Jerry Kirby: All the Stories are True

Happy July 4th! It feels very patriotic to share with you today the story of a great American sailor.

We were having dinner with a neighbor shortly after I submitted a profile of Jerry Kirby to Seahorse Magazine, and mentioning his name brought on a predictable question: “Wasn’t he the guy who jumped off the Newport Bridge?” I laughed, because that’s how I opened the piece—and absolutely no one had seen it yet except the editor.

Jerry is not just a legend in the sailing world; he’s also a fantastic storyteller, so the hardest part of writing this profile was choosing which tales to include. Sadly, just before publication his younger son lost his life; though we didn’t talk about Seamus very much, I’m glad I got the chance to learn a little bit about him from his very proud Papa.

Seahorse has graciously let me share the article with all of you, but to read Rod Davis’s latest take on why the Olympics can’t be treated like any other regatta, you’ll have to subscribe.

Thanks for reading, and now… here’s… Jerry.