Chesapeake Sailmakers

09/17/2025

Reminder! Offshore Sails Webinar with Chuck O'Malley of Chesapeake Sailmakers tonight at 7:30pm EST. Registration link in our bio, or at http://linktr.ee/worldcruisingusa

Your sails are your engine at sea, and choosing the right inventory can make the difference between a safe, comfortable passage and a costly breakdown. Chuck O’Malley, founder of Chesapeake Sailmakers, brings decades of experience designing, building, and repairing sails for offshore cruisers. A lifelong sailor, Chuck understands the demands of long-distance passagemaking and will share practical advice on sail choice, materials, storm sails, and maintenance. Learn what works offshore, what doesn’t, and how to equip your boat with sails that will carry you safely across oceans.

See you tonight!

05/22/2023

Rig tuning is a process. Whether a spring tune up or a complete re-tuning, it requires a thorough documentation of the step by step changes. You need to be clear on the current tune and the desired change. Documentation allows you to get back to the previous position (base) and the desired new position. Its a very methodical and measured process. Understand that a dock tyune is static, while a refined tune under sail is more dynamic.

04/29/2023

At the Annapolis Spring Sailboat Show helping Ronnie Simpson raise money for his Global Solo Challenge

Stop by and tour the Open 50 Sparrow, buy a T Shirt and donate to a great cause.

04/11/2023

Great article by George Day of Blue Water Sailing Magazine about Paul Elvstrom and Elvstrom Sailmakers.

Laughing Goat, Havana to Isla Mujeres: Denmark Under Sail

04/07/2023

Elvstrøm Sails | Try our new 3D Configurator

Elvstrom Spring Newsletter

The story about Sailing Insieme, led by Julia and Markus from Austria, is not your typical cruising story. The Austrian couple did their first attempt at cruising the World in 2020, but found their adventure cut short by a lockdown in the Pacific Islands.

03/10/2023

The Elvstrøm Sail Inventory for Open 50 Sparrow is shaping up!

A Global Solo Challenge of this scale takes months of planning and strong partnerships. Elvstrøm Sails is on board with Ronnie Simpson for this project, in which Sparrow will run a full inventory of Elvstrøm Sails using Challenge Sailcloths. The wardrobe is produced with sustainability in mind, which means that a substantial part of the wardrobe is based on the eXRP type of cloth, made from recycled materials.

The sail inventory for Sparrow includes a Square-Top Mainsail, 103% Furling Jib and 80% Staysail, which are all made from the Challenge Sailcloth eXRP Cruise 24. The eXRP Cruise is a high-end laminate, where the main parts of the material are made from recycled polyester. This includes the films, the taffeta, and the polyester fibres. The eXRP Cruise is further stabilized with 5% of UHMPE virgin fibres (like Spectra / Dyneema).

Additionally there are 2 Asymmetrical Spinnakers: a Masthead A-2 Runner at 274 square meters and a Fractional A-3 Reacher at 205 square meters. Rounding-out the inventory are Elvstrøm an 65% Cable-Free Code Zero and a 53% Straight-Luff Cabled Code Zero.

This is a very interesting project to follow, and it represents a great opportunity for Elvstrom and Challenge Sailcloth to get the feedback from a very thorough long-distance test of our designs, materials, and solutions. We can’t wait to see Sparrow with her new Elvstrom sails.

The partnership between Sparrow and Elvstrøm Sails works both ways, Ronnie Simpson adds:

- Elvstrøm Sails is the perfect partner for this project. It's a huge company with big resources that can take on a project like this and build great sails for me. At the same time, it is also a company which can benefit from raising its profile in the USA, which I believe I can add to with my new racing program. It is really a perfect relationship where both sides can benefit and help each other grow, and I like that. I am very happy to have Elvstrøm Sails onboard with my racing efforts. Elvstrøm Sails A/S

03/09/2023

Ronnie Simpson is gearing up for Global Solo Challenge with Elvstrøm Sails and Challenge Sailcloth

Ronnie Simpson is setting sails on an immense project in 2023 racing singlehanded around the Globe in the Global Solo Challenge powered by Elvstrøm Sails in corporation with Elvstrøm Sails Chesapeake Sailmakers and Challenge Sailcloth.

The idea of racing alone around the world came about for Ronnie Simpson through the last couple of years – and now the dream is set to become a reality. Sail production at Elvstrøm Sails is about to kick into gear, which also means that Ronnie is close to reaching his first big goal.

Ronnie Simpson has used sailing to find a new direction in life after returning to the USA as an Iraq war veteran. Simpson was wounded in combat in Iraq and is classified as a medially retired US Marine. Discovering the world of sailing became a vital turning point for Simpson, who has clocked over 130.000 miles at sea since then.

03/03/2023

https://elvstromsails.com/news/31-racing-news/1897-ronnie-simpson-is-gearing-up-for-global-solo-challenge-with-elvstrom-sails-and-challenge-sailcloth

Ronnie Simpson is ready for a new and groundbreaking race in the Global Solo Challenge - teaming up with Elvstrøm Sails.

02/24/2023

Chesapeake Sailmaker's has the best customers! They bring us their sails to repair and sometimes they bring us gifts. We especially like gifts that make us think about sailing to 🇧🇲 Bermuda.

01/27/2023

Winter sailmaking in Annapolis. Getting ready for Spring delivery. Real sailmaking, custom built to order... not mail order

12/23/2022

Happy Holiday and a very Happy New Year to all!

Chesapeake Sailmakers is taking our annual winter snooze and will be closed December 23 to January 3.

We will remain available to meet by 'appointment only'
Email Chuck at [email protected]
Bill at [email protected]