ICEBEAR

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Chris Kobusch // FALKEN Skipper (GER)

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Chris Kobusch // FALKEN Skipper (GER)

Chris has been working professionally on yachts ever since completing his Yachtmaster in 2009. Having logged more than 165,000 nautical miles since, Chris has sailed and raced all around the world on a variety of yachts from small, modern Cape31s to big classic 50m schooners.

During the 2017-18 Clipper Round The World Race Chris skippered the Chinese entry Qingdao and his team achieved a 3rd overall. After the Clipper Race Chris spent two years in the high latitudes skippering Skip Novak's sailing expedition yacht Pelagic Australis. Chris skippered ICEBEAR in 2022 and is returning in 2023 to skipper FALKEN.

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Emma Garschagen // First Mate & Podcast Host (USA)

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Emma Garschagen // First Mate & Podcast Host (USA)

Emma is 59º North’s Chief Mate. She joined the 59º North team in 2019 after graduating from Kenyon College where she studied environmental science. Emma has logged over 25,000 ocean miles in the past three years. She has crossed the Atlantic twice, and recently sailed up to 80° North on ISBJØRN in Svalbard. Emma has also sailed as a student and deckhand on tall ships, worked on traditional wooden boats, driven launch boats, and recently skippered a Broadreach voyage with high schoolers in the Caribbean.

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Alex Laline // FALKEN Chief Mate (ESP)

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Alex Laline // FALKEN Chief Mate (ESP)

Alex’ experiences vary from light high performance racing yachts to big heavy expedition yachts. Alex started sailing at the young age of 4 and he's been hooked to the Ocean ever since, either sailing or surfing.

He has accumulated over 115,000 nautical miles over the past years as a professional sailor, racing all over the world as part of a team in the Clipper Round the World race, working on an expedition yacht in the Arctic Circle and doing a variety of deliveries.

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Erik Nordborg // Relief Skipper (SWE)

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Erik Nordborg // Relief Skipper (SWE)

Erik grew up on the west coast of Sweden – never far from boats and sailing. Both sailboat racing and cruising have always been a big part of his life. Being a professional meteorologist Erik has been involved in several major sailing events and races across the globe including the America’s Cup, Volvo Ocean Race, Vendée Globe and many more. As a sailor Erik races and competes in the exciting Figaro Class in France. He joins us in 2023 as a relief skipper on FALKEN.

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Ben Soofer // Relief Mate (USA)

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Ben Soofer // Relief Mate (USA)

Ben Soofer is a sailor and an outdoor educator. Ben first joined the 59 North team in 2018 (making him the very first addition to the team!) as the resident "Public Relations & Media Guru" while attending the University of Denver. Ben grew up sailing on the sandy banks of the Neuse River in North Carolina but was convinced that his destiny lay in the professional world. After Andy invited him to step aboard for a passage south, everything changed. 

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Mia Karlsson // CREW Liasion, FALKEN Mate (SWE/USA)

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Mia Karlsson // CREW Liasion, FALKEN Mate (SWE/USA)

Mia grew up in the countryside in Sweden a non-sailor until meeting Andy in New Zealand in 2006. Her first sailing trip was aboard SOUTHERN ENDURANCE, a 28-foot charter boat in the Marlboro Sounds on NZ’s South Island. Since then she’s sailed over 50,000 miles offshore, crossed the Atlantic 7 times (on 4 different boats), & sailed ISBJORN to 80º North.

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Adam Browne // BOSUN (UK)

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Adam Browne // BOSUN (UK)

Adam is the latest member of the 59º North full-time team and joins us as BOSUN. Traditionally the ‘boatswain’ (bosun) was a ship's officer responsible for maintenance of the ship and its equipment. Which is exactly what Adam will be doing for both FALKEN & ISBJØRN. Adam is a keen sailor as well and will also be sailing as mate aboard our boats.

