saginawbayboater
Senior Chief Petty Officer
- Joined
- Mar 8, 2012
- Messages
- 677
BAY CITY, MI ? He was at home on the water.
Jan C. Gougeon's love of sailing and boat building helped him and his brother, Meade Gougeon, launch Gougeon Bros., a marine epoxy business that eventually would sell products to all parts of the world, and a sailing career that would launch Jan Gougeon forever into the record books.
Gougeon died Tuesday, Dec. 18, in Ann Arbor after a long battle with respiratory issues. He was 67.
Meade Gougeon said his brother found his passion in life when he discovered sailing as a youth.
"The kid wasn't going anywhere until he discovered sailing," Gougeon said. "He never looked back."
During the early years of business, Gougeon Bros., which launched in 1969, built production iceboats and began formulating an epoxy to meet their needs. In 1971, West System Brand epoxy was sold to others who needed a strong adhesive. West System also manufactures hardeners, fillers and additives for coating, bonding and fairing applications with wood, fiberglass and metal, as well as epoxy dispensers, reinforcing materials, application tools and instructional publications.
In 2009, the employee-owned company celebrated its 40th anniversary.
"It was very exciting," Meade Gougeon said of watching the business grow with his little brother.
GOUGEON+JAN+82f96.jpg Jan C. Gougeon
Gougeon said his brother was a key piece of how the company was run and the fact everyone who worked there was treated like family.
"We've had probably more fun than anyone should ever have as people in business," Jan Gougeon told The Bay City Times in 2009.
Though he was retired, Jan Gougeon never stopped coming into the boat shop, his brother said.
"That's why, around here today, there is a lot of sadness and people crying," Gougeon said. "He and I were masters of the boat shop. We used to work out here to make a living but now we are out here playing. It's been great fun."
For more than four decades, Jan Gougeon designed and built sail and iceboats. He raced trimarans, iceboats and monohulls. He took first place in the single-handed Port Huron to Mackinac race in 1981, 1982 and 1983 aboard Splinter. Racing his trimaran Ollie, he won the single-handed Supermac in 1987 and the Great Lakes Single-handed Society Peter Fisher Memorial Award in 1989. He won the DN Iceboat World Gold Cup Championships four times, the North American DN Iceboat Championship eight times, and won the DN Great Cup of Siberia Race in Russia in 1989. He competed annually in the Bayview Yacht Club?s Port Huron to Mackinac Race, the Chicago Yacht Club?s Race to Mackinaw and the 300-mile Florida Everglades Challenge.
When his boat Flicka capsized in 1980, he spent four days floating in the Atlantic Ocean before he was rescued by a passing freighter.
"He lived a great life and did all kinds of great things," Meade Gougeon said. "He lived life to the fullest more than anybody I know."
The man who loved sailing was admired by many in his world. A tribute page on Sailing Anarchy has garnered dozens of posts by sailing enthusiasts from New York to Florida.
"It is a double loss to us. Today we lose a great innovator that found great fun in building crazy machines in unexpected ways to further some very important technologies," wrote one commenter. "And then there is the loss of a great guy that seemed untiring in his quest to help us little guys? Fair winds."
Marinas, boating publications and fellow sailing enthusiasts took to Facebook and shared their stories of Gougeon, too.
The Cruising Outpost, based in Alameda, Calif., shared condolences with the Gougeon family, and Wisconsin-based Barker's Island Marine posted the following on their Facebook page: "We mourn the loss of Jan Gougeon founder, along with his brother Mead, of West Systems. We, and our customers, have benefited from their innovative product development and knowledge. Hardly a day goes by, here in our shop, that we aren't using West System epoxies. Our condolences to Jan's family and friends."
Burial at sea will take place privately with the family.
A celebration service is planned for noon on Thursday, Dec. 27 at the Saginaw Bay Yacht Club, 2313 Weadock Highway in Essexville.
