Hiring an approved Moderator is required before your course can be sanctioned by US Sailing. You will find a listing of approved Moderators below. If you would like to use someone not on the list below, you must submit (in writing) a sailing and teaching/speaking resume of your candidate for US Sailing approval at the same time you submit your Organizer Agreement. The Moderator must be approved by US Sailing before your course will be sanctioned or posted on the calendar.
Your Moderator should provide ongoing support as well as organizing and promotional guidance in the months preceding the course. S/he handles one or more of the key presentations, is the linkage between the indoor sessions and outdoor demonstrations, and connects what is happening on the water to the classroom presentations. A continuous stream of conversation with the audience is useful and instructive. Moderators are up-to-date safety experts, experienced public speakers, and have mastery of their subjects.
Coastal Safety at Sea Course Moderator
(Any Offshore Safety at Sea Moderator can run this course)
Offshore Safety at Sea Course Moderators
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 Mark Lenci Natick, MA (617) 515-8050 marklenci@gmail.comMark is a retired US Navy Captain. His Navy career was primarily in attack submarines and he commanded USS Houston (SSN 713). Mark has sails primarily in New England and the Canadian Maritimes and has cruised in various areas around the world. He holds various professional certifications including a USCG 100T Masters License and the RYA/MCA Yachtmaster Ocean certificate of competence. Mark has presented at multiple Safety at Sea Courses and is considered one of the best at sharing his leadership and seamanship insights. |
| Rich du Moulin Larchmont, NY (914) 834-0061 rtdumoulin@gmail.com Rich is an ex-Commodore of the Storm Trysail Club where he founded the Junior Safety at Sea program of Courses. He is an active double-handed racer and shares the Hong Kong to New York record with Rich Wilson aboard Great American II. Rich has raced in 23 Bermuda Races and many Fastnet, Sydney-Hobart, Transpac, and Transatlantic, recently on Carina with Rives Potts and their sons and friends. Rich owns and operates ships and is actively involved with international maritime safety. |
 Jonathan Kabak Portsmouth, RI (917) 309-4790 jkabak@gmail.comJonathan is an internationally recognized expert on maritime training and education and serves as Chair of Tall Ships America’s Ship Operation and Safety Committee. He holds an Unlimited STCW Endorsement and 1600/3000ton USCG Auxiliary Sail Master’s License and has sailed in command of vessels ranging from landmark tall ships to high-performance racing sailboats. Currently, he serves as CEO of Oliver Hazard Perry Rhode Island, where he also is captain of the 200’ Square Rigged Ship OLIVER HAZARD PERRY. His involvement with US Sailing/World Sailing Safety at Sea began in the early 2000s, and his particular interest is in sharing the universal value in the foundations of proper seamanship. |
 Chuck Hawley Santa Cruz, CA (831) 406-9132 hawley.chuck@gmail.comChuck served as the Chairman of the Safety at Sea Committee of US Sailing from 2011 to 2017 and has moderated over 80 Safety at Sea Courses in the past 20 years. He co-authored the Safety at Sea handbook, as well as being the creator of the online Safety at Sea course. He is an active sailor, having logged over 40,000 miles on a variety of sail and power craft, including six transoceanic passages. |
 Sheila McCurdy Middletown, RI (401) 847-0051 sheilamccurdy@mac.comSheila has run SAS courses in the U.S, Canada, and Bermuda for over 10 years. She has sailed the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans logging over 100,000 offshore miles on boats from 35 to 65 feet. On her 38-footer Selkie, she has skippered ten Newport Bermuda Races out of a total of 17. She holds a 100-ton master's license. She ran the National Faculty for US Sailing for 13 years and advised on safety and coaching at US Naval Academy Sailing for 20 years. She is a past commodore of the Cruising Club of America. |
 John Miller Oceanside, CA (760) 650-6901 findjohn@sailaweigh.orgJohn is a USCG MM Master 100T with Sailing Endorsement; over 45 years on the water spanning most of the United States coast, inland lakes, and waterways. He is a certified sailing instructor. Over the past 6 years, he has organized, conducted, and instructed many US Sailing Safety at Sea Seminars in SoCal certifying over 800 sailors, cruisers, racers as well as powerboaters. John is proud to work with some of the best sailors on the West Coast to deliver safety programs in SoCal; Bruce Brown, Chuck Hawley, John Jourdane, Peter Isler and Keith Kilpatrick to name a few. More recently, John was asked to become the Safety Programs Committee Chair for SCYA. He is a proud member of OYC and Transpacific Yacht Clubs. |
 Brian Pinkston St. Petersburg, FL (727) 353-7727 koasailing@gmail.comBrian is a USCG Captain and avid sailing instructor, focused on providing safe sailing education to prospective racers and cruisers. He has accrued over 15,000 sea miles across Hawaii, the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, Pacific Northwest and US East Coast, racing and cruising on a variety of boats including his 51-foot sloop. Brian is a retired Air Force flight surgeon, and currently teaches medical care in austere environments, as well as first aid and CPR. Brian teaches Medicine at Sea for the Wilderness Medical Society, and is currently the Dive Medicine Committee Chair. He has provided medical care on all seven continents, and has worked with numerous Coast Guard rescue operations across the Pacific. |
