~ the boat is coming together ~ the crew is coming together ~ MAUI here we come ~

• in 2012, a decision was made to get the boat ~

• in 2013 the boat arrived ~

• by the end of the year, a crew seemed to appear out of thin air; all tied to our group of owners, instructors & clients ~

• almost as quickly, another crew formed to return the boat home as part of a top level training program

~ the crew racing in the VIC MAUI RACE has sailed together in the daylight & in the dark, in light winds & heavy & undertaken extensive training & practice ~

~ the boat has been through an exhaustive list of preparations & an inspection to comply with pages & pages of safety requirements ranging from storm sails to stability tests to building a completely redundant steering system for the boat ~

~ most of the crew has attended the SAFETY at SEA seminar, which included jumping in the the water to test lifejackets before climbing into a recently deployed liferaft  ~

~ through all of this, the key dynamic has been a team that can both work hard together & have fun together ~ complimentary skills ranging from SAILING through MEDICAL through MAINTENANCE down to 'modern day shipboard' challenges that include updating SOFTWARE on the boat's systems ~

~ as we head into the final month of preparations for this great adventure, we'll highlight some of the crew aboard & how they bring unique elements to the team & come together to be TEAM ALEGRIA ~

~ if YOU are considering your own epic adventure at sea, remember these famous words:

"you can never cross the ocean until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore"
                                                    - Christopher Columbus

~ REMEMBER, when you are ready, we are here to help ~ YOLO (You Only Live Once)

 ~ imagine you’re on deck of a beautiful sailboat, sails hungrily harnessing the wind, the strong bow cutting through the sea like a hot knife through butter, & as far as the eye can see ~ only water



~ this can be YOU on the 14 DAY VANCOUVER ISLAND CIRCUMNAVIGATION course ~

in addition to experiencing the sheer exhilaration that sailing out of sight of land can bring, you will cover offshore boat preparation for cruising, passage planning & techniques for heavy weather sailing

sail with other excitement seekers on this thrilling two week excursion ~ LIMITED SPACE!  book with us early to avoid disappointment!

the RALLY is on, with 3 boats leaving june 8th

BOAT #1  SUMMER SOLACE ~ WEST COAST adventure ~ explores the coastline all the way around

BOAT #2 ALEGRIA ~ ADVANCED/OFFSHORE adventure ~ heads offshore for a few days on the WEST COAST

BOAT #3 is NORTHWEST PASSAGE, a BALTIC 42 which is fully subscribed



care to join the RALLY? other boats looking to join the group may do so ~ both chartered vessels & private boats ~ contact the office to arrange

ALEGRIA, our new DUFOUR 45e, on path to set a new standard for sail training in CANADA, is approaching CANADIAN WATERS - see this morning's AIS plot as she piggybacks aboard the STAR ISMENE - next time she's off the OREGON COAST, she'll be on her own bottom!!



follow her steps to the ocean on her very own COOPER page 

STEVE CROWE from NORTH SAILS VANCOUVER is aboard TEAM ALEGRIA for 2013 

here is what he has to say - 

Congratulations on the order of the new Dufour 45e for advanced and offshore training programs at Cooper Boating.  Having a modern vessel with such a rare combination of speed, comfort and style will certainly raise the bar for sail training in our region.

We are especially delighted to be supplying the sails to this program and look forward to supplying both the MARATHON 3DL and downwind sails for the new vessel.   Our North Sails team in Vancouver looks forward to sea trials and being involved with the expert level sail training on ALEGRIA in 2013