{"id":1880,"date":"2020-12-07T08:00:31","date_gmt":"2020-12-07T13:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.sailrite.com\/meet-our-customers\/?p=1880"},"modified":"2023-02-03T11:13:31","modified_gmt":"2023-02-03T16:13:31","slug":"boat-bengal-andrew-jazz-captain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.sailrite.com\/meet-our-customers\/marine\/boat-bengal-andrew-jazz-captain\/","title":{"rendered":"Boat Bengal: Andrew, Jazz & Captain"},"content":{"rendered":"

We all love our pets, and we often wish we could take them everywhere. But can you imagine taking them along to circumnavigate the open ocean? Andrew and Jazz might seem like your average sailing couple, but they have a unique sailing companion \u2014 their Bengal cat, Captain! The two have been happily sailing on their boat, Villa Veritas, for some time now. We wanted to know what it\u2019s like to sail with a furry companion and see if this enterprising crew had any advice to offer new sailors or budding DIYers.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Humble Beginnings\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n

The couple that sails together, stays together! Jazz first experienced sailing as a child on her uncle\u2019s monohull in the Canadian San Juan Islands. In high school, as an exchange student on the coast of Spain, she joined a local sailing team and learned to handle small boats. Once in college, she made friends at the yacht club and went out for races when she could. In her adult life, Jazz went on to travel through Asia, helping crew a handmade 32-foot boat from Bali through Borneo and Singapore.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Andrew had gone sailing a few times as a kid, and then he took classes with the American Sailing Association in San Francisco when he married Jazz. Together the two crew a 1993 Prout Snowgoose Elite 37 named Villa Veritas after their last name. It\u2019s the first boat that either of them has owned and the first catamaran that they\u2019ve sailed, not counting vacation ride-alongs. The two moved onto their boat full time in October 2018, and have been blissfully sailing the open ocean ever since. They\u2019ve traveled from the southern United States, through the Bahamas and the Caribbean, and even to locations like Saint Kitts and Saint Vincent. They\u2019ve even documented the ins and outs of their journey on their sailing blog.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Villa Veritas, a floating home!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

So how did Captain, the beautiful Bengal cat, join the crew? \u201cWe met Captain in Savannah, Georgia. He joined us full time in November when he reached three months old. We’d waited to get a cat until we had the boat because, supposedly, kittens will always adapt to a boat while older cats may never get over seasickness. Captain doesn’t always like it when the boat moves, especially when the engine is on. But aside from the death glares, he doesn’t seem to have any other problems, and he’s good about staying inside when we’re underway. At anchor he keeps a good watch, often from the top of the boom. One time a pelican (bigger than he is) landed on the front of the starboard bow, and after chasing it off, Captain now patrols that spot daily.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Sewing & Sailing<\/b><\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re familiar with the sailing world, you also know that it pays to be a sewist in order to make much-needed repairs and other marine DIY projects. Much like sailing, Jazz\u2019s sewing experience began at a young age. She received needles and thread in daycare and crafted new outfits for the resident dolls. Her mother and grandmother also sewed, encouraging her craftsmanship. For Andrew, things were a bit different. When Jazz started a cockpit enclosure project but got sick halfway through, it was up to him to learn the ropes. So he began watching Sailrite\u00ae videos and kept charge of their sewing machine \u2014 the Sailrite\u00ae Ultrafeed\u00ae LSZ.<\/span><\/p>\n

But how exactly did these intrepid travelers hear about Sailrite? Andrew was kind enough to share. \u201cWe learned about Sailrite from another devoted fan and sailor who insisted that a sewing machine was a necessary piece of offshore safety gear. After breaking a borrowed home sewing machine on a relatively minor project, we decided that a more expensive but dependable machine actually had a pretty short payback period. We went with the LSZ because we wanted to work on sails. Actually, we justified the purchase when we priced out a new asymmetrical spinnaker versus a machine and a custom spinnaker kit from Sailrite.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Ultrafeed \u2014 loved by sailors and cats alike!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When it comes to sewing with the Ultrafeed LSZ, a circumnavigator\u2019s work is almost never done. Not only that, but the majority of the repair work on a boat must be completed right away if one wants to continue sailing. Andrew and Jazz have completed their fair share of projects using the machine, with Captain\u2019s help of course. One of their largest projects, and one that they are most proud of, is their spinnaker. Before the crew left the United States, they purchased a Sailrite spinnaker kit that they would later sew themselves. Captain had a part to play as entertainment and moral support. Since acquiring their Ultrafeed, they\u2019ve crafted many projects including:<\/span><\/p>\n