John White - Captain

Maxine White - First Mate & Stewardess

Captain John White takes great pleasure on behalf of his crew to welcome you aboard ‘Lone Star’.  Hailing from Perth, Western Australia, ‘Whitey’ first got into sailing crossing the South Pacific.  Upon arriving in the San Francisco Bay Area he spent 10 years improving his sailing skills with extensive racing on San Francisco Bay and along the California coast and Mexico.  ‘Whitey’ is an explorer and traveler by nature and will thrill you with tales of his many travels including his trips across the Australian outback on motorcycles, a 63-day canoe trip down the Amazon or the stories of his many years exploring Central and South America and the Caribbean by land and sea.  It was during these travels that he has gained proficiency in Spanish and Portuguese.  Whitey is a qualified electrical/electronics contractor, holds a RYA Yachtmaster Offshore and has been a PADI Dive Instructor for 15 years.  Whitey’s open and confident personality sets any person at ease as he shares his intimate knowledge of the islands and sea with you.

Originally from the land-locked state of Utah, Maxine had never been sailing until she met Whitey in San Francisco.  She quickly took to sailing and it was not long before she quit her job in the San Francisco Financial District and was sailing with Whitey under the Golden Gate Bridge.  She, along with Whitey, have completed over 45,000 blue water miles.  In 1992 Whitey and Max married on Cane Garden Bay, Tortola.  During their many years of chartering they have hosted over 2000 guests.  They spent two years chartering in Panama and the San Blas Islands which included 18 transits of the Panama Canal. As First Mate and Dive Master on ‘Lone Star’ you may find Max taking guests on a scuba dive or snorkel, helping with the sailing, assisting the chef and making sure the needs and desires of the guests are fulfilled.

Andrew Bruck – Deck Hand

Julia Wilson- Chef

Andrew Bruck completes the ‘Lone Star’ team as Deck Hand.  Andrew grew up in the Pacific Northwest and is a graduate of UCLA.  Andrew has lead groups on expeditions to include sailing, kayaking, mountaineering and language education and focused on personal growth and community service.  These tours have taken him from Alaska and the San Juan Islands of Washington to Central and South America and to Fiji, New Zealand and Australia.  Andrew worked previously with Max and Whitey when chartering in Panama.  He is an avid surfer and PADI certified scuba diver and is the perfect teacher to get the guests up on the water skis or wakeboard.

As a native Californian, Julia has had a passion for entertaining and cooking from a young age.  She has applied that passion to a successful career as chef, maitre’d and manager of many notable restaurants and wineries in the Napa Valley region.  In the early ‘90s, Julia spent two years as the in-house Chef for Sequoia Grove Vineyards.  It was here, while working with the enologist and viticulturist, that she enhanced her knowledge of wines.  In 1998, Julia was honored to be invited by Daniel Patterson to join his culinary team at a James Beard event in Manhattan with the role of Maitre d’ and Sommelier.  She was General Manager of the critically acclaimed La Toque restaurant when it earned its first Michelin star.   There, she was instrumental in developing the food and wine pairing program.  Julia has also lived in New Zealand and Canada, and has enjoyed holidays in France, Mexico and Central America where she has often combined her vacation with work.  She is inspired by a wide variety of cuisines and cultures as she creates her masterpieces from the galley of ‘Lone Star’.