This book has been a fairly reasonable undertaking and it would not have been possible without the help and encouragement of the editors at Nomad Press. Many thanks to Alex Kahan for agreeing that this was a worthwhile project and encouraging me to go ahead with it. Thanks to Susan Hale and Lauri Berkcnkamp at Nomad who patiently prodded me to make sure that the book got completed when more amusing exploits like sailing and skydiving had me distracted. And Jeff McAllister who did a terrific job laying out the book in an immensely readable fashion. Also thanks to the “nagger,” Adam Cort, whose diligence as an editor made this a far better
book than I could ever have hoped to write on my own. Mostly, however, I would like to thank my crewmates who sailed with me over the years and whose knowledge and expertise are contained in these pages, especially those who thought enough of what I had written to give the book their resounding endorsement. It’s gratifying to be acknowledged by your peers.