Delaune Sailing Charters (operating as Delaune Yacht Brokerage) offers sailing charters and lessons out of Mandeville, Louisiana, led by Captain Rick Delaune, who was born into a marine family along Lake Pontchartrain in southeast Louisiana. Rick’s father had him working at the family’s marine supply store during high school and college, learning industrial plastics, plexiglass, and lexan along the way.

In 1975, Rick began a 30-year career in the fiberglass industry, mentored by Bill Seemann, a patent holder on FRP-related products and processes like SCRIMP, and was involved in constructing thousands of boats built worldwide with C/Flex. Along the way, Rick crewed and consulted on custom racing sailboats, sailing 3,000 miles a year including the SORC and Regatta Al Sol, and remains a recognized fiberglass expert who speaks at NAMS conventions.

Rick transitioned into boat brokering, founding his own firm in 2009, with sailing charters and lessons growing naturally out of that work. In September 2013, he earned his 100-Ton Master Captain’s License, allowing him to take potential buyers on paid “sea trials” to genuinely experience the boating passion before purchasing.

Guest testimonials are consistently warm and personal, with several describing Rick as helping rebuild lapsed sailing confidence for entire families, offering thorough safety checklists, and providing genuine local knowledge of the Tchefuncte River and St. Tammany area for both lessons and boat searches.

For anyone in the Mandeville/St. Tammany area looking for personalized sailing lessons, private charters, or expert guidance buying or selling a sailboat, Delaune Sailing Charters offers a deeply experienced, genuinely personal operation with Captain Rick Delaune.