officially began his professional yachting career in 1971, although one might say he’s been in boating all his life. Growing up on the Connecticut shore, both of Bill’s grandfathers were involved in the boating industry, one a builder of classic custom wooden sailboats, and the other owning a small marina and shipyard. As a teen, Bill worked through his summers as a dock boy in Essex, sailing along the shore and Long Island Sound. From 1971 to 1979, he was a First Mate on several boats, and also spent six months in England supervising a new build, which he and the captain delivered to Lauderdale in 1979. After that, Bill’s career as a captain was launched, and he spent several years as a captain on smaller motor yachts.
    In the mid-80’s he worked briefly for a yacht brokerage firm, and then , in 1987, opened his own marine repair and yacht delivery business. During that time, he logged thousands of miles between the United States and the Mediterranean, and in 1990, accepted another position on a busy charter yacht. In 1995, he came on board the previous Cakewalk, and saw her through a highly successful award-winning, 18-month refit, then spent two years cruising on her through the Caribbean and Mediterranean. Construction of the new Cakewalk began in March of 1998, completed the summer of 2000, and he is proud and delighted to be at her helm today.