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Nikki Henderson // Offshore Racing Skipper (UK)

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Nikki Henderson // Offshore Racing Skipper (UK)

Nikki has been sailing professionally since she was 18, skippering three trans-Atlantic ARC races (twice as youngest skipper in the fleet), and later becoming the youngest-ever skipper of the Clipper Round the World Race, coming 2nd in 2018. Nikki met Andy in the fall of 2020 and first sailed ICEBEAR in Antigua, then raced with us aboard SPICA in Gotland Runt in Sweden, July 2021. Nikki skippered ICEBEAR with Emma for the fall 2021 season, and with Mia for the winter 2022 season.

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Vilma Ihalainen // Relief Mate (FIN)

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Vilma Ihalainen // Relief Mate (FIN)

Vilma is a sailor and marine biologist currently living in Northern Norway. She grew up sailing throughout Finland's Archipelago Sea during her childhood summers. For the last four years she has raced offshore as crew on a Farr TP52 and Finngulf 41. Andy met Vilma on a pier in Stockholm while both were preparing for the Gotland Runt 2021. She has since sailed several passages on ICEBEAR and is returning in 2023 to sail FALKEN.

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Philippa Rytkönen // Relief Mate (FIN)

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Philippa Rytkönen // Relief Mate (FIN)

Philippa is a sailor and environmental scientist with a big passion for ocean conservation and making sailing a more inclusive sport. She graduated in 2022 from the University of Iceland, where she specialized in environmental management. Philippa has previously worked as a sailing teacher in Reykjavík and when back home in Finland she can be found skippering her sea scout club's 42ft training vessel. Philippa loves admiring the wonders of our oceans and exploring hidden gems in the Baltic Sea.

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Lee Cumberland // Podcast Producer, Relief Mate (USA)

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Lee Cumberland // Podcast Producer, Relief Mate (USA)

Lee and Andy have been friends since 2012 when Lee first started doing deliveries and long before the business started. Since then, Lee has helped out in all aspects of 59º North, but most recently has been dubbed ‘ship’s engineer’ for his work on the big boat ICEBEAR in the Caribbean. Lee sailed on ISBJORN with us in the 2019 Caribbean 600 race, and with his wife Rachel, owns a Tayana 37 called SATORI, on which they sailed to the Panama Canal and back. Lee is also a producer for the On the Wind podcast.

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Kristen Berry // Relief Skipper (USA)

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Kristen Berry // Relief Skipper (USA)

Kristen Berry is a full-time sailing educator and racing coach. He has lead teams on racing and cruising adventures throughout the US and Caribbean. His work focuses on helping teams and individuals with hard to reach dreams and high performance goals be successful. Over the past 20 years, Kristen has supported community sailing programs in New York, Baltimore and Washington, DC; supported the US Naval Academy's sailing program, operated a sailing school in Annapolis and served as chair of US Sailing’s commercial schools committee. When he isn’t helping sailors reach their goals, he can most often be found with a camera in his hands chasing images of the natural world.

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Simon Börjeson // Relief Skipper (SWE)

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Simon Börjeson // Relief Skipper (SWE)

Simon grew up spending his summers on his parent's “summer cottage," a classic Vindö 50, and got his first boat when he was only 7. He has been working on boats of all sizes for the past 12 years, including passenger ferries in Stockholm, RIBs, offshore construction vessels in the North Sea and most recently as Project Manager at HOC Yachts in Stockholm & Visby. He was recently a manufacturing engineer at Candela Speed Boats, and currently works offshore with SubSea7 off the coast of Norway. Simon was a Watch Captain on SPICA for the Gotland Runt Offshore Race in July 2021.

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Dennis Schell // Andy's Dad (USA)

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Dennis Schell // Andy's Dad (USA)

Dennis has sailed many thousands of bluewater miles and stands in for Andy when he can't (like when he got appendicitis offshore!). Dennis is also super-supportive of the whole charade, and Andy & Mia use his basement as temporary storage when they're home. Dad has crossed the Atlantic and sailed with us in Sweden, Iceland Newfoundland, the Caribbean and everywhere else!