Club News


Episode 016 - John Miller

By Jared Wohlgemuth, Casey Allocco | February 07, 2019
Hempel World Cup Series SCYA Midwinters Islands Race Women's Winter Invitational John Miller: Sail Aweigh US Sailing Safety at Sea Transpac Race

Last week, multiple SDYC sailors raced in the 2019 Hempel World Cup Series in Miami. View the results below.

Nevin Snow & Mac Agnese, 19th in 49er Class
Judge Ryan & Hans Henken, 21st in 49er Class
Paris Henken & Anna Tobias, 17th in 49erFX Class
Paul Didham, 89th in Laser Class

This weekend in San Diego, you can find the SCYA Midwinters with the Beneteau 36.7s, Pac52s and TP52s racing. Next weekend features the Women’s Winter Invitation with about 20 invited female skippers and their crews, and the Islands Race, a 134 nautical mile race from Long Beach, around Catalina and San Clemente Islands, to San Diego.

John Miller is welcomed to the San Diego Sailcast. John and Host Alli Bell jump right into the details discussing new sailing safety requirements, especially offshore, along with the Safety at Sea programs that are available to complete those requirements.

The two-day program consists of weather briefings, a search and rescue for the US Coast Guard, and other topics including communication, medical, equipment, technology, and hands-on work.

“Good seamanship will always trump technology,” he says. John explains how they review many scenarios that they sailors may encounter, how they learn from other sailors challenges, and how getting on the water is crucial to learning.

John discusses some of the technologies that can help in the safety process including water activated strobe lights and new products and advances that are on the horizon. He tells stories of struggles he has encountered offshore sailing during the Transpac Race and in Molokai Channel, although he has never unintentionally gone overboard.

Alli asks John about some of his sailing experiences. He lists many locations in which he has sailed, how he has always been involved in safety, and how he has sailed more as a cruiser than a racer. He explains how he has optimized his vessels from cruising to racing. John then talks about prep tactics and common mishaps on the boats.

John wraps up the conversation with some of the types of boats he enjoys sailing, becoming a Captain and how Tropic Thunder got its name!

Looking towards the future, John will be sailing the 2019 Transpac Race and 2020 Puerto Vallarta Race.