EDITOR’S LETTER
Saying yes to a road trip opened our editor’s eyes to what’s possible if you follow your passion, leading him to a career in yachting.
It was a random friday when my friend phil called with an interesting offer: “Hey, want to drive cross-country with me to Austin, Texas, on Sunday and go to the South by Southwest music festival?” I was in my early 20s, out of college and working as a teacher in New York. I had the time off, and up until that point of my life, I hadn’t traveled much. The farthest west I’d ever been was Tampa, Florida, when I was 10 years old. ¶ Within 48 hours, we had rented a way-too-small Pontiac Sunfire, packed it to the gills, tossed every map we could find in the back seat and headed west. And a little south. And then west again. We meandered and explored along the route, stopping in Memphis, Tennessee; Hope, Arkansas; and Dallas, Texas, to name a few. I absorbed the experience like a sponge, even as I spent the week living under a card table in a friend of a friend’s hotel room on a rolled-up jacket. ¶ That trip—that escape from the everyday—changed the trajectory of my career. My life. At a Golden Smog show, I met an editor from Details magazine who was covering the event. She made a living traveling around the globe, writing about music. “What a gig,” I thought.
As 2020 comes to a close, it’s time to plan for better days ahead. Yachting is here to help. Say yes to an invitation. Go cruising.
¶ Within a year, I was a newspaper reporter. Then, an editor at a trade magazine. And so on. Looking back 25-plus years later, saying yes to that trip led to a life of traveling the world, writing about my passion—yachts—and earning my way onto the masthead of this iconic magazine. I’ve had the chance to cruise on waters from Brisbane, Australia, to Amagansett, New York, and all points in between. Europe, Central America and so much more. ¶ In this issue, we look at myriad on-the-water escapes that we hope inspire you to travel too. You’ll meet a couple who left life on land to cruise full time. We look at charters in far-flung locales offering epic adventures. And what’s the best way to get to those yachts safely? Our aviation expert explains private air-travel options ranging from plane ownership and leasing to fractional ownership and charter flights. In addition, bareboating is one way that many yachtsmen are introduced to cruising, so you’ll find the 411 on boat options, best locations and more. ¶ As 2020 comes to a close, it’s time to plan for the better days ahead. Yachting is here to help. Say yes to an invitation. Go cruising. Change your latitude. Because when you do, it’ll make your day. And who knows? It could change your life.