Meet Our Sailing School Instructors!
Experience the islands like a local with our team of professional sailing school instructors who enjoy sharing that experience with you.
We require our instructors to be United States Coast Guard licensed instructors or RYA Yacht Masters as well as American Sailing Association certified for each level they teach. Each is patient, knowledgeable, and professional.
Jenni Hellpap
In her youth, Jenni spent summers fishing, swimming and power boating on the water in Wisconsin. Yet, there was something SO enchanting about sailing. Inspired by the book Embarrassment of Mangoes, she stepped aboard a sailboat for the first time at the ripe old age of 18 earning her American Sailing Association (ASA 101) certification. She wanted more!
A non-sailing career had her traveling from the USA to Europe, Africa and ending up in Grenada changing her life forever. Her determination and passion for sailing had her moving from student to office manager at LTD Sailing to foredeck crew on the race team to instructor apprentice and eventually to ASA Instructor, RYA Yachtmaster and USCG Captain. She has skippered and taught on boats like that Ideal 18 to Balance 452 catamarans and beyond. She crewed with Andy and Mia from 59 North (Sailing Podcasts) on Ice Bear and “Team 35” was born. Since then she has braved may boat delivers through out the pandemic.
"Jenni from the dock: She used to sail a little, now she sails a lot!"
Qualifications: ASA 201, 203, 204, 206, 214
Nico Giovannoni
Hi! I am from Italy I left the corporate world for the sailing world following my heart and
passion for the sea and mother nature. Sailing for me is a lifestyle - in fact I live at sea. I love
to pass my sailing passion knowledge and experience to other people so I find teaching very rewarding and fun. I am interested in travelling and learning about people and new cultures, I also love water sports such as swimming, kitesurfing, diving but also skiing, tennis, boxing, yoga and meditation and of course, I love food and pizza in particular!
Andy Van Zyl
I grew to love the ocean in Cape Town, South Africa. I started off flying kites on the beach,
kitesurfing some of the Southern Ocean Swells, diving in the kelp forests and sailing along its ruggedly beautiful coastline. I spent 6 years working in offshore construction and left to follow my dreams of sailing. I have worked on environmental conservation yachts, working to stop plastic pollution from destroying the life in our oceans which a cause close to my heart. I also have experience in luxury charter yachts around the Caribbean. My certifications include: RYA Yachtmaster Ocean, ASA Instructor, Bachelor’s degree in
Chemical Engineering from the University of Witwatersrand Johannesburg. Living in the
Caribbean on Grenada is in many ways a dream come true for me. I get to explore above and below some of the most beautiful warm waters on the planet while teaching my
passion of sailing.
Grace Pytell
Grace grew up on the waters of the Great Lakes, spending her youth racing dinghies and keelboats. After college and facing the decision of choosing a grad program, the third option of “borrow the family cruiser and take off on the Great Loop'' was the obvious choice. A year on a 28 foot sailboat was the ultimate crash course in everything cruising (knowing how to anchor before departure would have been helpful). After arriving home safely, Grace never looked back. Land life wasn’t going to cut it, so she earned her captain’s license and ASA instructor certifications and started following warm weather. She has been teaching in Grenada and the Great Lakes and has enjoyed every minute of it.
