Speaking Topics

One World, Twice Around – Captain Nancy Erley shares the adventures of her all women crews aboard her beloved Orca 38 Tethys on two 5-year circumnavigations of the world.  65 different women learners participated in the profoundness of crossing a big ocean in a small boat.

Night Navigation – How to travel safely after dark when you have to, and stand a night watch at sea.  A technically rich presentation covering night vision, navigation aids and lights on shore, vessel identification, collision avoidance at night, radar, night time deck safety protocols, watch scheduling and more.

Advanced Anchoring –  After a short refresher on anchoring basics the presentation will focus on strategies for tricky situations, crowded anchorages and severe weather including using multiple anchors and ways to get a  fouled anchor unstuck.   Nancy anchored over a thousand times in her two circumnavigations and speaks from a wealth of personal mishap and recovery.

Captain Kirk or Captain Bligh:  Effective Captaincy for the 21st Century.  A Captain’s Leadership Toolkit – Traditional rules of hierarchy don’t apply today so what works instead?  Operational excellence is not enough and never has been. How do we balance relationships with accomplishing the objectives of the voyage?  Learn to use leadership intelligence to manage conflict.  In addition to captaining two 5-year circumnavigations, Nancy brings insights gained as an adjunct professor for Denver University’s Executive MBA leadership development program.

Captaincy for Couples:  Becoming a Dynamic Duo – How to use leadership intelligence in stressful situations onboard to actually improve your appreciation of one another.  A look into resolving conflict collaboratively to arrive at “Two heads are better than one” instead of “My way or the highway”.  Your team of two can become a truly dynamic duo.

Pirates and the  Cruising Sailor – Nancy Erley, captain of two world circumnavigations sailed in the Gulf of Aden and the Caribbean where pirates are currently active. Nancy shares the facts on piracy and how to find the global “hotspots”, how to assess your personal posture toward risk and strategies to de-escalate a pirate encounter.  Nancy’s friends on “Asylum” were attacked while anchored with three boats off the coast of Columbia and she will share their story, lessons learned and advice to other cruisers.