Youth Sailing

Gary Jobson Supports SBJSA and RIT Sailing

An Evening with Gary Jobsongary_jobson

I was excited. As a long-time fan of the Jobson style of commentary and analysis of America’s Cup racing, I was very happy to attend the fundraising event for Sodus Bay Junior Sailing Association and Rochester Institute of Technology Sailing last night.

The Voice of Sailing

There he was. After being introduced by his long-time friend Hank Stuart of Rochester Yacht Club, Jobson walked out and began his hour and a half talk about his life and knowledge of sailing. With a backdrop of video and still images, he took us on a ride from the dawn of the America’s Cup to the foiling machines of present day.

The take-away

It’s difficult to explain all I saw and experienced. Jobson packed a lifetime of memories and knowledge into the hour and a half. He came prepared to entertain, encourage, and motivate, and he achieved all of it.

Some things I will remember

Jobson is a storyteller. I’m sure he has shared these well-memorized stories many times. But, his style of telling is so off-the-cuff and matter-of-fact that you feel like he’s telling them for the first time.

  • On his friendship with fellow sailor Walter Cronkite:
    Jobson said he asked for advice after getting his job with ESPN. Cronkite replied, I don’t have much advice. Make every word count. Don’t say anything the viewer can see. Do your homework. You may never use 90% of the knowledge you have, but at some point a fact will come into your mind as you see something play-out. And if you don’t have anything to say, it’s better to just be quiet.
  • On rock concerts:
    While in high school a friend of his who owned an ice cream truck invited Jobson to make good money at a rock concert. He was torn between the concert and sailing in the 420 Worlds at his home harbor of Barnegat Bay. He asked his dad what to do and his dad said, “The 420 Worlds at Barnegat isn’t going to come along again soon, and you could go to a rock concert anytime.” Jobson sailed in the Worlds and missed Woodstock.
  • On winning aboard Tenacious at the ’79 Fastnet
    Ted Turner is an incredible yachtsman and skipper. Jobson recounted numerous times when he and Turner had competed together. But none compared to Tenacious in 1979. During the Fastnet storm, when Jobson took the helm, Turner told him to take his hat off. “You can feel the storm better,” said Turner. “He was right,” said Jobson. He drove the boat hard and never let up at any point in the race. At one point during the storm one of the crew members was about to cut the mainsail to save the mast. At that very moment Turner yelled from the helm, “The wind’s dropped 3 knots – shake the reef out!”
  • On surviving lymphoma
    While in the hospital the sun came through the window and shined on his face. He thought back to what a life of sailing had taught him. He knew he had to go on. He said that bone marrow treatments were much worse than the 60 mph winds and 40 ft. waves of the Fastnet. Gary Jobson with SBYC

Latest book – Gary Jobson, An American Sailing Story

And yes, I had to get a signed copy of his latest book. Available on Amazon. As I waited in line I thought about what I would want to hear from some person like me in a crowd. I figured I would just want to know they enjoyed my presentation and my efforts. And that’s what I was able to say, in all honesty,  to Gary Jobson as I shook his hand.

 

Oh, when asked what sailboats he owns he replied, “None… at the moment.”
He is awaiting the arrival of his next and only sailboat a CW Hood 32′

CW Hood 32