Flirting With Mermaids: The Unpredictable Life of a Sailboat Delivery Skipper [Hardcover]

John Kretschmer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 9, 1999

In fifteen years of making landfalls, the author has had numerous sailing adventures including a voyage around Cape Horn, a winter crossing of the North Atlantic with Force 13 winds, and an unusual research voyage in the Caribbean.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the idea of bluewater sailing." -- Good Old Boat, May/June 2000

"Kretschmer's breezy, self-deprecating and genuinely warm style is perfectly suited..." -- Living Aboard, February 2000

For anyone not smitten by long-distance sailing, the fascination with this grueling, sometimes dangerous labor is difficult to fathom. Yet reading about Kretschmer's extreme adventures from the safety of land is both exhilarating and absorbing. -- Sun-Sentinel, May 3, 1999

I have a very simple yardstick for determining the quality of a book. I ask myself, "Do I wish I'd written it?" Oftentimes the answer is, "No, thank heavens!" In this case, however, there's no question that I wish I'd authored this book.

Kretschmer is far more than just an extremely experienced sailor--he's also a poet, a philosopher, a romantic, and like most sailors, an optimist. The book is filled with a myriad of sea stories--all eminently readable--as well as a salting of practical information about sailboats and the sea, all delivered with a wry and self-deprecating sense of humor.

Kretschmer once doubled Cape Horn in a tiny boat, and the fame from that venture launched him on his career as a delivery skipper, which he tells with both humor and a sense of adventure. There were times when I couldn't put the book down, and times when I found myself laughing out loud. . .From a bizarre research expedition with a group of Swedes hunting for the ancient Mayan navy to a rough mid-winter crossing of the North Atlantic, Kretschmer's tale unfolds like a comfortably worn chart.

I'd be surprised if you don't enjoy Flirting With Mermaids, and like me, hope that John Kretschmer writes again soon. -- Sailing Magazine, September 1999

From the Back Cover

"As a professional delivery captain, John Kretschmer has done more offshore passagemaking in his first 40 years than most serious sailors do in a lifetime. Part romantic, part poet, part philosopher and 100% optimist, Kretschmer shows his uncanny ability to deliver the wrong yacht in the wrong direction across the wrong ocean at the wrong time of year time and time again, yet end every delivery with the boat safely in port, a smile on his face, good friends at his side, and a few dollars in his pocket. A great story of adventure well-told with warm humor and affection." - Milt Baker, Bluewater Books & Charts

"John Kretschmer is a superb seaman, a master story teller, and a delivery skipper of vast experience. His tales of tropical passages and Atlantic gales, of near sinkings and quirky owners will appeal to anyone who dreams of far horizons and tropical beaches. He has written a book of rollicking humor and abundant common sense that any sailor will find hard to put down." - Brian Fagan, author, archaeologist, and sailor

"Not only has John Kretschmer lived a life wildly festooned with adventure, romance and outrageous characters - his reality outstrapping our most Walter Mittyesque sea fantasies - now he has gone and turned it all into a collection of yarns that incite yet more envy among those of us stuck behind landbound computers.

"Not only can the sailor sail - through hurricanes and civil wars - but the sailor can write. It's a hell of a read. It's just not fair." - Fred Grimm, Miami Herald columnist

"Flirting with Mermaids follows John as he delivers a variety of boats around the world, from aging hulks with a fondness for the bottom to luxury yachts owned by would-be circumnavigators. While he's doing this, with a conscripted crew of friends, relatives, his wife, and total strangers found holding empty glasses at beach bars, he's also learning about navigating the uncharted territory of his heart.

"The glamorous life of a professional sailor? Here's the straight story, with humor, salty adventures, and a steep learning curve." - Gregory O. Jones, editor, Sailing magazine

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Sheridan House; First Edition edition (March 9, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1574090550
• ISBN-13: 978-1574090550
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #880,815 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #91 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Outdoor Recreation > Sailing > Narratives

More About the Author

I wrote in my memoir, FLIRTiNG WITH MERMAIDS, "I make landfalls for a living." That's not a bad way to navigate through life. But it's only partially true. I have been fortunate to blend my two passions, boats and books, and make a living by sailing and writing. As a kid I confounded practical minded advisers trying to steer me toward a career. I told them I wanted to be an explorer. When pressed for details I explained that I wanted to sail and tramp all over the world and write books and articles about my adventures. Amazingly, that's how it has turned out.

My first book, CAPE HORN TO STARBOARD, is a coming of age story that chronicles my record-breaking voyage around Cape Horn. Although out of print, it's been popular as a used book, particularly in England and it is being re-published next year and will be available in the fall. FLIRTING WITH MERMAIDS, is a nautical bestseller. It is a funny and uplifting look at the life of a professional sailboat delivery captain. AT THE MERCY OF THE SEA, is a narrative account of three sailors converging in the eye of a hurricane. It's a sad but profound story, and I worked hard to get it right. It's a book I am proud of. I have a new book coming out next fall, it's about sailboats and storms, two things I know a lot about.

I have been a contributing editor and columnist for Sailing Magazine for twenty years. My column, The Used Boat Notebook has been compiled in two volumes, both available at Amazon.com. I wrote a sailing/travel column for the Miami Herald and an online column for Sailnet.com. I currently blog at www.sailingmagazine.net and www.yayablues.com. I have written hundreds of magazine articles including features in, Islands, Newsday and the Los Angeles Times Magazine.

I have logged 250,000 plus blue water miles including 15 Atlantic crossings. My passages and expeditions have taken me all over the watery part of the planet. I own a 47' sailboat, Quetzal, and conduct sail training passages and serious, adventure travel expeditions. For a schedule of upcoming passages check out, www.yayablues.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wild story from a windy guy !, June 1, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Fort Lauderdale Florida.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Flirting With Mermaids: The Unpredictable Life of a Sailboat Delivery Skipper (Hardcover)

Of the three books that John has written this is the best. You can feel the excitement, love, and hate in each page. If you are a landlubber, better take some dramamine before you start reading, as the descriptions of the storms can make you seasick. The book is a love story with lots of nautical action to keep the reader's attention. The book is hard to put down, as the reader is pulled into the story with the captain and the crew.. Will John make landfall, with all his body parts? Will the boat sink and the crew vanish? The stories are so well written, that I felt that I should put on my foul weather gear. You should buy the first edition of this book, it could replace the Old Man and the Sea !

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy It, Read It, Love It, December 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Flirting With Mermaids: The Unpredictable Life of a Sailboat Delivery Skipper (Hardcover)

This is a great book! I dreaded finishing it as I saw the pages rapidly flying by. Mr. Kretschmer's every day adventures as a sailboat delivery skipper are very entertaining, but the true wealth in this book is this guy's attitude. An inspiration to all, sailors and landlubbers, who are concious of their voyage across this little blue planet.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hurricane Bob Survivor, December 3, 1999

By 

Benjamin W. Pearce (Baltimore, MD) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Flirting With Mermaids: The Unpredictable Life of a Sailboat Delivery Skipper (Hardcover)

I was with John on the voyage through Hurricane Bob, and am alive today as a result of his expert seamanship and calm nerves. John is as great a story teller as he is a sailor. Here's to you John, the "real" Captain Ron. A good read.