Here it is! After acting like a sick little sissy for a week I finally managed to finish up the sailing podcast! Enjoy!

“Amtrekker travels to New York City of all places to learn to sail in the Hudson River courtesy of the Atlantic Yachting Association! In two short days he manages to break sailing and earn his keel boat certification!

“Heaving to”ensues.”

And here’s the YouTube link!

Thanks, Team!

I’m done.

Brett.

If you enjoy the podcasts…why not donate?

Don’t let me stop you.

This week has been absolutely insane. This is the first moment I’ve had to sit down and write and not feel like I have to knock things out and get on to my next activity. INSTEAD, I get to sit tight, feel clean for the first time in a month and toss things around in my own head a bit.

People tell me all that time that life is about the journey not the destination. No place does that seem more true than sailing.

Thanks to the guys over at the Atlantic Yachting Association I spent the last two days going through a course to get my Basic Keel Boating certification. It was an undeniably awesome experience and for a guy that used to live on a boat on the Pacific Ocean (and still never managed to learn to sail…let’s not dwell on that) it was such a bizarre scene to be sailing a boat between skyscrapers on the Hudson River.

Both days started off with VERY light wind and were actually pretty far down the road on their way to Dulltown. That’s when it really hit home that in some cases it’s probably not worth trying to get anywhere while you’re sailing. If you can’t just enjoy the moment those times probably aren’t for you. Lucky for me I have kind of a knack when it comes to enjoying the moment.

On the flip side: After lunch the wind seemed to fill in and make things immeasurably more exciting. This was especially true on day two when things were starting to make more sense and controlling the boat came a little more naturally. A storm started to roll in bringing with it stronger winds and the occasional gust. There’s something exciting about looking straight across the beam (that fancy talk for the middle) of the boat and seeing nothing but water while the wind blows in your face.

I’m kind of in love.

There are only a handful of things that Amtrekker has brought to my attention that I desperately want to continue doing when I finally make it back home. And there’s NO doubt that this is one of them. I can’t imagine how amazing it would be to combine my love of “The First Place State” and the Pacific with something so alternately relaxing and thrilling.

So, thanks again to Miles at the Atlantic Yachting Association and Dave, my instructor/great guy to be out sailing with and hopefully this weeks video will give you guys a better sense of what the adventure was really like. PLUS, you might get to see me break sailing…I picked it up quick but that doesn’t mean I didn’t make my fair share of mistakes.

I’m done.

Brett.

Please?

Don’t let me stop you.