Sailors' Series 2021 - New Bedford Whaling Museum

Sailors' Series

The Sailors’ Series illustrated lectures present a wide variety of experiences and adventures by individuals with lifelong commitments to sailing, boats, and the sea.

Sailors' Series

Supported by Ruth and Hope Atkinson

Supported in part by
The Samuel D. Rusitzky Lecture Fund

The Sailors’ Series is an annual, legacy lecture series of the New Bedford Whaling Museum that presents a wide variety of experiences and adventures by individuals with lifelong commitments to sailing, boats, and the sea.

Sailors’ Series 2021 is sponsored by:

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2021 Sailors' Series Lectures

Charlie_Promo

Creating a High-Performance Offshore Sailing Team: Doing More Good than Bad for the Environment

Thursday, April 29, 2021
7:00pm

Free, Registration Required

Register Here

A Virtual Sailors’ Series talk with Charlie Enright. With a goal to lift The Ocean Race Trophy, Charlie Enright faces a mission to educate spectators and engage fans on today’s environmental concerns, and provide ways in which we can help ocean health and its fragile planet. Join Charlie as he discusses clean sailing, his experiences racing around the world as the Skipper of 11th Hour Racing Team, and learn about how he and his crew are gearing up to take on The Ocean Race. In this hour-long talk, Charlie will expand upon common questions lingering among the ocean and sailing world today, “Can high-performance professional sport go hand-in-hand with a positive environmental impact?” “What changes in ocean health has Charlie seen in his 15-year career to date?” “How has nature inspired the new 60-foot race boat that the team is building?” “And what’s in store for the team as they line up for four races in 2021?”

Born and raised in the maritime hub of Bristol, Rhode Island, Charlie learned to sail at a young age and went on to join his college sailing team at Brown University. Charlie had his first taste of offshore sailing in 2007, when he joined the crew of the TP52 Morning Light to take part in the 44th Transpac Yacht Race. There, he first met fellow team co-founder Mark Towill. Together with Mark, Charlie entered the 2014-15 Volvo Ocean Race with Team Alvimedica and the 2017-18 Volvo Ocean Race with Vestas 11th Hour Racing, leading both campaigns as Skipper. At the age of 36, Charlie has two round-the-world campaigns under his belt and over a decade-worth of experience in offshore racing.

A fleet of sailboats under sail together

Uniting Sailors to Protect Our Ocean

Thursday, May 6, 2021
7:00pm

Free, Registration Required

Register Here

A Virtual Sailors’ Series talk with Shelley M. Brown, PhD. Join OCEANA’s Director of Sailors for the Sea as she discusses ocean conservation, sailing sustainability, and ways to help protect our waters. Being on the water, sailors see firsthand many of the issues impacting our oceans from plastic pollution to oil spills, to habitat destruction. Learn how sailors, as individuals and a community, can help restore our waterways, new green boating information and practical tips, and ways to preserve and sustain the ocean we all love to view and sail.

Shelley M. Brown is a native of Rhode Island, spending most of her lifetime sailing with her family. She obtained a doctoral degree from the University of Rhode Island with a focus on microbial ecology in coastal marine environments. Before joining Sailors for the Sea, she was a member of the education team on the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater and the program director of the Block Island Maritime Institute. Shelley has always been interested in the interactions between humans and our oceans. As a scientist, educator, and sailor, she hopes to inspire people to learn about and care for the ocean and its precious resources, so they are empowered to become the next generation of ocean stewards.

Dawn Riley Dawn shared stories from her adventurous 40-year sailing career including being the first woman to manage an America’s Cup sailing team as CEO and Captain of America True.

Sea Stories from the Great Lakes to the Southern Ocean

Thursday, May 20, 2021
7:00pm

Free, Registration Required

Register Here

A Virtual Sailors’ Series talk with Dawn Riley. Sail the inland seas and the Southern Ocean with the legendary Dawn Riley, Executive Director of Oakcliff Sailing. Dawn will share stories from her adventurous 40-year sailing career. Her many accomplishments include being the first woman to manage an America’s Cup sailing team as CEO and Captain of America True; racing on four America’s Cup and two Whitbread (now The Ocean Race) teams; and serving as a former President of the Women's Sports Foundation. Dawn has also served on the board of US Sailing, and is an advisor to several public service organizations.

Learn how Dawn’s journeys have led her to the helm of the nonprofit organization Oakcliff Sailing, which is building American leadership through sailing. Athletes receive training on inshore, offshore and high-performance sailing. Oakcliff is the training partner for the New York Yacht Club’s America’s Cup team, American Magic, The Ocean Race’s 11th Hour Racing, and is working with US Sailing training the next Olympic champions.