Instructor and Racing Program Coach
I started as a brand new sailor with no experience in 2009, at OCSC in Berkeley, after discovering the excitement, rush, and thrill of a J/24 on the San Francisco bay in summer winds. I wouldn't call myself a thrill seeker, but I am an adventurer and everything about sailing spoke to my soul. It quickly became my newest passion not only for the hands-on aspect of sailing but for the community of people that sail. Water people, sailors especially, are a unique breed, and I fit right in.
I quickly found myself committing every moment I had to sailing, reading about sailing, and talking about sailing to everyone who would listen. I joined the Berkeley Yacht club, drank with all the old salts and relived their memories while listening to their stories. I found the local racers and jumped aboard for beer can racing. I was hooked! Every weekend I found myself sailing, racing, or training for racing. The certifications and specialized training that OCSC provided began stacking up and I found myself able to talk my way onto any boat. Whether it was buoy racing or distance racing, I strived to learn every aspect so that I could master. That is what is wonderful about sailing - it is ever-changing and not frequently the same. Nearly impossible to master. Sailing is challenging while fulfilling, then humbling and rewarding.
Early in my sailing experience I recognized sailors cruise or sailors race, and being the competitor I am, I took on the racing facet. Some of my favorite boats I have raced upon include SC27, SC40, E27, E37, J/24, J/105, and J/111. I was fortunate enough to be an integral part of a racing program in the local J/105 Fleet on a current club boat, Nirvana. For nearly five years, Team Nirvana competed in the yearly Fleet 1 series ending each season in the Rolex Big Boat Series. Some of the best sailing, best sailors, and awe inspiring memories have come from those series. A majority of Team Nirvana, including myself, then took on prepping, training, and racing as Team Europa in PacCup 2014. Aboard a NY36 (similar to a Shock), 2000nm + and 16 days later we crossed the finish line with experiences and memories that will last a lifetime! In particular, I found I enjoyed ocean sailing so much that in 2015 I began my own race program when I purchased a Moore 24 and sailed shorthanded in the OYRA and California Coastal series, racing out to the Farallones and up and down the California coast. Nothing compares to surfing ocean swells under spinnaker, with boat speeds in the high teens. Nothing.
Currently I hold USCG OUPV credentials and am ASA Instructor certified. I hold US Sailing certifications, I am a PADI certified Rescue Diver, and an EMT in the state of California. I am a person committed to continued education and training and will strive to learn and upgrade. One thing the fire service and sailing has taught me is that you can never be ready for all that can happen but you can prepare yourself as best as possible.
As a recently retired member of the fire service, I have been afforded the ability to commit more time to my passion - sailing. I have been able to give back to the sailing community as an instructor with Modern Sailing in my favorite place to sail, the San Francisco Bay. It brings me joy sharing my stories and seeing the intrigue and desire that I once had as a new sailor in the faces of new sailors and students.
After having spent the past year (2023) instructing with MSC, i can say that I've looked forward to each day on the water in anticipation of seeing beginning students improve from week to week or to coaching up intermediate sailors with more advanced skills. I have enjoyed the variety of classes and clinics that MSC provides and found such joy in having returning students share their stories of how they've met the on-the-water challenges that SF Bay can provide when they are their own. I am also very grateful for the many new friends I have made during this tenure. It is rewarding having my alumni share with me their pictures and stories from their dream destinations and charters to far-off places. Knowing I have been a part of their success is quite satisfying and very fulfilling.
The completion of 2023 also brought an honor when I was recognized from the past year by MSC as one of the top three intructructors for time on the water and co-recognized as one of two instructors for the most versatile. You can imagine my level of pride as I feel MSC is the best sailing school and club in the SF Bay Area. I have often said, if you have to wake up and go do something every day, sailing isn't a bad option.
For 2024 and beyond, i look forward to sharing the thrill, excitement, and adventure of sailing out the gate, out-n-around, and up and down our California coast; Kiss the Pacific sky.
- Carmen
