Women on the Water

I first met Katie when she worked at Sail Newport and I was on the board, in the early 2000s. We spoke on the deck at Ida Lewis Yacht Club. Coop: Katie, thanks for coming out. KB: Hi Coop, thanks for asking me. Coop: Are you a Newport native? KB: I grew up in Narragansett, so not a native Newporter but Rhode Island born and raised. I went to Florida for college, at Rollins College. After that…

Jessy Nees washed into Newport about a year ago and is a service and production technician at Quantum Sails Newport. We met at her favorite café in Bristol. Coop: Hi, Jess. Thanks for the lead on Borealis…nice place. JN: Thanks for the invite. Coop: Where are you from, and was sailing a “thing” when you were a kid? JN: I grew up in Port Washington, New York, and yes. My dad purchased a Sabre 30 when I…

My longtime friend Phyllis Detwiler is a Training Captain with In-Command Seamanship Training, a US Sailing certified Safe Powerboat Handling Instructor, and an instructor at Sail Newport who relishes teaching Pell Program 4th graders about maritime life and Newport, Rhode Island history. Part 1 of our conversation can be found at https://www.windcheckmagazine.com/article/phyllis-detwiler/. Coop: Phyllis, we left you with the seagoing SUV at Hyannis YC, doing race committee and helping with the Optis. In previous chats with you,…

My longtime friend Phyllis Detwiler is a Training Captain with In-Command Seamanship Training, a US Sailing certified Safe Powerboat Handling Instructor, and an instructor at Sail Newport who relishes teaching Pell Program 4th graders about maritime life and Newport, Rhode Island history. Coop: Phyllis, Hi and thanks for coming out. PD: Well Coop, thanks for having me. Coop: So, name rank and serial number: Who are you, where do you come from, and what’s yer story, girl?…

Editor’s note: This is the second part of Coop’s conversation with Ellie, a rising star in the doublehanded offshore racing world. Sailing with her father on their Jeanneau Sun Fast 3330, she was named Sailor of the Year at the 2022 British Yachting Awards. Part 1 is at windcheckmagazine.com.     Coop: Ellie, we left you with the RORC doing their Butch and Sundance imitation: “Who are you guys?” …and you guys trying to park the boat….

Voted Sailor of the Year at the 2022 British Yachting Awards, Ellie was in town to speak at a seminar hosted by North Sails and Bluenose Yacht Sales, local dealer for the Jeanneau Sun Fast 3300. Ken Read and a variety of crews have been sailing one of these in the DH scene around Newport the past couple of years. Ellie and her dad sail one, very successfully, in the UK.     Coop: Ellie, welcome to…

Part Four: “You’re all going to die!” Tracy Edwards, MBE was the first (and until the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15, the only) skipper to muster an all-women crew and compete in the then named Whitbread Round the World Race. I spoke with Tracy aboard the same yacht, the refit Maiden, at Safe Harbor Newport Shipyard in Newport, Rhode Island. This is the final installment of an amazing conversation. Parts One, Two and Three can be found at…

Part Three: “I have a dream.” Tracy Edwards, MBE was the first (and until the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15, the only) skipper to muster an all-women crew and compete in the then named Whitbread Round the World Race. I spoke with Tracy aboard the same yacht, the refit Maiden, at Safe Harbor Newport Shipyard in Newport, Rhode Island. (Part One of our conversation can be found at windcheckmagazine.com.) Coop: You had just come ashore after three weeks…

Tracy Edwards, MBE was the first (and until the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15, the only) skipper to muster an all-women crew and compete in the then named Whitbread Round the World Race. I spoke with Tracy aboard the same yacht, the refit Maiden, at Safe Harbor Newport Shipyard in Newport, Rhode Island. (Part One of our conversation can be found at https://www.windcheckmagazine.com/article/women-on-the-water-tracy-edwards/.) My brother, a career journalist, once remarked about interviewing: Know when to shut up and…

Tracy Edwards, MBE was the first (and until the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15, the only) skipper to muster an all-women crew and compete in the then named Whitbread Round the World Race. I spoke with Tracy aboard the same yacht, the refit Maiden, at Safe Harbor Newport Shipyard in Newport, Rhode Island. Coop: Tracy, do I call you Dame? (and I almost uttered “Ellen”…OOPS!) TE: No, not a Dame. Coop: The Maiden story, “Tracy and the girls…