Story by TMC Editor / April 6, 2021
The Multihull Company is pleased to announce the addition of Conor Dugan to our team in Fort Lauderdale, FL!
Conor was born and raised in a small beach town in New Jersey and began sailing Optimists competitively at a young age. He and his family relocated to Wilmington, North Carolina during his highschool years, where his interest in sailing bloomed into a lifelong passion. In the summer he transferred between schools, Conor’s family sent him on a month-long catamaran sailing excursion from Grenada to St. Lucia with Broadreach Excursions. When he returned, Conor was introduced to the youth sailing coach of Carolina Yacht Club and began sailing out of CYC. He moved through the ranks, from Optis to Lasers and 420s, sailing in regattas up and down the east coast. When his coach took a job at the newly formed Bald Head Island Sailing Club, Conor was asked to come on as an Opti and 420 instructor.
A few years later, BHI Sailing acquired two J80s. These boats were perfect for learning about keelboat handling, and sailing them in the mouth of the notoriously challenging Cape Fear shaped Conor into a highly-skilled coastal sailor. At 18, Conor was invited on the maiden voyage of ‘Blue Whale’, a custom Cape Fear 60, sailing from Wilmington to St. Maarten, his first proper offshore voyage.
That fall, Conor enrolled in UNC Charlotte as a business student. He studied during the school year and sailed during his summers, building miles, eventually earning his Captain’s License. He graduated with Honors from UNC Charlotte in 2013 with a degree in International Studies, that year having served as Student Body President. He is most proud of having led an initiative to make the university’s new football stadium a zero-waste facility, diverting up to 84% of waste from landfills to compost or recycling.
After graduating, Conor moved to the Virgin Islands to pursue a career as a professional captain. He began by operating a 40’ dive boat, earning sea time to upgrade his USCG license, before becoming a full time captain of the then largest day charter catamaran in the Virgin Islands, a 57’ Gold Coast rated for 74 guests. After two years in that role, Conor and his fiance began running week-long term-charters to the BVI aboard a Lagoon 450. After another two years of experience, Conor was looking to continue building sea miles, so he began picking up yacht deliveries wherever he could. One of those deliveries put him on an Outremer 5x with sailing legend Jimmy Cornell. Jimmy was preparing his Elcano Voyage, a circumnavigation aboard a fully-electric Outremer 4x, and was looking for crew to join him. Conor and his fiance were fortunate enough to be selected, and, after spending a year exploring the Australian coastline in a camper van, they flew to France to begin preparations.
Upon arrival in La Grande-Motte, France, Conor received in depth training on the functions and operation of the Oceanvolt electric propulsion and regeneration system, as well as all the features of the Outremer 4x. After weeks of preparation, the crew set off on the epic voyage. After several challenges, including an electrical discharge in Seville that damaged the starboard regeneration system, the crew arrived at Tenerife when Jimmy decided to cancel the voyage and modify the boat to better serve his interests. This change of plans brought Conor back to the States sooner than expected with a new found passion for renewable technologies. He is excited to be an active member of the Ft. Lauderdale sailing community, and is looking forward to seeing how sustainable technology and sailing continue to intersect.
Conor now joins TMC’s growing expert team of agents in South Florida to assist clients with their purchase or sale of their catamaran to fullfill their cruising dreams!
We had an outstanding experience working with Andrew Hodgdon to find our dream boat, an Outremer 52.
We were actually referred to him by several different people—clients who had been very happy working with him, as well as boat owners who were planning to use him to sell their own boats. After working with Andrew ourselves, we completely understand why he came so highly recommended.
We worked with him for several months, and from start to finish, he was exceptional. Andrew is incredibly knowledgeable and truly an expert when it comes to performance catamarans. He took the time to understand exactly what we were looking for, was always responsive and organized, and never made us feel pressured throughout the process.
Andrew went above and beyond to arrange showings for us in multiple states and even traveled to another state to be there with us for the sea trial. His expertise and guidance gave us tremendous confidence as we evaluated such a significant purchase.
The entire process could have been overwhelming, but he made it remarkably smooth. He was on top of every detail and made the paperwork and closing process easy, working seamlessly with his team at The Multihull Company.
What impressed us most was that he genuinely had our best interests in mind. And his support didn’t end when the sale was completed. He has continued to stay in touch and has made it clear that he is still available to help us if we ever need him. That kind of follow-through is rare and speaks volumes about the kind of broker he is.
Buying an Outremer 52 was a huge decision and a major investment, and having someone with his knowledge, experience, responsiveness, and integrity made the entire experience so much easier and more enjoyable.
We couldn’t recommend Andrew Hodgdon more highly. If you’re looking for a yacht broker—especially if you’re considering a performance catamaran—we would choose him again without hesitation. The fact that so many people recommended him to us was the reason we called him, and after working with him, we would be one of those people recommending him to others.
I highly recommend Andrew Hodgdon. He served as our buyers broker. He is responsive, highly knowledgeable and very experienced. He is also an excellent guide and counselor before, during and after the boat purchase process. If you are looking for a good-sailing cat, he seems to collect most of the available boats on the better-sailing side of the market. Top marks.
Andrew did an excellent job getting me started on my new adventures. Worked with my conflicting schedule. Is very knowledgeable in the catamaran industry. 😎
I recently sold my Lagoon 450 with the Multihull Team. I would highly recommend their services. The professionalism and personal treatment I received was greatly appreciated.
Great Service, Great People
Helped me through the process.
I would go through them again in a future purchase.
Successful relationships cannot exist without it. At The Multihull Company we base every relationship on a firm commitment to earning and retaining our client’s trust.
Advice of any kind is valuable only when grounded in hard-won expertise. It too, must be trustworthy. Trust and expertise define the heart and soul of The Multihull Company. We are a team of skilled professionals who thrive on providing expert, trustworthy advice and service to catamaran and trimaran sailors around the globe.
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