Jobson: the 'Energizer Sailor'

His to-do list is challenging, enough to make the uninformed question his sanity.

Gary Jobson, the new president of U.S. Sailing, isn't trying to take on too much.

He just wants to do as much as he can to help the sport he loves.

"My goals are simple, I just want to leave this sport in a better shape when I'm done than when I started this job," said Jobson, who late last month was elected president of U.S. Sailing. "I love sailing, I've been living and breathing this sport since I was 6. I believe firmly in giving back. This is my way of giving back with everything I can do right now in my life.

"Everything I am going to take on, I am going to give my all. But I am not going to try to do too much. What I am going to do, I am going to do it well."

Jobson comes to the job with one of the most impressive resumes in the sport, dating back to a young age. He was a three-time All-America sailor at SUNY Maritime College and twice the collegiate Sailor of the Year.

Jobson went on to be the tactician on the winning 1977 America's Cup boat led by Ted Turner. He's won big races on virtually every type of sailing craft, from Lasers to ocean racers.

He moved into the broadcast booth, bringing his sailing knowledge and passion to the Olympics. He won an Emmy for his NBC coverage of the Seoul 1988 Olympic Games. He's worked extensively for ESPN for more than two decades on its sailing broadcasts.

Jobson has been traveling the world to share his love of sailing, delivering lectures and discussing the 14 books he's written.

His accomplishments are vast. But they are not the real catalyst for Jobson's decision to give the next three years of his life to lead U.S. Sailing.

There is another important part Jobson's resume, one he didn't choose to add: cancer survivor.

Jobson became seriously ill in 2003, diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. He had just returned from the America's Cup in New Zealand, and was in Cleveland delivering a sailing lecture.

He felt exhausted, something very unusual compared to Jobson's customary high-energy personality. A doctor in the audience realized there could be something seriously amiss with Jobson by observing the lecture.

"It's one of those moments where you know something is not right, this physician came up to me and told me I didn't look well," Jobson said. "I told him that I was really tired, just felt exhausted to the point where I completely wasted. But I figured it was the trip. He looked at me and said, 'Gary, I don't know what's going on, but something is very wrong.' "

Jobson entered into the fight for his life, undergoing tough chemotherapy treatments. He had a bone marrow transplant, which worked, and he has been cancer-free for four years.

The hellish experience brought new perspective to Jobson's life.

"First of all, going through cancer for two years was extremely hard,'' said Jobson, 59. "It was awful, terrible at times. I did get very lucky through the whole thing to survive it. I resolved, when lying in that hospital bed, that I was going to be far more philanthropic about the things I know about.

"That's been driving my quest here for the last five years, helping raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and now this U.S. sailing presidency. I want to make an impact."

Jobson's goals to transform U.S. Sailing will indeed leave an impact if he can pull them off.

He has three missions for the first year: 1) raise the visibility of the sport, 2) bring in new, younger blood into the country's yacht clubs, and 3) simplify and clarify the complex rules of racing.

Jobson talked with his friends, such as Turner and former U.S. Sailing president Bill Martin, about his approaches to help sailing.

"American sailing is in a good state, and I want to take it to being truly great," Jobson said. "I think exposing the sport to even more people will get more people to fall in love with it. I think there is a misconception there are barriers to being involved in the sport, such as if you don't own a boat, or you can't afford a yacht club. There are wonderful community sailing programs, and we need to do a better job communicating the opportunities that are out there at all levels to get involved in this great sport."

Jobson plans to revamp the U.S. Sailing Web site, making it more user-friendly and comprehensive. He's called for a yacht club summit, bringing together the leaders of the nation's clubs to discuss how they can broaden their memberships and missions.

And changing the rules won't be easy, but he hopes to get a good discussion going to clarify the myriad of competition regulations.

Martin, an expert sailor and the current athletic director of the University of Michigan, fully endorses Jobson's mission.

"He's the Energizer Bunny, or should I say, the Energizer Sailor," Martin said. "Gary is an incredible representation of our sport. For the past 30 years, he's been the most visible face of sailing. I can't think of anybody better to lead us right now.

"Gary has recognized how precious life is. Carpe Diem. I remember telling him, when we talked about him taking this job, that I think he's in the perfect position to lead. The sport has been very good to him, and this is where he can fully give of himself in a position where he can create meaningful change. It's an exciting time for us right now because of Gary."

Jobson also is keeping an eye on the London 2012 Olympic Games, where sailing will be in the spotlight. Sailors from Great Britain have a long legacy of success, and Brits winning on home seas will come with an even bigger spotlight.

Jobson is looking forward to American sailors, such as 2008 Laser Olympic gold medalist Anna Tunnicliffe, making their mark in London.

"American sailing is doing very well; our sailors are ending up top of the heap," Jobson said. "Sailing has a lot of parity right now. It's a very deep field. In Qingdao (the home port for the Beijing Games), in the 11 classes, 21 countries won at least one medal. It was the same in Athens, and in Sydney, it was 22 countries. But the British have found a way to be the one country that gets more than their share of the medals because they have really developed junior sailing and targeted people. That's made the difference."

Jobson points to U.S. Sailing developing a strong junior sailing program too, with young sailors now going overseas to experience big competitions. The exposure to different conditions, sailors, and tactics makes them learn new lessons.

"I couldn't be more excited about where American sailing is right now and where we're going,"

Jobson said. "Good stuff is happening all around us. I am so proud to be able to help make it even better. I'm ready to go to work."

Story courtesy Red Line Editorial, Inc. Joanne C. Gerstner is a freelance contributor for teamusa.org. This story was not subject to the approval of any National Governing Bodies.

Tags: Anna Tunnicliffe, Bill Martin, Gary Jobsen, Joanne C. Gerstner, U.S. Sailing