 Cheryl Lowry St.Petersburg, FL (727) 353-7727 koasailing@gmail.comCheryl is an active sailing instructor and a USCG licensed captain. She has raced in the Chesapeake Bay, the Panhandle of Florida, and the Tampa Bay Area. She divides her time between sailing and teaching in Florida and throughout the Caribbean aboard several vessels, including her 51 foot sloop. She is responsible for the Wilderness Medical Society’s MedSail program, educating medical professionals in techniques as a ship’s medical officer. She has over 15,000 sea miles throughout the US and the Caribbean. As a retired military flight surgeon, she still provides consultation for shipboard medical operations in the US Antarctic program. |
 Debbie Huntsman Phoenix, AZ (623) 780-8787 huntsmand@me.comDebbie Huntsman, a product of her father’s intensive MacGyver training, began as a Boating Safety Education Instructor in 1997. Along with continually developing her seamanship — safety while having fun has been a primary focus in her sailing. A licensed Coast Guard Captain, Debbie has served the sailing community for over 30 years in a variety of capacities with State, Federal and non-profits agencies. She has sailed most of the west coast of the US and Mexico and loves the splendour of offshore sailing. She raced from Pensacola to Havana on a very fast boat, loving every minute of the adventure. With her husband, Debbie helped train law enforcement officers, patrolled San Diego harbor after 9-11 and has found her way to Safety at Sea, where she can apply her wide array of sailing and training experiences with an emphasis of benefiting women. |
 Ed Huntsman Phoenix, AZ (602) 363-9395 ehuntsman@me.comEd retired as the recreational boating safety program manager for the Eighth Coast Guard District, headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana. A licensed Coast Guard Captain with Sailing and Assistance Towing endorsements, he has served the greater boating safety community for almost 30 years in a variety of different capacities with NGOs, state and Federal agencies. Author of numerous published articles dealing with boating safety, education and related issues, Ed has lectured and presented on these topics across the country at recreational and commercial boating events, conferences, law enforcement and industry gatherings. He has taught numerous hands-on and classroom courses to law enforcement officers, first responders, commercial mariners, off-shore racers, cruisers and recreational boaters across the country. |
 John Schafer Arlington, VA (240) 401-8220 445velocity@gmail.comUSCG Capt. 100 Oceans, Sail and Towing. “Schafe” has over thirty years of sailing and over 30,000 miles of offshore racing experience (+60,000 miles of deliveries). Both his Sailing and Risk Management careers have been spent training and supporting rescue and recovery operations as an insurance special risk responder. He is also a United Nations, Department of Safety and Security Certified Coordinator. He has developed safety programs that have been adopted industry-wide, responded to security incidents, and developed and trained hundreds of maritime safety professionals in crisis response. Schafe has directed security for organizations in Kabul, managed logistics on the docks of Karachi, trained and prepared safe routing for global racing campaigns. His worldwide experience (100 countries) provides a blend of risk management with boaters safety which is then mixed with dynamic stories and interactive presentations. |
 Michael Bush Chicago, IL (847) 648-1148 donaldmbush@lewisu.eduA Firefighter/Paramedic for over 30 years, he recently retired from the Oak Park Fire Department in Suburban Chicago, attaining the rank of Battalion Chief. He holds U.S. Sailing Keelboat, Safety at Sea, and CPR certifications. Michael has 25 years of sailing experience on a wide variety of sailboats from 14 to 66 feet. He has 20,000+ miles sailed in a number of MAC, Super MAC, Super Hook, NOOD, Verve, Grenada race week, Port-to-Port, and weekly racing on the Great Lakes as well as speaking at Safety at Sea events since 2007. Having competed in 20 Chicago Mac races, five as person-in-charge, he draws upon extensive crewed, double-handed, and solo sailing experience. |
Bruce Brown Costa Mesa, CA (714)435-9264 Hands-on Course Moderators
| Bruce Brown | Costa Mesa, CA | (714) 435-9264 | b2brown51@att.net |
| Rich du Moulin | Larchmont, NY | (914) 834-0061 | rtdumoulin@gmail.com |
| Chuck Hawley | Santa Cruz, CA | (831) 406-9132 | hawley.chuck@gmail.com |
| Jonathan Kabak | Portsmouth, RI | (917)309-4790 | jkabak@gmail.com |
| Mark Lenci | Natick, MA | (617) 515-8050 | marklenci@gmail.com |
| Sheila McCurdy | Middletown, RI | (401) 847-0051 | sheilamccurdy@mac.com |
| John Miller | Oceanside, CA | (760) 650-6901 | findjohn@sailaweigh.org |
| Dan O'Connor | Little Compton, RI | (401) 835-3740 | oconnordan@icloud.com |
Ralf Steitz Treasure Island, FL (516) 423-6422 ralfsteitz@gmail.com
Ralf is the President of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Foundation, following 15 years as the USMMA director of offshore sailing activities. His experience includes the America’s Cup, transoceanic races, Maxi Worlds, and Farr 40 Worlds. He is the recipient of the Timothea Larr Award for excellence in sailing instruction and coaching.
