About Us
Our Mission
SV Beyond is a sailing venture led by Dan, a father of two teenage sons, Sam and Cody. We want to explore uncharted waters, pushing beyond fears and norms. Our quest is that of all mariners, to seek out distant shores, to test our mettle and experience adventure. We hope to inspire others to listen to that small voice inside that whispers about living a life less ordinary.
The world is burning and I want to go sailing? We still have to live our lives. There is a reason God gave me this desire. I have no idea why but I will discover why.
SV Beyond is a sailor's boat. We want to take her far. Which in 2024 is challenging but we will navigate the unknown, transcend barriers and fears to add to the library of sailing adventures.
Our mission is to inspire a spirit of exploration, personal growth, and the pursuit of freedom, encouraging individuals to embrace life beyond conventional boundaries.
There are dark clouds on the horizon. We are going to be tested again.
The lesson from the sea is clear. This is not a time to hunker down. This is a time to stand, keep your hand steady on the tiller and steer your boat.
We have some ambitious plans for expedition sailing, God willing, to the ends of the Earth.
Photo Gallery
The Boat
Beyond is a Freedom 40 centre cockpit cat ketch from 1979. It was designed by Gary Hoyt. He was a well known sailor and a bit of a maverick. His philosophy was that of 'Freedom' and in this boat it was in the unstayed masts. There are no wires holding up the masts. Instead they are carbon fibre, lightweight and strong. He rigged it with innovative double skinned sails that wrapped around the masts.
We have rigged it with a junk rig, an ancient Chinese system, which together with modern materials creates a cool blend of tradition and modernity. The junk rig gets rid of tensions and loading which gives efficient sail handling, increased safety, and improved ease of use. It's especially easy to reef.
She is also designed to be lightweight and achieves this by being a balsa core construction - fibreglass skins encasing balsa which gives you a light and strong hull with great insulation. The drawback is that it has to be well maintained. Any water ingress into the balsa can be a bit disastrous.
The Freedom 40 never became a big production run. In total some 40 (I think) were made and they all had room for some customisation. Our Beyond comes with a pivoting daggerboard which gives us lots of options because of the shallow draft.
She has an air of creativity and thinking outside the box about her, especially when you consider her age. We like her and how she marries historical wisdom, contemporary materials and clever thinking.
