TESTIMONIAL FROM PIERRE-ANDRE & SUZANNE R

I have been dreaming for ever that one day, I would be leaving on my sailboat to go around the world but every time I would think loud about it, my wife Suzanne would look at me and simply say... "We will talk about it later!"

A few years after retiring, I decided to follow the courses of the Blue Water Sailing School and have them at Marsh Harbour in the Bahamas. Surprise, surprise, Suzanne agreed to come with me.

We finally made it to Marsh Harbour and went straight to the Harbour View Marina to be told by Stephen that it was too early and had to come back later. That bizarre welcome allowed us however to discover a bit of the local cuisine.

The following week made us forget that moment very rapidly. While Estelle's smile, cheerfulness and creative cooking made us feel home right away, Stephen's navigation courses, sails and boat handling, tests, etc kept reminding us that we were not and had to work hard and learn fast.

In short, it was a very intense week, with a lot of adventures, work, tests, discoveries and wonderful time and days passing, and more particularly during our discussions at sunset, Estelle and Stephen became our friends.

The results of that week were spectacular. I decided to buy a catamaran and Suzanne accepted to risk it all with me! During the following months, with the help of Stephen, I found a St. Francis 48" cat, Radical Innovation, located in Tortola in the Virgin Islands. Stephen acted as our representative and negotiated very skilfully the purchase of the cat and even accepted to be our Skipper for the 7 day trip back to St. Augustine, Fl. That was a memorable trip but it will be part of my next book.

In conclusion, Estelle and Stephen were not only our teachers, instructors, mentors and negotiators but they also became our friends.

Suzanne et Pierre André, S/Y Radical Innovation

TESTIMONIAL FROM DAVID & PEGGY K

We decided we wanted a more simple lifestyle and we sold our house and all its' contents to move onto our 42' Fountaine Pajot catamaran. Neither of us had done any sailing so we were pretty anxious about taking such a huge step and knew we needed some real hands-on experience. After looking at the various sailing schools out there we decided on Blue Water Sailing out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Lucky for us, the Florida class was changed and we went to the class in Marsh Harbour, Bahamas on a 40' Island Spirit with Stephen and Estelle Cockcroft. We were totally immersed in every aspect of sailing and living on board a catamaran, which is what we needed. The Cockcrofts went above and beyond "teaching" us. They provided us an understanding of catamarans that would have taken us a very long time to discover on our own - that experience is invaluable for novices. When we went home we knew we could handle whatever was thrown at us i.e., how to manage the sails, how to live comfrotably on board, and what to expect with all the systems on board. We can't say enough about the incredible experience we had with them. We highly recommend sail school and if you're lucky enough to get a couple like Stephen and Estelle you won't regret it.

Dave and Peggy King from S/Y Simplicity

Read their blog

TESTIMONIAL FROM DEON & JANINE R

Stephen and Estelle's ongoing willingness to provide us with practical guidance has been phenomenal. Their 20+ years of cruising experience and being in the yachting business is a great source for novices like us. Through their Active Yacht Ownership Program, they helped us set up our Sea School Business in the Bahamas three years ago which is still going strong. If you are in the market for a boat the Yacht Guru's can make it a pleasant long term experience.

Deon & Janine Rae, S/Y Kanina

www.kaninasailing.com

TESTIMONIAL FROM MARC & BRANDI M

We first met Stephen and Estelle when we enrolled in the Blue Water Sailing "Sea School," Marsh Harbor, Bahamas in 2007. We had planned on attending another sailing school, but thankfully decided on BWSS at the last minute. We made our decision based on the amount of time BWSS courses spend on the water versus other programs that have you cooped up in a classroom for hours a day and require you to spend your evenings in a hotel. We were happy to learn that the entire BWSS "Sea School" would be spent aboard a beautiful 43'catamaran and that the class size was perfect: two couples and Stephen and Estelle traveling through the Abacos. From the start of the class, we knew we had made the right decision. Both Stephen and Estelle introduced us to life as live aboard cruisers. Estelle took us through provisioning for the trip and establishing a level of "comfort" while aboard and Stephen introduced us to the "single sheet" per person use of the head. Each day we would work, learn, and sail the boat as if it we were ours and we were making our own passage. Having a destination for each day made the learning fun and challenging. Each of the four students received hours of hands on experience at each sailing position and the learning and confidence gained was invaluable. During the course, we all were given ample time to earn our "Plonker" status and the constructive reinforcement from Stephen and Estelle served to further our confidence that we could handle ourselves safely on the water. Anyone who has the opportunity to spend time with the Cockcrofts knows that their experiences as blue water cruisers are worth the price of the course. We have stayed in close contact with the Cockcrofts since attending our first BWSS course and today, we value the Gurus as some of our closest friends. We have learned so much from them and are looking forward to working with Stephen and Estelle as we prepare to purchase our own yacht and begin our life with our family on the water.

Marc & Brandi Murphy

A number of years ago my wife and I decided that retirement in the Caribbean may be an option and living on a catamaran was also a possibility. So first things first, take a catamaran school. After much discussion about which school to take we ended up in the Abacos with our instructors Stephen and Estelle. This was a great experience, we not only got a sailing school but the complete package, how to live abord and the introduction to the crusing lifestyle. We bought our yacht through them and we have shared many good times together on board. We won the Caribbean 1500 Rally on 'R & R', skippered by Stephen, another great learning experience! More helpful and knowledgeable people you would be had pressed to find.

