Sailing is a matter of love for new M-39 Port Captain

Larry Hunter-Blank is the new Port Captain for Belmont Harbor - Chicago, IL (M-39) where he and his wife, Elizabeth, have kept their boat, S/V QE II, for nearly 25 years.  

Larry met Elizabeth (QE I) in 1985. Two months after their meeting, Elizabeth asked, “You know I grew up sailing and I think it is a wonderful hobby. I think you’d like it. Would you be interested in learning how to sail?” Larry explains it is important to keep in mind these important facts:

1.    He only recently met this girl;

2.    He knew then that he liked her;

3.    He grew up and lived in Kansas City, nowhere near any large body of water, and;

4.    He had only been on a sailboat (or any boat for that matter) once before in his life.

So naturally he replied, “You know, I’ve ALWAYS wanted to learn to sail.” More than 40 years later, they continue to learn how to manipulate the boat and sails so that the wind will take them where they want to go. During that time, they have owned three boats: Serendipity, Anticipation and QE II. They sailed S/V Anticipation for five years from Chicago and often dreamed of owning a larger cruising sailboat that would take them across Lake Michigan and beyond. 

For the past three summers aboard QE II, a Catalina 380, they have extended their horizons and sailed through all five of the Great Lakes and into the Atlantic, completing the Down East Loop and earning the Admiral Bayfield Award last fall.