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Meet the Crew
Click a name to send an email to that
person. Email addresses are also shown in the
left column of every page, along with phone numbers.
Rick Zern (RZ)
850.261.4129
Rick
Zern started sailing at the age of ten in optimist
dinghies, and board boats. Growing up in Fort
Walton Beach, Florida around the corner from Fort
Walton Beach Yacht Club, he also sailed in Flying
Scots, Flying Juniors, Lasers, Hobie Cats of
all sizes, CCA, MORC, IOR and then PHRF classes.
After college in Pensacola, Rick
spent a short amount of time working for the EPA
but then decided to follow his passion in the sailing
industry and worked at Paul Schreck and Company Sailmakers,
Horizon Sails and Schurr Sails. In the early
1980s he started a rigging company to augment
the sailmaking businesses and this was the foundation
of Zern Rigging. The passion for the sport
and the industry is still there today as can be
witnessed with his participation in the Laser,
Melges 32, PHRF, multihulls and other popular
classes.
Ryan Elrite
850.293.3915
Ryan
started racing with us on the Beneteau 47.7 "Pretty
Woman" several
years ago and was part of the Key West Race Week winning
crew in 2005. His many years of experience
in re-building vintage Volkwagens and his "engineer
like" approach to the task at hand has made
him a natural for the rigging business. He is a
wizard at furling sytems, sail handling systems, winch
rebuilding, electrical wiring on masts, and more. Currently
he is big part of the Melges 32 program involved
with the Hurricane Racing team from Pensacola.
David Johnson (DJ)
850.292.8414
DJ
was brought up in the Pensacola Yacht Club sailing
programs first as a student and then later as an instructor.
His father had several sailboats culminating with a
J/44 before he moved on to a trawler. He is a USCG
Licensed Captain and has literally thousands of offshore
miles having crossed the Atlantic on the IY 60 "Belle" (another
Zern Rigging prepared vessel.) DJ is an officer
in the local Laser Fleet as well as a competitor in
Flying Scots, Melges 32s, the Tripp 33 and other
PHRF Boats.
Bob Patroni
850.221.2895
Bob
is a retired college Professor, the owner/operator
of Floridaze Sailing schools and an avid competitor
in the local PHRF Fleet. Bob has placed and won
his class at Key West Race Week numerous times and
has raced and cruised to Cuba, just to name a few
of his endeavors.
Jeff Zern
850.777.0970
Jeff was
the first employee at Zern Rigging when he started
at age four when he was hoisted up his first mast. Jeff
is currently a senior at the University of Florida
in Gainesville where he is a member of the sailing
club as well as an employee/instructor with that group. Jeff
actively sails with the I-20 catamaran class, Lasers
and other multihulls.
Rick Zern's Sailing Highlights
- 1973 Flying Scot North American Champs 3rd
place with Geo. Haynie and Jim Stitt sailing PYC
Scot #2062
- 1974 – 1978 Several Mid Winter and
North American Championship Competitions with
PYC’s Paul Schreck
- Capri 25 North American Champion - 2 Times (1986 & 1987)
on “Blitzkrieg” and “Eight Ball”
- G-Cat National Champion 1988 on G-Cat 5.7 “DinahMoeHumm”
- Florida State Catamaran Champion 1988 –“DinahMoeHumm”
- Dauphin Island Race Elapse Time Record Holder,
1st to Finish, 1st Overall w/ PYC member J. Bernard
on “FAYA”
- 1989 Round the Island Race Winner and current Record
Holder (9:49:13) w/ PYC’s Steve Bellows as
crew
- 1993-1996 Mug Race First to Finish on “Carbon
Copy” SC22 w/ Doug Harkrider
- 1995 PYC “Yachtsman of the Year Award”
- F-28 National Champion with Don Wigston & Doug
Harkrider –1996
- 1996 PYC “Crewman of the Year Award”
- F-31 National Champion with Doug Harkrider “Ockams
Razor” – 1997
- Key West Race Week 1998 Viper 830 Class – 1st – “Extreme
Measures” w/Doug Harkrider
- Key West Race Week 2001 PHRF E 2nd – with
Rod Johnstone on the new J/109 “Mariah”
- 2001 GORC !st in Class B – “Hot Toddy” w/
John Guy, Jr.
- 2002 Gulfport to Pensacola 1st in Class Multihull
Fleet w/ PYC’s Bert Rice,Sr.on “Mark
Twain”
- Round the Island 2002 – First in Trimaran
Class “Dealer’s Choice”
- WFORC 2002 – First in Class B, First in Fleet
(Corrected Time) – “Phaedra” w/
Bob Patroni
- Key West Race Week – Corsair 28 Class – 2nd
place _Steve & Tanya Marsh, Phil Styne, R.Zern
- Corsair 28 National Championships 2003 – 3rd
place “Dealer’s Choice”
- Key West Race Week – 2005 Class Champion – helmsman – Beneteau
47.7 – “Pretty Woman”
- West Florida Ocean Racing Circuit – Class
A Winner 2006 & 2007 – Wicked Woman & Evil
Woman
- GYA Challenge Cup – 2007- Class “A” Selectee
for Pensacola Yacht Club - Melges 32 Evil Woman
-3rd
Rick Zern's Personal Accomplishments
- Curriculum Advisor at Pensacola Junior College,
1994 – 2000
- Fleet Captain Pensacola Yacht Club, 1995
- Board of Directors – Pensacola Yacht Club,
1995-1997
- Gulf Yachting Association Offshore Council Executive
Committee,
1993-1997
- Gulf Yachting Association PHRF Comm. Handicapper,
2001-2002
- Pensacola Beach Yacht Club Fleet Captain, 2001
- Pensacola Beach Yacht Club Commodore, 2003
- Pensacola Beach Yacht Club Vice Commodore, 2004
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