OWNERS’ CLUBPHOTOGRAPHS: BILLY BLACK; GETTY IMAGES
David Miller
From homemade childhood boats
to his beautiful, Italian-designed
100ft yachtJupiter, David Miller tells
Grace Trofaabout his continuing
love of no-frills sailingI built my first sailboat when I was in
the third grade. I would forage for
lumber, craft it into something and then
take it out on the water for as long as it
would float. I sailed with the Sea
Scouts in high school, in college I
raced on large offshore racers and at 28
bought my first real sailboat, a Ranger- I have had a progression of boats.
After the Ranger 26, I had a Ranger 32,
a Frers 36, an S&S 43 designed by
Frers, and a Jonmeri 48. I don’t race
any more; nowadays it’s out of control
with new sails after every race and paid
crew, but you know the only time a sailor
is not racing is when he doesn’t have his
sails. Whether a big cruising boat or a 12
Metre, we are always trying to get the
best out of our vessels. I first saw
Jupiter advertised in the Med and was
fascinated by her history. She is an
aluminum yacht built by Cantiere Ferri,
now part of Wally, and one of the first
expedition, long distance, self-sufficient
boats, yet very much a yacht. As an
engineer I appreciate that there is a
redundancy and simplicity in everything,
plus she is a beautiful sailing boat. Her
Italian designer, Giorgetti & Magrini,
also built the 12 Metre class Italia, which
competed in the America’s Cup. We use
our boat every third weekend and
whenever it is not chartered. For sunset
cocktails, I enjoy the beautiful aft deck
MY LIFE IN BOATSby the mizzen while my wife would say
her favorite spot is the spacious cockpit.
We spent Christmas aboard Jupiter in
the harbor in Barcelona; it was brisk but
the heat and the cockpit enclosure
worked. We even had a Christmas
tree. It’s not easy getting four children
aged 32 to 17 in one place at the same
time but it was a fantastic five days of
Christmas cheer. I always had designs
to sail around the world, but now
around the world is not so inviting as it
used to be. I think we will stick to the
places we want to be, like the Med and
the northern Europe area. My children
like to be on board for long-distance
crossings so we enjoy that time
together. What keeps me captivated
and in love with sailing is that
connection to nature and the whole
cosmos, without any frills and away
from our built-up civilization that we
think is so important. The only thing
you can count on is that the sun and
the moon will come up at a certain time.
It is fascinating to be a part of that
natural rhythm.WWW.BOATINTERNATIONAL.COMSAIL AWAY
The Med and
northern Europe
are favorite
cruising grounds.
The family spent
the holidays last
year in BarcelonaTOYS FOR BOYS
David’s boats have
grown up with him95