Hi, I'm Sam. I started Zap Lines + Rigging after owning, cruising, racing, and re-fitting sailboats in the windy San Francisco Bay for the past decade.

In SF, I fell in love with not only sailing, but the joy of keeping old boats alive and sailing to their maximum potential. My first boat was a 1974 Islander 30mkII - a bulletproof but dated cruiser that took me all around the Bay and down the California coast. I put a ton of blood sweat and tears into updating the rigging to make that boat easy and fun to sail with friends or on my own. We pushed that boat hard and had a blast. Along the way, I realized that buying equipment for an old boat was nothing like getting parts for a car or so many other modern shopping experiences I had come to expect— online stores were hard to navigate and carried a smattering of different products, brick-and-mortar retailers were outlandishly overpriced, and good advice and recommendations were hard to come by. Local pro's were great resources but were often too busy to answer my questions or take on a small project, so I learned to DIY just about everything on board.

I've since moved on to one-design racing with a local fleet where performance and a deck layout that makes for fast, easy handling for my crew is essential. In refitting this classic boat, I kept trying out different setups to find something at worked for me and the crew. After burning through a half dozen mainsheets searching for something that felt right, I looked at what I spent on rope alone—and how many different stores I'd ordered random parts and pieces from—and started thinking: there's got to be a better way!

Zap Lines + Rigging was born as a partnership between myself and professional rig shops, equipment manufacturers, and rope distributors who bring experience in this sport dating back to well before I was even born. Many of the old timers I've met along the way talk about the time when sailboats were still being made in the USA and business was booming with a fair amount of nostalgia for those good old days. But it's my hope that the best days on the water are still ahead for us all— this sport is my passion and I want to ensure people all over can continue to enjoy it for years to come. I sincerely hope Zap Lines + Rigging can make owning a sailboat a little bit easier and more enjoyable for you.

Sail fast, sail smart, and see you out on the water!

- Sam