Looking for Experienced Shipmates
An Individual or One-Berth Team
Opportunities to become part of a serious long-term offshore cruising program aboard a proven bluewater vessel are uncommon. I am looking for one individual or a compatible one-berth team interested in becoming true shipmates aboard Surrender—not simply crew filling a berth, but people who want to help carry a remarkable vessel through the next chapter of her life.
I am not simply looking for crew to help move a boat. I am looking for people who would like to become part of Surrender’s continuing story.
Surrender was originally the vision of a builder driven by a deep passion for offshore voyaging who, after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis, chose to dedicate the final twenty years of his life to designing and constructing a true ocean-going sailing vessel. She was not built quickly or conventionally. She was built slowly, deliberately, and with an almost single-minded focus on seaworthiness, independence, and survivability offshore.
Every structural decision reflects that purpose—strength, redundancy, simplicity, and reliability where they matter most. The result is not simply another cruising boat. It is one man’s final life work—a vessel created with the expectation that she would cross oceans safely for decades after he was gone.
She is a heavily built cruising vessel, not a production yacht. The structure favors offshore
endurance over light-displacement performance. Systems were designed for accessibility, repairability, and long-term self-sufficiency rather than showroom appearance. Yet the builder was also a master finish carpenter, and the interior is beautifully crafted in old-growth mahogany. In many ways she reflects an earlier philosophy of boatbuilding: build it once, build it right, and build it to go to sea—and stay there.
At her heart is the legendary Perkins 4.236 (85 HP), trusted for decades in commercial vessels because of its mechanical simplicity, worldwide parts availability, exceptional reliability, and ability to be repaired almost anywhere. Under power, Surrender has a practical range exceeding 1,000 miles at six knots.
Under sail she is steady, forgiving, and confidence inspiring. She is not a lightweight racer or a multihull capable of sustained speeds in the teens. She is a genuine offshore passagemaker that tracks well, carries her momentum, and settles comfortably into the long rhythm of the ocean, allowing for safe watch standing, regular routines, and proper rest. When conditions allow her to exceed ten knots over the ground, I generally choose to slow her down. Comfort, safety, and preservation of the boat have always taken precedence over speed.
At anchor, Surrender truly comes into her own. Stable, quiet, and remarkably self-sufficient, she was designed for extended periods away from marinas. Her systems support independent living, and life aboard reflects the same philosophy found throughout the vessel: minimal dependence on outside infrastructure and maximum freedom to remain comfortably at anchor for extended periods.
Life aboard Surrender is intentionally different from much of today’s cruising. We spend far more nights anchored than tied to docks. We are not rushing from marina to marina or simply checking destinations off a list. The reward is waking in quiet anchorages, making meaningful offshore passages, solving problems together, and experiencing places that most travelers never reach. For the right person, it becomes less of a vacation and more of a deeply rewarding way of life.
The sea has been a constant part of my life for more than sixty years.
My maritime background began in high school and continued throughout graduate school while living in San Diego. During those years I operated sport-fishing and commercial vessels, spending well over one hundred days each year on the water and gaining practical experience in seamanship, vessel handling, navigation, and offshore operations under real working conditions rather than in classrooms.
That foundation carried forward into nearly four decades of owning and operating Surrender. I have taken my retirement in stages, cruising for a year or three at a time before returning to my professional career. Along the way, Surrender has carried family and friends on extended cruises, completed countless offshore passages, and even served as a successful day-charter vessel in Mexico and Costa Rica during the late 1990s, comfortably carrying up to twenty passengers for whale-watching and snorkeling excursions.
Today I remain fully engaged in every aspect of operating Surrender—maintenance, passage planning, navigation, systems management, weather routing, and day-to-day seamanship. I can comfortably single-hand her in coastal waters when necessary, but that is no longer the experience I seek. Ocean cruising is safer, richer, and considerably more enjoyable when shared with capable people who genuinely enjoy taking responsibility, standing a proper watch, solving problems together, and becoming trusted shipmates.
This opportunity will appeal to very few people—and that is intentional.
It is not a delivery, charter, vacation, or simply an inexpensive way to travel. It is an invitation to become part of the continuing story of a remarkable offshore vessel, sharing the responsibilities, rewards, and occasional challenges that come with serious passage making.
The right shipmates are self-reliant, experienced, adaptable, physically fit, and comfortable living simply while fully participating in watch standing, maintenance, navigation, passage-making, and everyday life aboard. Mutual respect, good judgment, and compatibility are every bit as important as sailing experience.
If this kind of life resonates with you—and you believe you have the experience, temperament, and commitment to become a valued shipmate—I invite you to continue to the Crew Page, where you’ll find complete information about the voyage, expectations, qualifications, and how to determine whether this unique opportunity may be a good fit for both of us.
