So - if you've been wondering how the 9 people on Team String Theory came to be a team, the story goes something like this. The genesis of the team was formed for the 2010 Vic-Maui. Island Cruising, the company through which Don and Maggie charter out their sailboat, were looking to organize a race team for the Vic-Maui and use the event as a marketing opportunity. They had planned on providing the sailboat and the skipper and sell spots for the race crew. However, due to lack of interest, Island Cruising canceled their
plans.
Losing the Island Cruising entry was disappointing news to the Vic-Maui race organizers as there were only nine entries for the race that year and it was also problematic for Don, Tim and Les who had already put a deposit down and were still interested in going. Warren Hale (Hale), the owner of Turicum, was on the Vic-Maui race committee that year and offered to make his boat available for charter. Hale asked Gunnar to be the skipper. With that request, Gunnar, Don, Tim and Les - none of whom knew each other prior to the 2010 race, were the first four of the current nine, to do a Vic Maui together (2010).
Christof Marti, who had a co-operative business relationship with Hale for their respective sailing schools, was connected to the team through Hale and was to be part of the 2010 crew but had to back out for both personal and business reasons. Back for 2012, Christof and Gunnar looked into purchasing a racing sailboat and in doing so Gunnar knew that John was also looking to purchase a sailboat. Although John was primarily looking for a pleasure vessel, with some arm twisting, I'm told, he was willing to consider the potential of its use in the Vic-Maui. When a suitable boat at a reasonable price could not be found, Gunnar, Don, Christof, and John
decided to charter Turicum again. Dave was to be a member of the Turicum return crew for the 2012 Vic-Maui but was asked to join the race team instead (Dave still did the return with Turicum). This is how John and Dave
came to be part of the nine.
For the 2014 Vic-Maui, John, Gunnar, Don, Dave, Tim, and Les were looking for 4 additional crew members. Jeff, who had advertised his skills on the Vic-Maui crew bank list, met John at a Vic-Maui reception the week before
the Around the County race. When a String Theory crew member couldn't make it to the race at the last minute, John called Jeff, met him in Annacortes at 6:00 am race day morning. And with that, instead of joining Team Turicum, Jeff joined Team String Theory. Mike was recommended to John by Dave Sutcliffe, skipper of Kinetic. Richard, who was told of the opportunity to become a member of the return crew for String Theory by Christof, was asked to join the race team instead. Unfortunately the 10th String Theory crew member had to drop out because of personal reasons. Because a good fit for a Vic-Maui team is hard one to find, John decided not to try to find a replacement.
And that's the story of how Team String Theory became a team for the 2014 Vic Maui.
Signed: Banging About Never Any Nanosecond Break Really Exasperates and Drains
Marie Mortimer, Co-0wner of String Theory fills out the story details in her blog below:
Prior to 2012 Vic-Maui, John and Marie were contemplating buying a sailboat. Marie was dead set against buying a race boat, and was only interested in a cruising boat. While in Victoria, just prior to the 2012 Vic-Maui, Marie went onboard "Double Take", a J-145. for a tour given by Brad Baker of Swiftsure Yachts (he was navigator extraordinaire on Double Take for Vic-Maui 2012). It was love at first sight...with Double Take, not Brad...lol!
The die was cast, and following Vic-Maui 2012, Marie and John began in earnest to search for the perfect boat. Unable to afford Double Take, which Marie would still love to buy if the lottery comes up, the search was on for something that suited both racing and cruising. To cut a long story short, after much searching, Marie and John found their perfect boat....at of all places, Swiftsure Yachts, with Brad Baker! She was a Beneteau First 47.7...originally named "Lilly". When John and Marie first saw "Lilly"....she was a beauty, and they fell in love all over again. After much toing and froing, she finally became theirs in December 2012, and they moved her from Seattle, her first home, to Vancouver where she now resides...(most of the time when she's not sailing across the Pacific).
Her maiden voyage from Seattle to her new home in Vancouver is the stuff of legends...in 50-60 knots of wind, she proved her stuff (and so did her new owner/skipper John, his good friend and mentor/also navigator extraordinaire, Gunnar, and good friend and past Vic-Maui brother...Terry-Vic-Maui 2012). "Lilly" eventually became renamed as "String Theory", and that's yet another boat story.
On New Years Eve 2012, while spending time on their new boat with friends and co-conspirators.....Gunnar, Ede, Dave("Mastman" Vic-Maui 2012/2014), and Brenda, the plan was hatched for a potential Vic-Maui 2014....Marie and John were so excited to be planning this with such a great group of people.....little did they know what they were getting into! You have pretty much laid-out how the crew came to be...but even here, there are many more stories to tell, such are the ups and downs of the planning process. It is here, that I have to mention one very important person, who is a great driving force behind the Vic-Maui Race as a whole, and who at the beginning of this incredible journey, gave willingly and generously of his time to us as boat owners and potential Vic-Maui entrants, and by extension to our team as a whole....David Sutcliffe. This man is amazing not only for his energy and drive, but for his generosity and great sportsmanship...Thanks Dave for coming aboard String Theory, and showing us how it should be done!
Anyhow, after much blood, sweat, and tears over the last year, we are finally in it...going for broke west of the rhumbline...threading the needle between two highs....we are either going to be first place heros, or dead last...either way we will be happy for it is the journey that is the most important
"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though
checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy
nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor
defeat"....Theodore Roosevelt
See you in Maui dear friends and co-conspirators, and I look forward to the return trip with Christof (Vic-Maui 2012 /Simply Sailing), and many more stories to tell in my old age!
plans.
