A Smiling Sailor
Many of you have probably seen this week’s Campus Celebrity’s smiling face all around campus! Geoffrey Nelson is currently a freshman here at Eckerd College. He says he first heard about Eckerd when his high school counselor told him about it. Geoffrey decided to come to Eckerd, because of the Sailing Team and the stellar Business Administration program. He hopes to combine his two reasons for coming to Eckerd to run his own sailing business. In addition to his membership on the sailing team, Geoffrey is involved with recycling on campus and works for the waterfront as a sailing instructor and in the shop.
Geoffrey loves being a sailing instructor because sailing truly is his passion and he enjoys sharing what he loves about sailing. Despite his love of sailing, Geoffrey says thatlearning to sail is not always sunshine and rainbows. He warns that when someone is first learning to sail it is easy to get frustrated as masteringsailing takes a lot of work and practice. Geoffrey does not want to dissuade people from learning to sail. If you find yourself wanting to sail, he encourages you to put in the effort and work. It will be well worth it in the end, Geoffrey would know since he’s been sailing for eleven years now!
Geoffrey’s passion for sailing began when his family moved to Rockwell, Texas and his mom signed him up for a sailing camp to get him out and about in the community. As it turns out, he loved it and his sailing career took off! Fun fact: Geoffrey won his first race and has continued to win ever since. So far, his greatest sailing accomplishment was being a part of the US National Sailing Team.One of the best parts about being an accomplished sailor is all the travelling Geoffrey gets to do. In addition to traveling to over 30 states, Geoffrey has also traveled abroad to Curacao, the Netherlands, France, England, Italy, and Slavonic for sailing.
Geoffrey truly is passionate about sailing in general as he enjoys all kinds of sailing, primarily becausethere are different aspects to each type. He enjoys lake sailing, because he grew up with it. Intercostal sailing is really fun to be in the channels and around other boats. He also really likes offshore sailing for the gorgeous views. In addition to the beautiful scenery, Geoffrey likes the sense of freedom provided by offshore sailing because anything can happen out there on the water. When I asked Geoffrey what his favorite type of boat was, he couldn’t give me an answer. He loves them all!
He will be the instructor for the Small Boat Sailing Course the weekend of April 11th. Geoffrey advises those wanting to learn how to sail to just be patient. It can be frustrating and although it might seem as though you’re not getting it at all, it will click eventually. Also have fun with it, and don’t forget to enjoy the peacefulness that comes with being out on the water. This summer Geoffrey looks forward to staying here at Eckerd to continue his role as a sailing instructor at the waterfront.