My journey to writing this book began with a deep and lifelong love of the sea. In 1976, at the age of 13, my family moved from Western Massachusetts to Narragansett, Rhode Island, so my father could take over my grandfather’s cobbler business. That move changed my life. I was instantly drawn to the ocean and spent nearly every sunny day at the beach, playing in the waves, learning to boogie board, and attempting to surf—though I never quite mastered it.

Around that time, I met my close friend Dean, who lived just two streets away. We both shared a passion for the water. Dean introduced me to boating; his father, an old “Swamp Yankee” fisherman, allowed us to take his boat out before school. We’d scallop in the mornings, shuck them after school, and sell them to local restaurants by dinner. We also went clamming, water skiing, and spent countless hours on the boat whenever we weren’t in school. Not long after, I bought my first boat, a Boston Whaler.