Once upon a time in 1992, Sam and Cheryl Boyle (us) bought our first sailboat, a Fuji 45 named Bon Lass. In truth, she was an expensive and very high maintenance boat (acres of teak). However, with four children she was the right size. We sailed her across the great lakes from Wisconsin to Michigan; our homeport back then. The weather was cold and wet (Sam still laughs at me for bringing my swimsuit), several leaks sprang above our bunk, the heater did not work and I (Cheryl) was very seasick our first night out. Despite the undesirable circumstances, we were hooked.

Anxious to get started with our new endeavor we became frustrated with the lack of information available. That frustration turned into a vision for a community where sailors could find everything they needed to support their pursuit of the sailing lifestyle. In 1994, we launched a company that we hoped would fulfill our vision.

In 1999 we decided we should grow the business faster, so we secured additional funding. We packed up and moved to South Carolina, leaving family, friends and even Bon Lass behind. That's one of those bitter sweet memories. Eventually we arranged for Bon Lass to join us. The sad part is, we were so busy working that we had no time for sailing. Poor Bon Lass became lonely and neglected. Sometimes in life you have to give up what you love, because it's the right thing to do. A couple of years ago we sold her to a very nice gentleman who promised to restore her to the beautiful boat she was meant to be!

In 2000 the company purchased a catalog business and integrated a store with our community. Unfortunately, the store, and not the community, became more and more of our focus as time went along. The good news: we were recognized four years in a row as one of Forbes Magazine's Best of the Web sites for content, resources and community. By some standards, that would be pretty cool. However, we believe we can do better.

In 2004 we purchased our second boat, a Pearson 10 Meter. We named her Grit in honor of our struggles. She is perfect for our needs. Sam has written several articles about Grit and looks forward to writing more. For the record, I'm smarter this time around. I refuse to sand or paint her bottom. Somehow Sam talked me into that project on Bon Lass. I completed the task almost single handed (Sam was big on supervising, although he denies there's any truth of that story). It took me weeks to get the sand out of my ears.

In January of 2005 we launched SAILjazz. Our vision and mission is to build the most comprehensive sailing site on the Internet. We strive to achieve this goal with a mix of informative articles and value-added resources. We pride ourselves on having the editorial freedom to objectively serve the sailing community, not a specific commercial interest! Our goal is to provide you with the information and tools you need to be a more informed sailing consumer.

Along with our goal of helping you get the most value from your sailing investments, we also focus on building a community where friendships are built, experiences are shared and each member has the opportunity to satisfy their passion for sailing. If you're not learning something new, finding ways to save valuable "boat bucks", or just having a good time with fellow sailors, we're not doing our job. It's that simple.

Thank you for your support and your trust. We appreciate you and the value you bring to our community.

Warm Regards,

Cheryl and Sam Boyle