Meet the Team

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Skipper/Captain, Founder, & Team Manager

Maya Hoffman, 25, grew up sailing in Monterey, CA. She is a race skipper and a delivery captain with many blue water miles. She was skipper and campaign manager for the Leading the Change! Annapolis to Newport race. She also competed in the 2022 Newport Bermuda race as an onboard coach for Team Bitter End, the youngest all-female crew to complete the race. Most recently, she navigated the Marblehead to Halifax Ocean Race. She is getting her Master’s degree in International Environmental Policy from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies. Maya was also a 2022-23 mentee in the international organization the Magenta Project's mentoring program, mentored by Chelsea Carlson Freas in navigation and weather routing. She is a Skipper for Sailors for the Sea Powered by Oceana.

Navigator

Chelsea Carlson Freas, 32, is a degreed meteorologist and lifelong sailor who has ‘tied the knot’ between the science of weather and the strategy of sailboat racing. She’s the meteorologist for the US Sailing Team, and has a variety of racing experience from one design dinghies to navigating keelboats offshore. She’s the founder of SeaTactics, providing weather coaching and forecasting to sailors who want to gain a competitive edge. Chelsea was a 2022-23 mentor in the international organization the Magenta Project's mentoring program, and was specifically Maya Hoffman’s mentor!

Boat Captain & Safety Officer

Emma Janson, 26, grew up dinghy racing on Long Island Sound and raced competitively with The University of Vermont Sailing Team, competing in two ICSA Women’s National Finals. She has been a youth sailing coach for 8 years, working with a variety of both yacht club and community sailing organizations and spent a summer as a captain in the BVI. Her love of sailing has translated into a love of the oceans, and she is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Marine Affairs at the University of Rhode Island. She hopes to have a career that combines her love of sailing and her passion for ocean conservation and science. Emma was also a 2022-23 mentee in the international organization the Magenta Project's mentoring program. She is also a Skipper for Sailors for the Sea Powered by Oceana.

Speed Coach

Leah Sweet is an American/Swiss national who grew up sailing in the Azores, Portugal. She has been working full-time on and around yachts for 11 years, with a few 60ft commands under her belt and time as an officer on larger superyachts. With a thirst for more actual sailing she shifted her focus to race boats and used her varied skills working with Maxi72s, TP52s, VO65s, and racing smaller keelboats. Logging over 50,000nm so far, she has also discovered an appreciation for DH sailing, winning the Bermuda 1-2 with Peter Becker in 2021 and quietly building up a DH campaign with friend Erica Lush since. Leah is "leading the change" by heading up The Magenta Project's Mentoring Programme this year after being paired with Annie Lush as a Mentee in 2019. Her career goals are to be respected as a sailor and boat captain for her skills and experience, and to race around the world fully-crewed.