Author: Dr. Sam

A view over the Double X stern as it motors out of Newport Jetty in the early morning. The ship’s flag is limp, signaling calm winds needed for good motoring conditions, Newport Beach, Calif., June 14, 2016.

A Tough Motor to San Francisco

We left Newport Beach on June 14th to motor up the coast to San Francisco for our departure to the South Seas on July 16th. Typically, the wind whips straight down the coast, so you need to motor up to make any progress at all. (If we sailed up, we would probably still be out there.)

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The Firebird crew (from left to right): Dr. Sam, Captain Bob, Tom Harabee and Bill Crawford (B.C.), Seychelles, March 1977.

The Adventures of the Firebird

Throughout the Double X journey, I thought it would be fun to share highlights of my earlier sailing sabbatical aboard the Firebird over 40 years ago. I’m categorizing these posts under “Blast from the Past.” As luck would have it, Captain Bob, the skipper for the Firebird journey, is also the skipper for the Double X journey.

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Planning the Double X Voyage

All of us on Double X are in the thick of it as we get things ready for our upcoming sailing voyage. As you might expect, the to-do list is a long one as we ready the boat, chart our course, gather the necessary permits and licenses, and get our stateside affairs in order.

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Kicking back on a sunny day aboard the Firebird in typical attire: sunglasses, bare feet and swimsuit, Grenadines, 1978.

Returning to the South Pacific

On July 1, 1978, I sailed into Emerald Bay, Laguna Beach, California, after circumnavigating the world on my 84-foot sailing boat, the Firebird. My then 11-year-old son Rod and his young friends were waiting for me on the beach wearing their cool Quiksilver board shorts.

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The Double X crew sporting our Double X shirt. If you would like one free, email us your name, address, t-shirt size and something you learned from this blog to DoubleXCrew@DrSamsBlog.com and we will be happy to send you one free (U.S. delivery only), while supplies last. We are all in this together!

Welcome Aboard!

I’ll be blogging about our adventures in a couple of weeks. The team is putting the final touches on the

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