The Best of Sailing TV: The Great Loop 2020

I am not for one second saying that I am on par with the likes of Warren Miller or Carroll Ballard. I have discussed the merits of both creators in the previous posts of this week. And each day I have tried to point out what I thought made each of these programs great. Now that its Friday, it is my turn to step onto the stage and describe what I think will make the best sailing TV and I am gonna try to do it with The Great Loop 2020.

The purpose of this show is to share the live aboard life and tell the story of what it is like to sail the Great Loop of the Eastern US. I also hope to document the natural wonder that is the Great Loop and tell some of the stories of the communities and people who live, work and die on its shores from perspective of 5 crews whom I will teach  to sail and give them keys to a fleet of 5 sailboats. I also plan to trail them in a bus while they make that journey and help them along the way

I am kind of uniquely suited to take on this project as I have been teaching sailing and living aboard a boat for a good portion of my adult life. I also just happen to have a background in radio and TV and a degree from Boston U to prove it. So the Lord put this before me to do and I will do it.

And I am going to make the best damn TV I can make- given a host challenges to do such a thing and  a pile of opportunities that for the first time in world history make it possible to even do it. If not for the advent of mobile communication, internet entertainment, streaming TV service and digital technology this would be an exercise in fiction. But there is a critical mass occurring right now where all things needed to make a show like this possible are occurring at the exact same time. And I aim to catch that tide and sail it all way to success in this particular project.

There will be 5 teams made up five individuals. One skipper, One Safety Officer and Three crew members. I have three of the skippers on board right now and will be welcoming two more skippers to the show when the time is right. I will also be welcoming 5 safety officers who will assist me in training these crews and work with the crews as consultants for the year while the boat crews make their way around the Loop.

Each skipper will bring three crew members on board from their friends, family or coworkers. They will sail with them as needed for the trip and be their shore liaison as needed and hopefully their cheering section crew chief when otherwise not engaged. They don't need to be on the boat for the full voyage, but this will also be an element for the show as the judgement of the skipper will determine their crew needs.

I can tell you that the boat will be a 42' sailing vessel. I can't tell you which boat it will be  as that is a secret and all will be made known when the time comes.

For filming we will have cameras and sound everywhere. The Skippers will put a feed out on Youtube and Patreon where they will engage the audience and share their life aboard. That is how they will live and eat, through the generosity of their patrons. They will also be given challenges and opportunities to make their life aboard easier and more enjoyable. These challenges will be shared in a weekly transmittal that they will receive in some unique nautical manner.  They will sworn to secrecy about these challenges and may only communicate their needs to their patrons and their crews.

We will have a separate feed where will make a four season production of the voyage with 13 episodes each season ( the current plan  subject to change). The skippers will tell you what is happening on their boat and where they are going, but will have no knowledge of what those episodes will look like until the have completed the challenge of the week and will have no knowledge of what is going on with the fleet or the final edit of the episode.


As there is only one adversary to all sailors, The Sea, there will be no direct competition between the boats except for the weekly challenges. It is our belief that the law of the sea states that all vessels must lend assistance when needed and we will create no mechanism in this show to undermine that principle.

At the end, the skippers will all be given their boat and whatever they have earned in patronage and will be be free to continue their journey as YouTube creators. They will have gotten a life-changing experience and it is our hope to give each participant a share of the proceeds of the show. But as no one should set out to get rich or famous when making a TV show (that makes sucky TV),  we are hoping that those who participate will share our hope to make GREAT Sailing TV.

So that's the skinny on what the Great Loop 2020 looks like right now. It will be evolving I suppose and we will be heading to Florida on Thanksgiving weekend to film a sizzle reel that we will be sharing with the world. That will be the start of what we hope will make for BEST Sailing TV ever. Thanks for reading.