Episode #162: Brian Haines on Cruising With Your Family

Tune in as sailor and racer Brian Haines chats with Good Jibes host John Arndt. Brian grew up sailing and hanging out at San Diego Yacht Club and later sailed at Stanford University. He recently put down his roots in Australia after spending three years cruising with his wife and two kids.

Hear the lessons he learned from his father (Robbie Haines), how he caught the sailing bug, how to handle schooling while cruising the world, where to meet other sailing families and make sailing friends, and how to prepare for a trip across an ocean.

Here’s a small sample of what you will hear in this episode:

• The logistics of homeschooling on a boat
• Cruising Community troubleshooting
• The role of legacy in discovering your passion
• Giving children responsibility to build confidence
• How to connect and make community while cruising?
• Differences between the sail and cruise communities?
• Finding other cruising boats with children

Learn more at SDYC.org. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and your other favorite podcast spots — follow and leave a 5-star review if you’re feeling the Good Jibes!

Check out the episode and show notes below for much more detail.

Show Notes

• Brian Haines on Cruising with Your Family
  • [1:08] Introducing Brian Haines
  • [2:01] What’s a story that shaped you?
  • [3:05] Staying in the family passion/industry
  • [4:02] Was there ever a chance that you might get captivated by something else?
  • [4:55] Growing up in Southern California, was it mostly a competitive sailing scene for you or was there cruising mixed in there?
  • [5:52] Did you sail 29ers?
  • [7:49] Was your wife a sailor before?
  • [9:17] What kind of boat did you actually take to Australia? And what did you have to do to get it ready?
  • [11:11] Did you do the repairs/updates on your own?
  • [12:35] Were your children scared or comfortable being on the boat for so long?
  • [13:34] The logistics of homeschooling on the sea
  • [15:01] How Starlink impacted cruising
  • [18:25] Email [email protected] to advertise on this podcast 
  • [18:55] Brian’s favorite places or surprises along the way
  • [20:50] What was great about their experience in the Sea of Cortez?
  • [21:50] Did you find other families or kids for your children to have fun with?
  • [22:19] How hard would it be to find other cruising kid boats?
  • [24:45] What it’s like for the kids to stand watch
  • [25:43] How did a 1986 boat hold up through the journey?
  • [27:13] Troubleshooting issues in community
  • [28:38] Did you have a favorite anchor or what held you secure and allowed you to sleep at night?
  • [30:04] The Haines family waiting out storms and hurricanes
  • [32:24] How Brian uses Saildrone
  • [34:48] What was sailing life like in Australia
  • [35:45] What is the Haines family doing most right now?
  • [38:09] Any Foiling in your future?
  • [39:20] Join the Crew List at Latitude38.com
  • [40:36] Did Brian let go of racing and is able to relax and cruise?
  • [42:32] How are you connecting and making community while cruising?
  • [44:57] Will Brian get back to racing?
  • Short Tacks
  • [47:23] What is Brian’s dream boat if he went back to sea? 
  • [47:51] Do multihulls ever attract you?
  • [48:20] A favorite race that you’ve ever done offshore?
  • [50:43] Brian’s advice to non-sailors
  • [51:39] What’s the most important lesson to share from that long cruise?
  • [52:37] Dove by Robin Lee Graham with Derek L.T. Gill, Sailing a Serious Ocean by John Kretschmer
  • [53:15] Check out the Latitude 38 Bookstore here for books recommended by Good Jibes guests
  • [54:54] Last thoughts from Brian Haines
  • Make sure to follow Good Jibes with Latitude 38 on your favorite podcast spot and leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts
  • Subscribe to Latitude 38 at Latitude38.com
  • Check out the  October 2024 issue of Latitude 38
  • Theme Song: “Pineapple Dream” by Solxi