Crew and Captain

Robert James Read

Robert turned one year old on July 14, 2005. At the time we were at Bishop Bay Hot Springs, and he got to spend the afternoon swimming and enjoying the warm spring water with his mom, dad, and grandmother.

He spent six months of his early life on the boat, from age 11 months to 16 months. Much of his early words and experiences were nautical. At the time, if you asked him what a bird said, he would screech “aah, aah,” like a seagull.

Robert’s third birthday was celebrated in Puerto Vallarta. One of his favorite gifts was a toy guitar, and he now knows the words to the **”bridge”** of Cieto Lindo, a Mexican folk song.

He is learning English, Spanish, and nautical languages. He can count from one to fifteen in Spanish, knows all of his colors, knows rapido and despacio, and lots of other Spanish words. He loves to make new amigos, and knows how to say “Me llamo Robert,” and “tengo tres anos.”

Robert’s main job as crew is ambassador. His blue eyes and sweet smile combined with knowledge of

Spanish will quickly turn any stranger into a friend.

Amy Parker Read

Amy's sailing experience prior to 2005 included teaching a sailing class at summer camp, where she never really mastered how to sail back to the dock. Upon purchasing Calpurnia, she completed a Basic Keelboat 101 class in Clear Lake, TX. She is now capable of taking her fair share of solitary night watches when necessary to sail the boat safely to the next port.  She has mastered the use of the onboard navigation system, radar, and VHF radio.

Her main duties on board include keeping the family fed and clean. This includes purchasing, stowing and preparing food for three meals a day, frequent trips to the lavanderia (Laundromat), and doing her best to keep the interior of the boat somewhat presentable (ship shape is out of the question). Much of her time is also spent trying to entertain and educate Robert. In her spare time (lol) she takes photographs, writes blogs, and reads for pleasure.

Mark Lee Read

Prior to 2005, Mark sailed in college with a friend and also as part of the Baylor University sailing team. When he found himself with much extra time on his hands he came up with a plan to go sailing. That’s when the Reads Sailing Adventures started. His current goal is to sail through the Panama Canal and back to our “home port” of Houston, Texas.

On board, Mark is captain, engineer, plumber, ham radio operator, husband and dad. He is responsible for the boat and the dream. He knows how everything on board operates. If anything breaks down (and everything will), he either knows how to fix it or he knows how to find out how to fix it.

He is a very cautious and careful captain, and only sails if the whole crew is in agreement on the next step of the journey. He has captained our boat through narrow passages, swift rapids, and deep anchorages on the Inside Passage, through huge waves, long nights and risky bar crossings on the West Coast, and through hot windless days and diving dolphins in the warmer Mexican Pacific.