About Sailing Roam

Welcome to Sailing Roam — your digital anchorage, marina, library, and chandlery on the web. We’re Geri and Shawn, a couple who traded conventional life for a less ordinary one, and this site is where we share our story, discoveries, and lessons learned as we pursue our dreams aboard our cruising catamaran.

Our Story

We started dreaming about living a less conventional life back in 2011, long before we ever stepped aboard a yacht. With three growing boys at home, school, sports, work, bills … life was full but the dream lived on.

In December 2014, we chartered a small power catamaran for a week in the San Juan Islands. If we could have fun on a small boat in winter, perhaps we could live this dream someday. We were hooked.

In 2019, we bought our first yacht — a 2005 Meridian 490 — and moved aboard. For three and a half years we lived and cruised aboard 2nd Circus in places like the Puget Sound, Hood Canal, San Juan Islands, Canadian Gulf Islands, and Desolation Sound.

In early 2023, we sold everything — our home, cars, business, land, clothes, tools … anything we didn’t need to chase the dream of roaming the world by boat. We moved to Guatemala to close on our new sailing catamaran Roam and began living a less conventional life.

Meet the Crew

Sailing Roam is Geri and Shawn — two people who love cats, helping others, and figuring things out as we go (we’re still not sure how those are all connected, but they are).

Shawn is the over thinker. Geri is the one who puts up with it. Shawn manages to be both an idealist and a realist at the same time — sometimes those sides work beautifully together, and sometimes they argue loudly in his head. Geri brings calm, practicality, and a quiet confidence that keeps projects moving when they’d otherwise spiral.

We’re drawn to small, unexpected moments — like the old wooden swings we once found on a sandbar at Pipe Cay in the Bahamas. It was one of those simple discoveries that sticks with you. We loved it so much, we wrote a song about it. Music has always been part of our lives, and creating it is something we want to share more of as Sailing Roam grows.

Shawn can fix just about anything, which is both a superpower and a curse. Sometimes things really should be thrown away. Other times, that same stubborn determination gets us out of a bind when replacement parts are nowhere to be found. Geri, meanwhile, bakes what we firmly believe is the best bread in the world — a crucial skill when you live on a boat.

We love shiny things… even if we can’t always keep them shiny. Geri retired from her career as an operating room nurse. Shawn didn’t retire, and isn’t sure he ever will. What we have retired from is waiting for “someday.”

Every day, we try to move our projects forward, find new adventures, meet new friends, and experience new cultures. Some days we get to do all of that. Other days, all we can manage is poking at projects and trying to stay motivated. Those days are harder — and they’re just as much a part of this journey as the sunsets and anchorages.

Sailing Roam is about sharing all of it: the progress, the pauses, the mistakes, and the moments that remind us why we chose this life in the first place.

Why This Lifestyle

We didn’t choose this life to escape something — we chose it because we were drawn toward something. A slower pace, deeper experiences, and the chance to learn by doing instead of watching from the sidelines. This lifestyle isn’t always easy, but it’s intentional.

We chose this path because:

• We value first-hand experiences over second-hand stories
• We want to spend our time learning new places and cultures
• “Someday” stopped feeling like a plan worth waiting for

This lifestyle lets us stay curious, stay challenged, and stay present — even on the hard days.

Why a Boat?

A boat is a strange mix of home, vehicle, and long-term project — and that’s exactly why it works for us. It gives us independence, forces us to understand our systems, and creates opportunities you just don’t get any other way.

Living on a boat means:

• Our home moves with us
• We can anchor in places cars can’t reach
• Daily life and adventure happen in the same space
• Simplicity and complexity exist side by side

A boat doesn’t make life easier — it makes it more intentional. And for us, that trade-off is worth it.

The Boat — Roam

Roam is both our home and our way forward — a 2013 Nautitech 542 cruising catamaran that has become the foundation for everything we do. She’s not the biggest catamaran out there, and that’s exactly the point. She’s large enough to live comfortably and carry what we need, but still manageable for the two of us to handle on our own.

At just over 54 feet long and 28 feet wide, she hits a balance that matters to us:
space where it counts, simplicity where it matters, and no more boat than we need.

Right now, Roam is deep into a full systems refit (winter 2026). It’s the unglamorous part of the journey — tearing things out, rebuilding, and rethinking how the boat should work for the way we actually live aboard. A big part of that effort is the electrical system, which we’ve started documenting in detail — both in individual episodes like EP62 and in a broader, evolving overview of how the whole system fits together. 📽️ Episode 62▶️

⚡Broader, evolving overview 👉 Electrical Systems on Roam

We’re building toward serious offshore independence: a large solar array, a substantial lithium battery bank, digital switching throughout, new lighting, and enough inverter capacity to support how we actually live aboard. The goal isn’t excess — it’s freedom.

Ground tackle is getting the same attention, including a major windlass upgrade and new anchor chain — the kind of work that doesn’t look exciting, but makes all the difference at anchor. 📽️ Episode 64 (coming soon!)

Inside, the galley is being rebuilt around how we cook and live, with a focus on lighter materials, electric cooking, and systems that support everyday life aboard. 📽️ Episode 54▶️

Plumbing throughout the boat has been reworked as well, with new pressure systems and fixtures chosen as much for reliability as for comfort. The original wood shower panels didn’t survive — and we’re still not sure why anyone thought wood belonged in a shower — but they’ve been replaced with custom epoxy panels built to last.

Up forward, Shawn designed a new bowsprit and worked with a local fabricator to build it stronger than strictly necessary. At nearly seven feet of aluminum, it’s ready to carry off-wind and reaching sails and support the way we actually sail.

The mast and boom came down too. They’ve been fully rebuilt, restrung, and refinished, with a brushed aluminum look protected by a Nyalic coating. A custom masthead extension now supports instruments without drilling into the spar — a small detail, but one that reflects how we approach the whole boat: thoughtful, deliberate, and built for the long run.

Roam is still very much a work in progress. But she’s already exactly what we need — a solid, capable platform for the places we haven’t seen yet and the moments we can’t plan for.

For those who want to dive deeper, we’ve collected the refit work into a single playlist on YouTube. 📽️ Refit Playlist▶️

What You’ll Find Here

Sailing Roam isn’t about perfectly staged moments or skipping to the highlight reel. It’s about documenting the process — the work, the learning curve, and the small wins that make progress feel earned.

Here, you’ll find:

• Refit Projects
  Step-by-step system work on our cruising catamaran, from electrical and anchoring to structural repairs and upgrades. We show what works, what doesn’t, and why.
• Lessons Learned (Sometimes the Hard Way)
  Boats are great teachers. We share mistakes, surprises, and course corrections so others can learn alongside us.
• Systems & Gear Deep Dives
  Honest looks at the equipment we use and the decisions behind it — including why we choose certain solutions and walk away from others.
• Life Aboard & Adventure Logs
  The moments between projects: new places, new people, and the reality of living full-time on a boat while chasing a long-term goal.

If you’re curious about refits, drawn to cruising life, or just want to see what it really takes to build a life afloat, you’re in the right place.

Why We Share Everything

We document our journey for two reasons:

1. To help others — so you can learn from our successes and mishaps
2. To connect — adventure is better when shared, and we love hearing from you

All boats and crews begin somewhere. We hope ours inspires yours.

Stay in Touch

It’s easy to follow along:

• YouTube — watch the refit and sailing episodes
• Facebook & Instagram — updates and behind-the-scenes stories

You’ll find links in the footer and in the top navigation — stay anchored with us!

The fine print