Masmar Sailing: a sailboat and a family aboard the Calma (in Barcelona and Formentera)
Lou is already one with the sea. The eldest son of the Patané family –“written with ‘u’ at the end, as Lou Reed ”, Clarifies his father, Leandro– he was born on a glorious day in the summer of 2019 and his destiny is, since then and until he decides otherwise, lulled in the coming and going of Calm by the mediterranean waves.
Masmar Sailing: a sailboat and a family aboard the Calma (in Barcelona and Formentera)
Thus, with a capital letter, like the name of the boat that Leandro captains with his wife, Marie Braun . Here, the little one will learn what the sea is or, in his case, life. Calm , meanwhile, was born in the late eighties, a design by American Doug Peterso n. “It is a 14 meter Peterson, a very comfortable and safe cruising sailboat, designed to be able to go around the world with it, with a fairly flat space and as few lines as possible. Classic, with a lot of wood... and a lot of maintenance too”, jokes Leandro of a job that never sees its end and that concerns, in its entirety, him and his family. "We do everything with our own hands, in the summer we sail, but during the winter what we have to do is dedicate time to this type of work."
The first marine property of Marie and Leandro is the one that governs the sea under the umbrella of a project called Masmar Sailing, started as one of those stories that begin with the already romantic cliché of “I left everything for...”.
“When we started dating, Marie and I took a little trip on a sailboat that a friend lent us in Formentera,” says Leandro. At that time she worked full time in the world of fashion (she now dedicates part of her time to being one of the Gimaguas brand team) and he earned a living as a professional diver. “I worked for many years as sailor and captain . I studied to be a skipper, I was part of the crew of luxury boats, charters... but I never felt comfortable being part of the boat. I realized that what I wanted was to be the protagonist of the experience.”
Without knowing exactly what their destiny would be, they both made the decision not to work for anyone but themselves and the sea with the philosophy of slow sailing as a flag , or what is the same, navigate without haste. “At the beginning of our routes –with a duration of three hours departing from Barcelona – Everyone is taking photos with their mobile phones and they are more tense. In the end, you see how they are more relaxed, they forget about social networks... they get carried away. I try to share our lifestyle a bit, exchange experiences with them and teach basic notions of navigation to whoever is interested. And, if they want, I'll give them control of Calma too”.
"Calm is our domicile, our home"
Sailing with views of the sunset and sharing glasses of organic wine, cheese and charcuterie boards or a beer, going on the road with Leandro is like being in the living room of his house. Which, in fact, it is. “We sleep in the port of Barcelona and then we stay for about five or six months in Formentera , which is where we do routes during the summer but longer , docking in a cove to swim or snorkel. We have an apartment that we use as a base, but all our things are at our parents' house. Calm is our home , our home”, clarifies the captain, who usually does these routes alone so that Lou and Marie do not occupy the seats of potential clients. Of course, on non-working days or with space, the trio sails entirely as a team.
"It's amazing to see how Lou adapts to everything , even much better than adults”, says Leandro with a laugh. “He has learned to do everything on the boat and the beauty of this is that he forces us to spend a lot of time outside and together. As a family we have learned to function like a crew, otherwise this would not be possible”, he explains of his daily routine, in which waking up is followed by the trip in the auxiliary boat to go to the beach and take a walk.
“Sometimes we sail in pretty rough seas, but Lou has already done so much with Calma that he is even able to find a position to be comfortable and take a nap. Also he respects a lot . When he sees that we are stressed or that the weather conditions get more difficult, that is when he usually calms down more... and vice versa”. Together it was also how they made the most special trip of Leandro's life, one that beats any whale watching or the first night he slept at sea: "It was the day the three of us traveled together for the first time . Some friends who were going to come with us canceled and I got very nervous in case something happened. But it was the best we could do. Arrive as a family Formentera It was wonderful".
Leandro is no stranger to what Lou is now experiencing, to that contact with water from such an early age . "My father had a motorboat and we used to go fishing, that's when I had my first relationship with sailing," he recalls.
"When I came to Spain (he was born in Argentina) I didn't sail, but I was fascinated by diving." One day and after a thousand and one ways to imitate underwater odysseys , the Red Cross arrived at its municipal swimming pool. "They were giving some courses and I was so annoying with the teachers to let me dive that they told me that, if I could last two minutes under the water without breathing, I could test the equipment by taking a lap in the pool." Obviously, he did.
“It was a crush. After I started diving doing jobs in the Mediterranean . I was meeting people and since then I have realized that the sea is to be part of a community. We all help each other." Just as Masmar Sailing helps the sea, its livelihood and way of life in which sustainability rules. “To begin with, water is limited and small boats like ours don't have a water purifier, which means you have to go to the port to recharge and that forces you to make a more responsible consumption ”, adds Leandro.
"By living in nature we are more aware of where everything is going to end"
The same with electricity, the product of batteries that are charged by the motor or, as sailing usually prevails, with solar panels. Then comes the plastic. “For example, it is crazy to give away bottles of water. We realized that it was unsustainable doing two or three runs a day, so we now offer it in recycled cans. By living in nature we are more aware of where everything ends up”.
The sea obliges, or with these times, begs us to abandon superfluous whims to keep it alive. An undervalued luxury that allows us to see life with different eyes, those in which sharing prevails and letting nature dictate how we should behave in order to live in peace, calm . Thus, without capital letters.
***This report was published in *number 145 of Condé Nast Traveler Magazine (Spring 2021) . Subscribe to the printed edition (€18.00, annual subscription, by calling 902 53 55 57 or from our website). The April issue of Condé Nast Traveler is available in its digital version to enjoy on your preferred device