Captain Ryan and I met a few years ago on a sailing trip on S/V Libra from Pensacola to the Miami Boat Show. It was an awesome trip. I learned a whole lot about offshore sailing and I hope that I helped Ryan book a few more trips on Libra at the Miami Boat show. Ryan had done a Sail Loot Podcast with me a few weeks prior to our trip across the Gulf of Mexico. In typical Sail Loot form, you can learn all about how Captain Ryan got into sailing and out from behind a computer job at Delta. We also discuss his sailboats, businesses, and other sailing financials. I was able to catch up with Ryan a ..read more

The financial “movement” being dubbed FIRE – Financial Independence Retire Early – was an acronym that was unknown to Mark, Jennifer, and yes, even budding financial zealots such as myself. Somehow, over the last few years, we’ve all seemed to use some of the FIRE principles even though we didn’t know what they were. Mark and Jennifer have been preparing for a post-cubicle life of traveling for some time. While Mark was stationed overseas for work they figured out that they really didn’t need all of the STUFF that they had accumulated to live a happy life. When they got raises, they figured ou ..read more

Rich and Devon’s sailing story started the way most crazy sailing stories start…intoxication. The good news is that Rich didn’t want a divorce. He didn’t want to have a third child. He just wanted to quit his job and sail around the world!!! Luckily, so did Devon. Rich and Devon finished their dinner, drinks, and lovely family vacation in Hawaii. Upon returning home the research and preparations for their life on the water began. Eventually, they found S/V Mobert and started downsizing. They’ve now been on the water full time for a little over a year and decided that they wanted to try to have ..read more

August of 2017 on S/V Asante started with a two-day sail from Fort Lauderdale, FL to Hilton Head, SC. Included in the preparations to sail North were provisions, alternator rebuild costs, diesel fuel, and travel and transportation expenses. August of 2017 was also the first month that I had to pay for dockage at Shelter Cove Marina. August was still my cheapest month of cruising costs – okay, let’s call them sailing costs, errrrr, boating costs? –  since purchasing S/V Asante.  I also talk a little more about batteries and my battery bank. There were a few corrections that I needed t ..read more

I learned a lot about boating in the month of July 2017. A few snafus taught me what not to do again. A few victories taught me what to do again. Everything taught me that I really just want to be at/on Asante as much as possible. Some boat owners hire people to clean and maintain their boats while they’re away. Not this guy. I return to Asante after being gone for 3-4 weeks and not only are the planned projects waiting for me but so are the ones that pop up because she is sitting there alone for so long. Had I been on Asante when the power cables got stuck under the piling protective fenders ..read more

Yes, it’s a little bit later in the day than last Friday, but I did get this podcast released 1 week after Episode 058! I love it when I hit a deadline that I tell the world about. (This might actually be a first for Sail Loot). I don’t think that I thanked enough people in the episode so I am going to thank them here. I would’ve spent a lot more money in the month of June if it weren’t for Bob Ross of Leopard Catamarans and the Hammonds. These kind people offered me free dockage for S/V Asante for an evening and a few months, respectively. Gene and Kat always hold a special place in my h ..read more

My need to gather equipment was immediate. I decided that my best option was to sail S/V Asante approximately 1300 miles across the North Atlantic Ocean for 7 to 10 days and that I would start this trip 2.5 days after the purchase was final. This decision was made only 2.5 weeks prior to the agreed upon purchase date and 3 weeks prior to crossing an ocean. This is not enough time to scour for deals on EPIRBs, flares, radar reflectors, a Garmin InReach Explorer+, charts, binoculars, self-inflating offshore life vests, harnesses, jack lines, and all of the other equipment necessary for an offsho ..read more

I had the honor of meeting Jeremiah and Brittany at the Strictly Sail Miami Boat show almost a year ago. By the way, I plan on attending again this year (2018). If you happen to live in the area and have a couch that you don’t mind this sailor/podcaster crashing on for a long weekend… We looked at boats, took shots at Hooters, and enjoyed our respective time in Miami. Finally, we were able to sit down for a chat this past November. Finally, I’m releasing that chat as a Sail Loot Podcast. The Lazy Geckos story starts with the familiar desire to get out from behind a desk, yet, they also didn’t ..read more

I met Jesse and Stacey from S/V Smitty in November of 2016. They’re long time listeners to the Sail Loot Podcast and we had sent a few emails back and forth to each other before I went on a charter vacation in the BVI. Jesse and Stacey live on S/V Smitty, their 2001 Catalina 310. S/V Smitty is on a mooring in Bay de Grigri between the island of St. Thomas and Water Island. I stayed in St. Thomas for one night to meet up with my 3 other friends that were joining me for a week of charter sailing in the BVI. As soon as we got our gear situated in the Windward Passage we walked down to the Greenho ..read more

A normal episode of the Sail Loot Podcast contains tips, advice, and stories about how others have been able to make a living on the water. This episode contains none of that. This episode is purely to raise awareness about the impact of hurricanes this season on the Caribbean islands. Peter had to get his wife, Jody, and his 3-month old, Brig, off of Tortola and out of the Caribbean by any means possible, but he had to stay on the island to secure his floating home, S/V Mary Christine. All souls that remained in the islands were hoping that they eye of hurricane Irma would shift to the North ..read more