By Shari Young | August 2025
A Life Steeped in Sailing
Jane has an extensive sailing background. She and Jerry logged 17,000 miles on their Outbound 46, traveling from Sitka, Alaska to Mexico; circumnavigating Vancouver Island; sailing from the Strait of Juan de Fuca to San Francisco, California; participating in the Baja Ha-Ha races; and spending plenty of time sailing with friends and family. Sailing is in her blood—Jane’s parents met while sailing at London University.
From Sabots to Submarines
Jane and Jerry’s daughter, Sarah, and sons, Christopher and Ryan, grew up racing Sabots competitively. All three became certified sailing instructors. Sarah met her husband, Chris, as a teenager while taking sailing lessons. Fun fact: Chris is now the Captain of the USS Topeka, a Los Angeles–class submarine.
Sailing has remained a family affair. Sarah crewed in the 2023 TransPac race; Jane did the same in 1979 as part of one of the first all-female crews, shortly after graduating from UC Santa Cruz where she was on the sailing team. Jerry, on the other hand, is connected to sailing mainly through Jane. In fact, the only person to ever yell at him as an adult was a sailing captain—and he didn’t much care for that.
Love, Geology, and Going Abroad
Jane and Jerry met in graduate school at San Diego State University while earning their master’s degrees in geology. They married, moved to Bakersfield, had two children, and six years later moved overseas. For the next 15 years, they lived in Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait—about five years in each. Both worked in the oil industry, but it was Jerry’s lucrative overseas job offer that launched their international chapter.
(Author’s note: I’ve warned interviewees that if they don’t share exciting stories, I’ll make them up. No need to make anything up here.)
During a lull in our conversation, Jerry casually mentioned, “I’ve been detained—nearly arrested—in Saudi Arabia several times.” Wait, what? Tell me more!
As it turns out, Jane has a bit of a rebellious streak, and Jerry often took the blame.
Near Arrest #1: The Swimsuit Catalog Incident
One incident in the early 1990s: Jane, Jerry, and their three children were returning to Saudi Arabia after a 24-hour journey from Los Angeles, with layovers in Amsterdam and Bahrain. At 1 a.m., halfway across a bridge to the customs center, Jane’s mother’s gift—a swimsuit edition of the Land’s End catalog—was discovered. Swimsuits were strictly prohibited. Jerry was trying to manage the situation when Jane decided to snatch the catalog from the customs officer and toss it in the trash. Jerry was promptly led away for nearly two hours, leaving Jane and three kids waiting in a taxi—with the meter running.
Passports and belongings were confiscated, including several shrink-wrapped VHS tapes. The guards tore off the wrap and watched Cocoon in its entirety while Jerry sat on a cement floor. He was released only after the credits rolled.
Near Arrest #2: The Short-Sleeve Showdown
Another time, while camping in Saudi Arabia with two other families, Jane’s short-sleeved polo shirt drew the attention of a local policeman. The officer spoke only Arabic, but a village resident who spoke English told Jerry, “When I give you the signal, get back in your vehicles and drive away.” A thumbs-up later, the caravan was gone.
Near Arrest #3: The Spy with the Camcorder
Yet another episode: the day before leaving Saudi Arabia for a month-long U.S. vacation, Jane was filming around their base camp with a camcorder—perfectly legal—until a bus driver spotted her lowering the camera near the outskirts and decided she was a spy. The bus driver ran their car off the road to detain them. Unbeknownst to her, the camp’s communications tower was in the background. Government authorities were called, and after much discussion, Jerry was forced to sign a written confession in Arabic (he had no idea what it said). The camcorder was permanently confiscated, but they were finally allowed to return to their house in the base camp, and they left the next day. A federal inspector arrived a week later to arrest Jerry, but by then they were out of the country.
Wow.
Back to the Water
When asked about the club’s direction, Jane expressed excitement about the revival of the Juniors Program and year-round activities. She’s enjoyed ski meetups, hockey games, races, and the social events, and looks forward to the camaraderie. Jerry’s response? “What she said.”
