Jeff Riecks / Yacht Broker
Jeff is a licensed Florida yacht salesperson and an excellent, accomplished sailing instructor. Prior to becoming a professional mariner, Jeff spent 18 years as an engineer and program manager in the government electronics, logistics, and commercial information technology industries.
As a liveaboard and sailing instructor, Jeff’s unique point of view helps to quickly assess what a client needs in boat size and features. He assists clients in both selecting and evaluating a boat for purchase and determining which type of yacht ownership fits their lifestyle and financial goals.
Email: jeff@catamaranguru.com | PH: 1-443-617-4876
Liveaboard, Instructor, & Yacht Broker
Sailing Career Highlights
- Sailing educator and charter/private yacht captain since 2001.
- ASA instructor for basic, intermediate, and advanced sailing, cruising, and navigation including liveaboard training sessions
- Recipient of ASA’s “Outstanding Instructor” award
- 100-ton Near-Coastal merchant mariner’s credential with sailing and towing endorsements
- Completed yacht deliveries along the east and west coasts of North America, the Caribbean, and the Bahamas
- Liveaboard sailor.
On a Personal Note
Jeff grew up in Maryland and attended West Virginia University, where he received a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. A wanderlust at heart, he has also lived in Texas, Ohio, California, Wyoming, Florida, the Baja of California, Mexico, and Quebec, Canada.
Jeff has a bit of a rock-n-roll past. In fact, he reunited with a West Virginia University pal to play heavy metal. It seems this fellow alumnus lived aboard his boat. Jeff caught the bug sailing his friend’s vessel, and well, the rest is history.
Testimonials for Jeff
The Bailey's had this to say...
“I discovered Catamaran Guru on the Web. I found the site to be very helpful and up-to-date with a lot of information on catamarans that helped an old monohull guy like me get comfortable with a cat and the differences to monohulls. I contacted Catamaran Guru to make inquiries on catamarans and was introduced to Captain Jeff Riecks who worked with me on selecting a boat. After getting educated on cats by Captain Jeff, he connected us with Stephen Cockcroft who steered me to a Lagoon 400. Steven’s unequivocal direction to the Lagoon 400 was very helpful at a time when there weren’t a lot of cats on the market as a result of hurricanes. I have no regrets on the boat I have purchased and am loving it. Once purchased, I needed a captain and crew to help me sail her back to Charleston, SC, from Houston. Captain Jeff said he could take on the delivery and also teach my wife the basics and getting comfortable on the boat once we got to south Florida. Captain Jeff’s knowledge and experience have been indispensable in getting the boat fitted out and ready for the offshore passage. It has been a delight to have such a knowledgeable, experienced and teacher on this trip of a life time for me. Jeff has repeatably gone above and beyond the call of duty”.
– The Baileys, 2015 Lagoon 400S
The Hahns on Catamaran Training
We cannot say enough good things about our experience training with Jeff Riecks on our catamaran. Jeff is incredibly knowledgeable, patient and professional. Jeff not only gave us instruction on sailing on our boat but also taught us about the systems onboard and even helped troubleshoot some technical problems. We also had time training aboard another catamaran which was also a great benefit.
We feel lucky to have met Jeff and had him train us on our Lagoon 39.
Best Regards,
— Tom and Kathleen Hahn, Lagoon 39, Sapphire Sol
Kurt & Maggie on sailing school...
We cannot thank you enough for the experience we had on our 6-day ASA course. For our 25th anniversary we wanted to get training on catamaran sailing and to get a taste of the cruising life and it far exceeded all of our hopes and wishes. Exceptional boat, teacher, chef, host and experience we would highly recommend to anyone interested in advancing their sailing knowledge. We look forward to seeing you on the water one day. Thank you for helping us take a major step step on our sailing journey.
This from Ian Sleuter...
After we did our weeklong and very grueling (but fun) sailing school with Jeff, he signed off that we are competent sailors which was a requirement from our insurance company. We are now free to sail without a skipper onboard since we are certified captains and competent to sail solo on our own boat. Jeff is very knowledgeable and patient but he is a strict teacher who takes our safety and competence seriously and we learned more in that week than we have in years of fooling around on boats.