Reg & Rita Noble from S/Y R&R

Proud winners of the Caribbean 1500 Rally

 TESTIMONIAL FROM BOB AND DEB R

My wife, Deb, and I attended the 2009 Annapolis Boat Show, where we fell in love with the style and design of  Stephen and Estelle's 45ft sailing catamaran, ZURI, displayed at the show.

Looking ZURI over, we met Stephen Cockcroft, (and his lovely wife Estelle), who sat down and reviewed our needs with us. Based on our financial situation, Stephen introduced us to the Active Yacht Ownership concept, and explored ways to make that happen.

He was the consummate knowledgeable professional, and introduced us to many other experts in finance, charter, and even Boat technical services and repair.

We worked together for 8 months to bring our dream into reality. We will always be grateful to Stephen for making that happen for us... But that is not where the story ends. The real test of a Broker and his commitment to the customer comes after the sale, particularly if there are problems with the vessel, and after all, don't all boats have a few problems?

Ours turned out to be much more significant than what was detected during the survey. And yet, Stephen engaged with the manufacturer on our behalf and had them resolve a number of costly repairs.

Further, as we wanted to enhance and modify our boat to our needs, Stephen consulted with us on the best ways to do the work and recommended numerous contractors to select from. He also periodically dropped by to visit the vessel and inspect the work in progress. And yes, he even kicked some ass from time to time to keep the work moving and up to the quality he demanded on our behalf.

Through all of this, we worked together, and Deb an I found something even more important to us along the way... Two great new friends. How many people can actually say that after their own deals have been completed?

We highly recommend Stephen as one of the most knowledgable Brokers that you could ever work with. If you are considering Stephen, give me a call anytime to discuss our own experience in detail.

Sincerely;

Bob and Debra Rainford from S/Y Persistence

Fractional Ownership Program for Persistence

TESTIMONIAL FROM MARK C

When I decided to purchase my first sailing catamaran in 2008 I knew very little about the boat purchasing process but luckily I did know the "Yacht Guru", Stephen Cockcroft. The decision to work with Stephen as my broker was an easy one. Stephen's vast knowledge about boats, the boat industry and the cruising lifestyle was made very apparent to me when I attended a sailing school he instructed a year earlier. I knew that the purchase process would go smooth working with him and I was very impressed with his dedication and helpfulness. Starting with locating and inspecting the boat, establishing whether it was worth pursuing (before I ever bought an airline ticket to see it myself), to spending a day sailing on the boat with me after the purchase to ensure I understood all the systems and that it were all working properly.

After the purchase Stephen helped me locate and vet a company to do some restoration work to the boat before I picked it up. Stephen even stopped in to check on progress few times when I could not. The final results were amazing.

To this day I still rely on Stephen to answer questions about my boat and sailing in general. Typically I find that he has "been there and done that". So thank you both, Stephen and Estelle, for your guidance that helped me achieve my dream of open water adventure!

-Mark Callender from S/Y Stray Cat

TESTIMONIAL FROM SARAH AND GEORGE H

...Through all of this, we'd been looking at the three cabin version of the Lagoon 380. We'd always thought the galley was too small (we are foodies and both love to cook!). But with Stephen and Estelle's wise advice that "every boat is a compromise" ringing true to us, and with positive input from him about the quality of these boats, plus lots of talk and pictures from Lagoon owners concerning galley improvements, we began to see that this was the boat for us.

We found a suitable Lagoon 380 for sale in our area in the fall of 2009. In February 2010, Stephen acted as our broker for the purchase of our 2003 cat, now named Mirador. She's waiting impatiently for our house to sell so we can slip the lines and begin our adventures. Thank you, Stephen and Estelle, for helping us nurture our cruising dreams. See ya out there! Read their story here.

Sarah & George S/Y Mirador

TESTIMONIAL FROM DENNIS & CINDY F

I have known Stephen and Estelle Cockcroft since 2004. I contacted them the first time looking for advice on buying a catamaran. At the time, the choices for cats were limited. Most were slow and would not perform and I wanted something that would tack through less than 100 degrees and had some get up and go. I called Stephen as well as many other brokers and had a long chat with each one. It was clear that Stephen knew cats and cruising. I found the ones who spend the most advertising Multihulls - simply want to take your money - they are not interested in what I need - only about what they can fleece from my pocket.

We made arrangements to meet the Cockcrofts at the Annapolis Boat Show in 2005. From the moment we meet Stephen and Estelle we were comfortable and able to communicate clearly. They made it their business to understand what our needs were and helped us to make the right selection.

As it turned out the cat we picked was built by a company that had financial trouble - which no could have known about. In the end, the builder went into foreclosure. I had paid for most of the boat and had title, but that meant I needed to go to South Africa and rescue the boat from the clutches of some very greedy folk. It was Stephen who flew to South Africa with me - at his expense - and helped me rescue the boat, helped get it ready for transit and helped get it to Houston. Without his help I would have probably lost the boat and all my money. I do not know another broker who would have done what they did for us.

So, yes I can tell you with out reservation that Stpehen and Estelle are honest and forthright folk - who standby you through thick and thin - no matter what is going on. They have my complete trust. When I buy another cat, my first call will be to Stephen and Estelle Cockcroft. 'nuff said.

Dennis & Cindy Frakes from S/V Kewl Breeze