John Arndt started Summer Sailstice in 2001 after years of dreaming about a celebration that would grow sailing. He saw participation in sailing decline and wanted to find a way to get boats out of marinas and bring people together on the water.
The first few years, a group of friends sailed together on San Francisco Bay on the summer solstice. But soon after John created a Summer Sailstice website, interest grew across the United States and the idea expanded to what you'll find this weekend: a global sailing holiday.
"Summer Sailstice is my effort to create an event in which all sailors can participate regardless of how or where they sail. It also puts the true nature of sailing on display to help shatter some of the myths and preconceived notions of the non-sailing public," he says.
Summer Sailstice is all about sharing what you love about sailing. It could be racing, cruising with friends, teaching a kid how to sail, chartering a boat in an exotic location, taking a ride on a tall ship or just raising the sails with no destination.
"It's about what it brings to us as sailors. It's very therapeutic, it engages your senses in a compelling way and you get a separation from the struggles of life," John explains, "The world's going faster but I find that most sailors want to slow down."
Previous years have seen Summer Sailstice events in the Bay Area but since Covid the celebration has turned into a do-it-yourself event with sailing clubs and organizations hosting open houses and demonstrations across the globe.
John calls himself the "spark plug" of the event now. With part-time help from a retired cruiser and promotion by local and national media outlets, Summer Sailstice invites sailors around the world to register their event and put a pin on the World Map.
"Summer Sailstice is like a Christmas tree, we all bring a different personal ornament that we hang on it," says John.
Anyone can participate, whether you're in a sailing dinghy that you restored in your garage, or on a yacht racing across the ocean. You can be the skipper or the crew. The goal is to engage sailors in community builiding.
John's words never rang truer than in today's times:"It's world peace through sailing."
Summer Sailstice is his love letter to the sailing world. How can you thank him for his decades of devotion? Join the world and GO SAILING on June 21st.
Listen to Latitude 38's Good Jibe's podcast to hear John's interview on Summer Sailstice: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/good-jibes-with-latitude-38/id1582842517
John grew up sailing on a Rhodes 19 on the coast of Maine with his grandfather and sailed and taught sailing in college. Since then he's raced and cruised on the east and west coasts, the Caribbean and the Med, and can most often be found sailing his home water of San Francisco Bay on his Sabre 38, Finistere. He joined Latitude 38 in 1987, becoming publisher in 2016.
John has received several awards for his efforts to promote sailing including the 2015 Distinguished Service Award at the United States Sailboat Show in Annapolis, MD, and as the 2023 Yachtsman of the Year by Pacific Interclub Yachting Association of Northern California. He has served on boards such as the Northern California Marine Association, Sail America and SailSFBay.
