Mia & Andy // 2025 Year-In-Review (Only 3 Months Late!)
On the Wind Sailing
Mia and Andy sit down in the new Mission Control to review the year that was 2025! And we're only 3 months late in doing it! Each year Mia & Andy like to record a podcast in which we reflect on the past year and share some stories. So much happens over the course a year with us and 59º North that it's tough to keep track of it all in the moment! You'll be shocked at some of the stats we come up with in this episode. So grab a coffee or a beer depending on what timezone you're listening to this in, and join Mia & Andy on reflecting on last year! -- Support the podcast & become a...
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Ben Soofer // Making a career in sailing
On the Wind Sailing
Ben Soofer joined 59 North back in 2018, working with media and on the backend of this very podcast. He then started sailing as a mate, including joining August on his first offshore passage on Isbjørn. He’s then gone on to start his own business, and working with many others. August caught up with him to reminisce about the past, share some old sea stories, and talk about how Ben’s made a unique career out of his passion. -- Support the podcast & become a member of , where Andy, August & Mia dive deep on the art of seam'nship. Nerd out with us on our members-only...
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Francesca Clapcich // The 1st Italian to Win The Ocean Race
On the Wind Sailing
Francesca Clapcich is an Olympian, a world champion, and in 2023 became the first Italian to win The Ocean Race. She most recently skippered UpWind by MerConcept, an all-female Ocean Fifty trimaran campaign — and now, she’s set her sights on the 2028 Vendée Globe with her title sponsor, 11th Hour Racing. We caught up back in July, while she was enjoying a few final weeks at home in Utah with her wife and daughter where she lives, before heading off to co-skipper four of the five legs of The Ocean Race Europe with Team Malizia. We spoke about starting new chapters, redefining success, and...
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Nikki Henderson // Writing, Racing and Life
On the Wind Sailing
Friend of 59º North Nikki Henderson returns to the podcast to talk with me about a wide-ranging list of subjects on sailing, life and philosophy. This conversation was initially inspired by my own curiosity about Nikki's writing process. We talked about how each of us think about writing about sailing, how we go from idea to words-on-the-paper, how our experiences shape our writing and more. Then we delve into racing, recovery time after a long passage and lots more. If you want to read more of Nikki's writing, subscribe to 'SALTED', her weekly newsletter on Substack! -- Support the podcast...
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Troy Sears // Schooner AMERICA
On the Wind Sailing
Troy Sears is the owner and captain of the San Diego-based Schooner AMERICA, a 144-ft replica of the racing ship that came to be the namesake of the famous Cup. Troy is a huge America's Cup nerd & history buff, delving into the history of the Cup and starting the podcast off with a question about the origins of the word 'yacht.' Troy lives aboard AMERICA with his dog and captain's the boat on daily whalewatching trips 330 days per year. We talked about how he came to buy the boat, his career sailing AMERICA all over the oceans, running the chase boat for actual America's Cup campaigns and...
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John Kretschmer // Seam'nship, Racing, Life & NOT Retiring!
On the Wind Sailing
John Kretschmer is back on the podcast to talk more philosophy and more sailing. If you're new to the show, or new to John's work, he's inspired me more than any other sailor. His books are legendary, and you should read all of them. But start with 'Sailing a Serious Ocean,' if you want one book that best distills his storytelling and philosophy into one volume. John and I talk about everything in this winding episode - which also features a rare appearance from Mia! He was in Paris, we were in Sweden, and we start by debunking the rumor that John was retiring from passagemaking that I...
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Chris Kobusch & Sophie O'Neill // From Clipper Race to Antarctica & Beyond
On the Wind Sailing
Chris Kobusch & Sophie O'Neill are longtime friends of 59º North. Chris was in fact one of our full-time skippers for two years on ICEBEAR & FALKEN, and Mia & I recently attended their wedding in England last September. Both professional sailors, they met on the Clipper Race, where Sophie was a last-minute sub-in as First Mate and sailed across the Pacific with Chris. Since then they've led an adventurous life together, working for Skip Novak in Antarctica and buying & refitting their own steel boat OCEAN WANDERER. Like Mia & I, they're now balancing family life with their...
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Jahn Tihansky // Racer, Sailmaker, Coach and Entrepreneur
On the Wind Sailing
Andy Schell and Jahn Tihansky sit down in Annapolis to discuss Jahn’s long and exciting sailing career. He’s been racing and beating some of the biggest names in the sport, built successful sailmaking and sailing businesses, and served as head sailing coach at the U.S. Naval Academy for many years. -- Support the podcast & become a member of , where Andy, August & Mia dive deep on the art of seam'nship. Nerd out with us on our members-only forum and talk boats, gear, safety-at-sea, meet like-minded sailors, find crew, and more. Check it out on . See you there! -- This...
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Ari Huusela // First Finn to Finish the Vendée Globe
On the Wind Sailing
Ari Huusela is an aircraft mechanic and commercial airline pilot from Helsinki, Finland. He did not start sailing until the age of 24, but went on to become the first person from the Nordic countries to have finished the brutal Vendee globe round the world race. During the race he became known as the Super happy sailor thanks to his positive energy and optimism. He joins August remotely from the Norwegian Arctic, where he is skiing out of his Campervan. -- Support the podcast & become a member of , where Andy, August & Mia dive deep on the art of seam'nship. Nerd out with us on...
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Matt Rutherford // On Adventure, Fear & Solo Sailing Around the Arctic
On the Wind Sailing
Matt Rutherford is back again, this time to talk about perhaps his most audacious plans yet - to sail solo and nonstop around the Arctic. That's back-to-back through the Northwest Passage and NorthEAST passage (above Russia). I caught up with Matt in person to talk about his plans (and lots more, like we always do), back in October in Annapolis. Matt continues to inspire and push me as a sailor. He makes his adventures look easy, does them on a shoestring and is always very humble about the whole thing. Enjoy our chat and follow/support Matt through oceanresearchproject.org. -- Support the...
info_outlineMark Sinclair returns to the podcast, live from FALKEN's cockpit in Nuku Hiva! Andy caught up with Mark after FALKEN & COCONUT have been shadowing each other across the Pacific - they even shared a raft-up through the Panama Canal! Mark is midway through his fourth circumnavigation attempt since the first GGR in 2018, this time following the Mini Globe Race fleet. We covered a lot of ground in this one, from Mark's career and philosophy to sailing to GGR founder Don McIntyre and more!
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This season of ON THE WIND is sponsored by Weather Routing Inc., aka 'WRI', 59º North's longtime weather routing & forecasting friends. To learn more and sign up for WRI, go to wriwx.com and tell them that 59º North sent you.
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This season of ON THE WIND is also sponsored by Boat How To, an educational website co-founded by longtime friend of the pod & sailing tech guru Nigel Calder. Check out the courses at BoatHowTo.com.