Author: Chris Szepessy

The co-founders of the Foundation for Underway Experiential Learning (FUEL), a non-profit organization in Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts, Captain Casey Blum, LCSW and Captain Ian Ridgeway offer young people high-adventure voyages of discovery, reflection and growth aboard a sailing ship. “I grew up in Atlanta, Georgia,” says Casey. “My family vacationed on Cape Cod, and my mom was looking for summer camps that I would enjoy. She heard about weeklong voyages aboard Alabama and Shenandoah on Martha’s Vineyard…

By Beth Fleisher and Celeste Flick, Regatta Co-Chairs     Southold Yacht Club in Southold, NY is hosting the 50th Annual World’s Longest Sunfish Race Around Shelter Island, NY on Saturday, July 10, 2021. This unique nautical marathon is open to single and doubles Sunfish sailors per the event NOR. As the crow flies, the nautical distance around Shelter Island, starting and finishing at Southold Yacht Club, is 21.3 miles. Since crows don’t tack, however, it is…

By Anthony Pozun WindCheck readers will recognize Anthony Pozun as the author of “Against All Odds,” an account of his rescue mission to the Bahamas after Hurricane Dorian in 2019. This yet-to-be-completed saga aboard his Catalina 400 Mark II Mystical Paradise, in which Tony was delayed by a series of breakdowns and quarantines, can be found at windcheckmagazine.com/article/against-all-odds/ and windcheckmagazine.com/article/against-all-odds-part-2/ Tony’s first book, Doing the Ditch is a compilation of several trips he’s made along the Intracoastal Waterway, a…

By Kenneth R. Martin Published by Jackson A. Parker and distributed by Tilbury House Publishers, 216 pages hardcover $60 In the waning days of the Golden Age of Sail after the American Civil War, steamships were taking more and more trade away from sailing cargo ships. Although the writing on the wall was clear, a small number of builders in Bath, Maine, the “City of Ships,” persisted in building and launching wooden schooners, enlarging and modifying them…

By Shelley Brown, Director of Sailors for the Sea Powered by Oceana   Beneath your hull is an underwater world full of beautiful, crucial ecosystems, including seagrass meadows. Generally growing in shallow coastal waterways, seagrasses are found across the globe from the tropics to the Arctic. Healthy seagrass beds have a wide range of positive impacts for our waterways. The dense underwater meadows provide spawning and nursery habitats, areas of refuge, and feeding grounds for many fish and invertebrates. Marine animals, including green sea turtles and manatees, rely on seagrass for food and sustenance….

Restoring Fish Passage on the Naugatuck River By Karina Krul, Save the Sound Member Communications Specialist   Despite millions of dollars invested in restoration efforts, the Naugatuck River in western Connecticut remains mostly inaccessible to downstream native and migratory fish species. The Kinneytown Dam, as the first geographic barrier to migratory fish along the river, is negating several large-scale habitat improvement efforts made upstream, including a $6.3M investment in a bypass in Seymour, and rendering 32 miles…

By Mia Certic, Executive Director, Montauk Historical Society Since 1796, the Montauk Lighthouse on New York’s easternmost point has been lighting the way to safety for mariners — from whaling ships and steamers to submarines to fishing and sailing vessels. Its beacon flashes every five seconds and is visible from a distance of 19 nautical miles. A noted landmark for both local residents and visitors from across the globe — typically 100,000 people cross its threshold every…

Described by Essence Magazine as a “Fierce Entrepreneur,”Ayme Sinclair (aymesinclair.com) is the CEO and founder of a leading communications agency called Sinclair Social. She is Vice President of the National Women’s Sailing Association, CEO of the largest online community of female sailors, and founder of an online community celebrating cultural diversity on the water. Ayme holds a MA. in Graphic Communication Management from New York University and B.A and a B.S. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State…

By Whitney and Ted McCarthy Editor’s note: This is the third article in a series we’re publishing throughout 2021, showcasing iconic Herreshoff fleets and their owners as important stewards of Herreshoff boats, originals and replicas alike. Our friends at the Herreshoff Marine Museum in Bristol, RI are celebrating their Golden Jubilee year – the 50th anniversary of the museum’s founding, and WindCheck is honored to be the official Jubilee Media Partner. The Herreshoff Marine Museum is located on the…

Our friends at the Salty Dawg Sailing Association have announced their 2021 Rally Schedule. Each of the rallies listed here is an opportunity for sailors to cruise in company, with the safety, camaraderie, and passage-preparation assistance that a rally can provide. “Registration is open for the East Coast Rally (from the Caribbean to the U.S.), and you can register right through our website at saltydawgsailing.org,” said SDSA Rally Director Sheldon Stuchell. “Registration for the other rallies and events will…