Losing the Island Cruising entry was disappointing news to the Vic-Maui race organizers as there were only nine entries for the race that year and it was also problematic for Don, Tim and Les who had already put a deposit down and were still interested in going. Warren Hale (Hale), the owner of Turicum, was on the Vic-Maui race committee that year and offered to make his boat available for charter. Hale asked Gunnar to be the skipper. With that request, Gunnar, Don, Tim and Les - none of whom knew each other prior to the 2010 race, were the first four of the current nine, to do a Vic Maui together (2010).
Christof Marti, who had a co-operative business relationship with Hale for their respective sailing schools, was connected to the team through Hale and was to be part of the 2010 crew but had to back out for both personal and business reasons. Back for 2012, Christof and Gunnar looked into purchasing a racing sailboat and in doing so Gunnar knew that John was also looking to purchase a sailboat. Although John was primarily looking for a pleasure vessel, with some arm twisting, I'm told, he was willing to consider the potential of its use in the Vic-Maui. When a suitable boat at a reasonable price could not be found, Gunnar, Don, Christof, and John
decided to charter Turicum again. Dave was to be a member of the Turicum return crew for the 2012 Vic-Maui but was asked to join the race team instead (Dave still did the return with Turicum). This is how John and Dave
came to be part of the nine.
For the 2014 Vic-Maui, John, Gunnar, Don, Dave, Tim, and Les were looking for 4 additional crew members. Jeff, who had advertised his skills on the Vic-Maui crew bank list, met John at a Vic-Maui reception the week before
the Around the County race. When a String Theory crew member couldn't make it to the race at the last minute, John called Jeff, met him in Annacortes at 6:00 am race day morning. And with that, instead of joining Team Turicum, Jeff joined Team String Theory. Mike was recommended to John by Dave Sutcliffe, skipper of Kinetic. Richard, who was told of the opportunity to become a member of the return crew for String Theory by Christof, was asked to join the race team instead. Unfortunately the 10th String Theory crew member had to drop out because of personal reasons. Because a good fit for a Vic-Maui team is hard one to find, John decided not to try to find a replacement.
And that's the story of how Team String Theory became a team for the 2014 Vic Maui.
Signed: Banging About Never Any Nanosecond Break Really Exasperates and Drains
Marie Mortimer, Co-0wner of String Theory fills out the story details in her blog below:
Prior to 2012 Vic-Maui, John and Marie were contemplating buying a sailboat. Marie was dead set against buying a race boat, and was only interested in a cruising boat. While in Victoria, just prior to the 2012 Vic-Maui, Marie went onboard "Double Take", a J-145. for a tour given by Brad Baker of Swiftsure Yachts (he was navigator extraordinaire on Double Take for Vic-Maui 2012). It was love at first sight...with Double Take, not Brad...lol!
The die was cast, and following Vic-Maui 2012, Marie and John began in earnest to search for the perfect boat. Unable to afford Double Take, which Marie would still love to buy if the lottery comes up, the search was on for something that suited both racing and cruising. To cut a long story short, after much searching, Marie and John found their perfect boat....at of all places, Swiftsure Yachts, with Brad Baker! She was a Beneteau First 47.7...originally named "Lilly". When John and Marie first saw "Lilly"....she was a beauty, and they fell in love all over again. After much toing and froing, she finally became theirs in December 2012, and they moved her from Seattle, her first home, to Vancouver where she now resides...(most of the time when she's not sailing across the Pacific).
Her maiden voyage from Seattle to her new home in Vancouver is the stuff of legends...in 50-60 knots of wind, she proved her stuff (and so did her new owner/skipper John, his good friend and mentor/also navigator extraordinaire, Gunnar, and good friend and past Vic-Maui brother...Terry-Vic-Maui 2012). "Lilly" eventually became renamed as "String Theory", and that's yet another boat story.
On New Years Eve 2012, while spending time on their new boat with friends and co-conspirators.....Gunnar, Ede, Dave("Mastman" Vic-Maui 2012/2014), and Brenda, the plan was hatched for a potential Vic-Maui 2014....Marie and John were so excited to be planning this with such a great group of people.....little did they know what they were getting into! You have pretty much laid-out how the crew came to be...but even here, there are many more stories to tell, such are the ups and downs of the planning process. It is here, that I have to mention one very important person, who is a great driving force behind the Vic-Maui Race as a whole, and who at the beginning of this incredible journey, gave willingly and generously of his time to us as boat owners and potential Vic-Maui entrants, and by extension to our team as a whole....David Sutcliffe. This man is amazing not only for his energy and drive, but for his generosity and great sportsmanship...Thanks Dave for coming aboard String Theory, and showing us how it should be done!
Anyhow, after much blood, sweat, and tears over the last year, we are finally in it...going for broke west of the rhumbline...threading the needle between two highs....we are either going to be first place heros, or dead last...either way we will be happy for it is the journey that is the most important
"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though
checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy
nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor
defeat"....Theodore Roosevelt
See you in Maui dear friends and co-conspirators, and I look forward to the return trip with Christof (Vic-Maui 2012 /Simply Sailing), and many more stories to tell in my old age!