Sailing Questions Answered

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Our Charleston, South Carolina Meet & Greet event last weekend was a fantastic event. We had around 30 people join us to talk about sailing/sailing lifestyle at the Charleston Harbor Resort Reel Bar. There were many interesting sailing questions answered.

Overall, however, what made the event special is that everyone mixed easily and effortlessly.

There was an instant common bond – a love for sailing that sent a great vibe across the group.

It’s great to see people brought together by a common interest. And we had a diverse set of people! Our furthest attendees came from Australia and our closest from just down the street.

Some families are just wait on the sale of their house. Some couples have the boat, have sold the house and are just starting on their voyage. And, of course, there are those that are just getting excited about the prospects of life on the sea.

In an effort to replicate a tiny bit of the event for you, Simon and I recorded a video discussing the most popular questions asked from the event attendees.

At no point throughout the evening did I cross paths with Simon! We mixed and mingled and only later did we have the chance to compare notes on what questions were most popular.

To our surprise, many attendees asked about health insurance.

To date, Simon and I have never come across the topic. It caught us off guard so it was interesting for us to hear our thoughts about it. Some other questions asked were as follows:

What are your future travel plans?
What’s it like to have a child on board? And what’s it like to homeschool?
Is it hard to sail a 56’ sailboat?
Why is your anchor painted yellow? (We gave a tour of the boat to those that wanted to see her).
How have you handled storms?
What do you do with your trash/rubbish on long passages?
What are the most common mistakes you see new sailors make?

Interestingly, I think many attendees came to Charleston not so much for having questions answered, but to discuss personal plans. Many families and couples just wanted to talk about where they are in the process and where they’re going. Some also wanted to feel a part of the liveaboard cruising vibe.

I suppose it’s just like finding any ‘family’ where you feel like you fit.

It’s nice to know that your plans aren’t impossible and they’re not crazy. It’s nice to get validation that you’re doing well. And often a bit of support prompting people to ‘keep going’ goes a long way?

In life we’re all trying to get somewhere and when we don’t know the exact steps or are, perhaps, afraid it’s difficult to know how to get things going. Finding a group of like-minded people to bounce things off of seems to create an exciting energy.

Both Simon and I were honored that so many lovely people came to meet with us and share their plans.

I know I’ve said it many times but the sailing community, or people attracted to those that like the sailing lifestyle, are awesome people.

There’s a sense of strong values – kindness, thoughtfulness, caring, sharing, openness, authenticity, closeness, and a desire to live a less cluttered and more fulfilling life.

As for our seven-year-old daughter, Sienna. She had a bad day. Sienna didn’t want to mix with people. She didn’t want to sell her cookies. I attempted to get her to take the other children for a walk but it just wasn’t working. Instead, she sat on a sofa in the bar and played her iPad. Ho-hum. Not what I wanted but it is what it is.

So…without further ado let me present…