JANUARY 2018
OWNERS CLUBPHOTOGRAPHY: GETTY IMAGESRichard Sackett
A New Orleanian who lived
through Hurricane Katrina tells
Grace Trofaabout his 60 years on
the water and the refit of his
92ft BrowardPicassoI bought my first boat with a fraternity
mate while still in college. It was a 31ft
double planked, cypress lugger, and
she was in such bad shape the marina
refused to let us keep her at the
dock. After graduation, we sold her to
a gentleman who used her as a duck
blind. It was through sailing that I met
my wife, Joyce, and it was love at first
sight. It took a year to convince her to
marry me but every day since has been
a honeymoon. After the children were
born, my wife’s confidence in sailboats
dissipated, her convincing argument
was “whenever we go out, we end up
turning on the engine anyway.” We’ve
had five boats, not including tenders,
ranging in size from 25ft to the present
92ft Broward. Our previous boat was a
restored 1967, 65ft Hargrave-Halmatic
and during summer breaks we toured
the Bahamas extensively with our
children. We spent a lot of time at
Atlantis. One morning my wife looked
out across the Atlantis basin, pointed
out a big boat and said: “I want one
of those.” We named the Broward
Picasso, after my favorite artist and
also because in my business I consider
myself an artist. I like to buy boats and
bring them back to their glory – we call
it “Sackettizing.” We gutted the boat
and restored her classic design, adding
Lalique fixtures, marquetry inlaid onMY LIFE IN BOATSknotty birdseye maple, book matched
marble and wood; she’s comfortable
without being intimidating. A month
after buying the Broward, Hurricane
Katrina hit New Orleans, my hometown.
It took five years to rebuild our house.
That prompted us to movethe
business and buy a home in Florida,
where we keep the boat. It is tended
to by identical twins, interchangeable
captain and engineer, who’ve been
with me for 25 years. I’ve had many
memorable trips during my 60 years
on the water. There was the wild race
from New Orleans to Gulfport, 68
boats under sail trying to converge
through a 100ft wide bridge on Lake
Pontchartrain, plagued by thunder,
lightning and rain so heavy you couldn’t
see the front of your boat. And then
there are the wonderful moments and
camaraderie with New York Yacht Club
friends during the annual regatta up in
Maine and the serenity of it all. I love
watching my children head out in the
tender to go fishing and their happiness
when they return with a load of fish.SAIL HARD
Richard’s boat
escapades run the
gamut of a wild race
in Lake Pontchartrain
to Picasso’s total refit>
BAHAMAS
BEAUTIES
The big boats at
Atlantis Resort
inspired Richard
and his wife to
upgrade to a
larger yacht