father’s Day, we bought my father a Jetwind board boat. 
With it, I regularly terrorized the fish in the lake behind our house and had a blast in the process. The skills I learned zipping around in that tiny vessel kindled my life-long love of sailing and boats.
After this little boat, my parents got a slightly bigger, 17′ trailer-able day sailor. We took it to every lake within driving distance from the house. The four of us would stay on that boat and occasionally invite an extended family member if they were crazy enough to agree to squeeze into that tiny boat with the rest of us.
The Boats Begin to Grow with our Plans
The next boat was a Hunter 20′, then a Hunter 25′ and finally a Hunter 30′. We kept these boats at Grand Rivers Marina on Kentucky Lake. We met great people there. That helped solidify our love of sailing and laid the foundation for our future sailing adventures.
After a year or two with the 30′ Hunter, I remember mom and dad calling a family meeting where they asked my brother and I if we would like to live on a large sailboat and travel the world in it. This could not have been better timing. I had awful environmental allergies and the doctor had always said the best thing for me would be out on the water. On top of that, our school system was changing the district. This meant that I would be going to a school few of the kids I knew would be attending. Comparing the idea of life on the high seas to the prospect of being a sick, lonely kid the following year was a no-brainer. Sign me up!
The Circumnavigation: Delilah
We chartered an Endeavor in Florida with some of our Kentucky Lake friends one summer. Apart from that we did not have any real sailing experience and no ocean experience at all. Dad had read tons of sailing books and how-to cruising books and was ready to make the big jump. They decided to sell his business, the house, the cars, give the dogs away, and down-size all of our worldly possessions to begin our circumnavigation.
After making lists and looking at quite a few boats, they settled on a Hans Christian 43′. She was a staysail ketch. A beautiful boat and on his shortlist, if not at the very top. The owner’s wife gave the owner an ultimatum, “her or the boat.” We got there just in time to solve his dilemma. He was glad to have her move on to a family that was going to use her as she was intended and travel the world with her. He even helped us move the boat to St. Augustine where we outfitted her for extended cruising.
That boat took us around the world. Very few teenagers experience a circumnavigation and I am one of the lucky ones that got to live that amazing adventure. We took 6 years and visited 47 countries and sailed approximately 50,000 miles on our 43′ Hans Christian “Delilah”. My life has not been the same since.
Begin Your Own Sailing Adventure
If you are looking for a bluewater cruising boat to start your sailing adventure, I am happy to consult as your buyer’s broker. As a circumnavigator, I am in a unique position to offer advice on the best options for your cruising needs – whether your plans are to coastal cruise and island hop or take your boat halfway around the world.