"We're having a party because he didn't want a funeral," Meade Gougeon said. "Anybody who Jan considered friends or family is invited to come."
Jan C. Gougeon's love of sailing and boat building helped him and his brother, Meade Gougeon, launch Gougeon Bros., a marine epoxy business that eventually would sell products to all parts of the world, and a sailing career that would launch Jan Gougeon forever into the record books.
Gougeon died Tuesday, Dec. 18, in Ann Arbor after a long battle with respiratory issues. He was 67.
Meade Gougeon said his brother found his passion in life when he discovered sailing as a youth.
"The kid wasn't going anywhere until he discovered sailing," Gougeon said. "He never looked back."
During the early years of business, Gougeon Bros., which launched in 1969, built production iceboats and began formulating an epoxy to meet their needs. In 1971, West System Brand epoxy was sold to others who needed a strong adhesive. West System also manufactures hardeners, fillers and additives for coating, bonding and fairing applications with wood, fiberglass and metal, as well as epoxy dispensers, reinforcing materials, application tools and instructional publications.
In 2009, the employee-owned company celebrated its 40th anniversary.
"It was very exciting," Meade Gougeon said of watching the business grow with his little brother.
GOUGEON+JAN+82f96.jpg Jan C. Gougeon
Gougeon said his brother was a key piece of how the company was run and the fact everyone who worked there was treated like family.
"We've had probably more fun than anyone should ever have as people in business," Jan Gougeon told The Bay City Times in 2009.
Though he was retired, Jan Gougeon never stopped coming into the boat shop, his brother said.
"That's why, around here today, there is a lot of sadness and people crying," Gougeon said. "He and I were masters of the boat shop. We used to work out here to make a living but now we are out here playing. It's been great fun."
For more than four decades, Jan Gougeon designed and built sail and iceboats. He raced trimarans, iceboats and monohulls. He took first place in the single-handed Port Huron to Mackinac race in 1981, 1982 and 1983 aboard Splinter. Racing his trimaran Ollie, he won the single-handed Supermac in 1987 and the Great Lakes Single-handed Society Peter Fisher Memorial Award in 1989. He won the DN Iceboat World Gold Cup Championships four times, the North American DN Iceboat Championship eight times, and won the DN Great Cup of Siberia Race in Russia in 1989. He competed annually in the Bayview Yacht Club?s Port Huron to Mackinac Race, the Chicago Yacht Club?s Race to Mackinaw and the 300-mile Florida Everglades Challenge.
When his boat Flicka capsized in 1980, he spent four days floating in the Atlantic Ocean before he was rescued by a passing freighter.
"He lived a great life and did all kinds of great things," Meade Gougeon said. "He lived life to the fullest more than anybody I know."
The man who loved sailing was admired by many in his world. A tribute page on Sailing Anarchy has garnered dozens of posts by sailing enthusiasts from New York to Florida.
"It is a double loss to us. Today we lose a great innovator that found great fun in building crazy machines in unexpected ways to further some very important technologies," wrote one commenter. "And then there is the loss of a great guy that seemed untiring in his quest to help us little guys? Fair winds."
Marinas, boating publications and fellow sailing enthusiasts took to Facebook and shared their stories of Gougeon, too.
The Cruising Outpost, based in Alameda, Calif., shared condolences with the Gougeon family, and Wisconsin-based Barker's Island Marine posted the following on their Facebook page: "We mourn the loss of Jan Gougeon founder, along with his brother Mead, of West Systems. We, and our customers, have benefited from their innovative product development and knowledge. Hardly a day goes by, here in our shop, that we aren't using West System epoxies. Our condolences to Jan's family and friends."
Burial at sea will take place privately with the family.
A celebration service is planned for noon on Thursday, Dec. 27 at the Saginaw Bay Yacht Club, 2313 Weadock Highway in Essexville.
"We're having a party because he didn't want a funeral," Meade Gougeon said. "Anybody who Jan considered friends or family is invited to come."