On Watch

As President and CEO of the New England Science & Sailing Foundation (NESS) in Stonington, Connecticut, Michael “Spike” Lobdell has the helm of a remarkable non-profit ocean adventure organization founded with the goal of building brighter futures. He’s also one of the nicest guys in sailing. “I grew up in Rumson, New Jersey and started sailing when I was seven years old,” says Spike, who lives on Mason’s Island in Mystic. The boat of choice for learning back then…

Readers of this magazine will recognize John K. Fulweiler, Jr. as the author of our informative and always entertaining monthly column, “The Boating Barrister.” Recognized by the Maritime Law Association as holding Proctor in Admiralty Law status, John is a licensed U.S. Coast Guard Master, an arbitrator with the Boat Owners Association of the United States (BoatU.S.) Salvage Arbitration Program, an adjunct professor at the Roger Williams Law School, and a published author. He also has the…

“There has never been a time in my life where boats were not part of it,” says Joy Sherman, the owner of Joyride Charters in Westbrook, CT. “I lived in Gales Ferry, CT until I was 8 years old. My father had a boat in the Bahamas, and we lived on her when I was 6 and 7. I did some schooling in the Bahamas, and with lessons sent by mail from my teacher at home there…

Novelist, maritime writer, photographer, artist, drummer and professional mariner Ger Tysk says reading the definitive book on the subject of whaling changed the course of her life. “I was born in the Chicago area and grew up in Texas,” says Ger (whose name is pronounced ‘jair’ like ‘chair’ and ‘tisk’ as in ‘Tsk, tsk’). “I wasn’t exposed to many on-the-water activities while growing up, and certainly not to maritime history. In school in Texas, we learned about…

Prescott Littlefield, Waterfront Programs Manager at the University of Connecticut’s Avery Point Regional Campus in Groton, loves his work. “I grew up in Old Greenwich and started sailing at Riverside Yacht Club at age nine in Sunfish before moving into Blue Jays, then briefly a full-rig Laser (the 4.7 and Radial didn’t exist yet) and finally I420s, which replaced Fireballs,” says Prescott. “The first sailboat I owned was a JY15 that my life partner, Anne, gave me…

Julianna Barbieri and Hugh Piggin had beginnings with a wee taste of similarity, but not for long. Both grew up near the water, and that’s where their similarities ended…’til much later in their lives. Julianna grew up north of Boston on the water, but, she remembers, might have “spent maybe one day in a sailing boat.” Born in New Zealand, Hugh’s life was on a different trajectory, following the arc of many of us antipodeans in that…

Entrepreneur and circumnavigator Meg Reilly left a lucrative Madison Avenue career to race around the world aboard the Clipper 70 Henri Lloyd, and co-founded an international team and network that offers a gateway into offshore sailing and adventure. “I grew up in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, but didn’t start sailing until after I quit my job in advertising to race around the world,” says Meg. “I’d always dreamed of retiring and sailing around the world, but when…

As a leader of the MudRatz Offshore Team, Lindsay Gimple earned a prestigious victory – in the organization’s fledgling season – that most of us would be lucky to achieve in a lifetime. Recently signed on as a mentee with an organization dedicated to accelerating women to the top of sailing, this affable and ambitious sailor is taking flight. “I grew up all around the country,” says Lindsay, who lives in Stonington, CT. “My dad was in…

An enthusiastic sailor from a very young age, AJ Sorensen describes himself as “a serial entrepreneur inventor simplifying life in a complex world.” With a strong affinity for a certain singlehander, AJ is (among many other things!) the Laser Fleet Captain at Cedar Point Yacht Club in Westport, Connecticut, the creator of an excellent Laser website, and the owner of an online sailing gear store specializing in Laser parts and accessories. “I grew up in Easton, Connecticut…

As Program Director with a non-profit organization in Warren, Rhode Island called Eating with the Ecosystem, Kate Masury loves her work. “I grew up in Kittery Point, Maine and spent a lot of time in the summer on an island off the coast near Damariscotta,” says Kate, who lives in Newport. “I’ve been interested in the ocean my whole life. My favorite food from the time I was a toddler has always been lobster, and I spent…