Cyril's Sailing Resume
Cyril's passion for sail and paddle sports can be traced to his parents' affection for these sports. After WWII, his father was a young adult looking to enjoy an affordable sport. With a group of good friends, they started the Canoe Club of France, running rapids throughout the French Alps and Pyrenees. Then when his job allowed more disposable cash, Cyril's father started sailing as much as possible both on the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of France. Cyril's mother grew up during WWII in a house overlooking a wide Normandy beach and the waters of the Channel Islands. For Cyril's family, water has always meant recreation. Cyril's love for the beach and surf started when his family lived in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He was enrolled in a parochial school that had 2 shifts. Since his classes started at noon, his Mother, sister and Cyril would spend almost every morning at the Copacabana beach! At the age of 8, Cyril's family moved into a house on a lake in Holland, and his love affair with sailing and paddling began. Gone were the warm sea breezes of Brazil, but the lake offered independence. The first sailboat was a bulky 16 foot Zeff which he was soon taking out on my own for hours either sailing or rowing. When Cyril was 13, his Dad purchased a "real" sailboat, a Catalina 22 that expanded sailing trips beyond the lake's locks out onto the infinite waterways of the Netherlands. At 14, Cyril started going to sailing school in France, where he raced 4.20s and 4.45s. Smitten with speed, he started windsurfing nearly year round. He joined the Dutch Sea Scouts. He bought a poorly maintained OK Yawl so he could participate in regattas. He did a complete restoration of the boat replacing most of the wood work, patching the gel coat, rebuilding the boom, repairing sails, and making several innovative enhancements. Much to the chagrin of his parents, Cyril's backyard slowly became a mini-marina for his sailing friends, allowing exposure to other racing platforms. As Cyril continued to cruise with the Catalina 22 extensively, it became obvious that he needed more blue water sailing training. So he began attending the world renown "l'Ecole de Voile des Glenans." During the winter months he helped his sailing mentor, Joop, build a 44 foot Jim Brown design catamaran that is still plowing the waters of the Zuidezee. Cyril also became a Boy Scout camp councilor at the camp on Catalina, CA, focusing on sailing and canoeing. Cyril's family then moved to Thailand where his father purchased an old Hobie cat 16. Cyril again spent hours rehabbing the boat and then enjoying it to the max, windsurfing on the side. While away at engineering college, Cyril's father and mother decided they wanted to retire on a sailboat. Cyril and his father spent months researching boat designs. They finally settled on a 43' Tanton design cat-ketch hull, with Freedom carbon fiber masts. Cyril designed the interior layout and the rigging. His father called the boat Nasha which means "ours" in Russian. The goal was to sail Nasha from Taiwan to the Mediterranean during the semester Cyril could take off due to AP credits. Nasha was not delivered as promised in mid December. Cyril had the opportunity supervise the last two months of construction. During the trip to Hong Kong, Cyril, his father and Joop hit a gale force monsoon, putting all their sailing skills to the test in this perfect storm situation where this 43' foot vessel was surfing down the side of monster waves and the boat was going hull speed with just a small storm jib. The trip to Hong Kong took half the time of a regular passage. Since this was a very aggressive shake-down cruise, there were many repairs to be done in Hong Kong before continuing the trip, from replacing a broken boom to engine repairs. The 23-day passage to Singapore was more normal with only one serious storm. Once in Singapore, they had missed the trade winds in the Indian Ocean and had to ship Nasha to Holland. The summer after, Cyril helped his family sail Nasha from Holland to Spain. Several years later, Cyril's father participated in the first ever Atlantic Race for Cruisers (ARC) crossing the Atlantic from the Canary Islands to Barbados. (Now ARC happens every year) When two years later, Cyril's mother was fed up of living in the cramped quarters of a sailboat, Nasha was sailed up the inter-coastal water way to where Cyril was living in New England. Cyril kept the boat at a marina on Narragansett Bay while he tried to "sell" it. The only thing that kept Cyril away from the boat were invitations to crew during regattas such as the J-Worlds. It was on this 43' boat that Cyril introduced his new wife, Amy, to sailing. Today, Cyril's entire family is "into" sailing and paddling. Weekends find the family enjoying their 26' trailerable McGregor mostly at Carlyle Lake, although they have enjoyed taking the boat to Kentucky Lake, Table Rock, Lake Michigan, Greers Ferry Lake and the Atlantic off Hilton Head. When he cannot convince his family to go out to Carlyle, there is a Hobie cat and kayak to be enjoyed at Creve Coeur. |
Cyril's Father running rapids with Canoe Club of France in the Alps
Cyril's with Dad & Sis in Rio, sailboat in hand already with the Canoe Club of France
Cyril's house in Rotterdam, Holland (see arrow) with the mini-marina already visible.
Cyril's Father on "Nasha" on the South China Seas
Cyril sailing his Father's 43' Cat Ketch, "Nasha," on a brisk day on Narragansett Bay
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Cyril Sailing his MacGregor 26X on Carlyle Lake with the family. The Hunter Edge that SLS&P will sell is direct competition to the MacGregor |
Cyril Sailing and Paddling on Creve Coeur. His Hobie Bravo is towing the Ocean Kayak. Cyril's wife and children all know SLS&P will sell the Hobie Bravo and Hobie kayaks |
