TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums British Virgin Islands Mark Paulson (Saildoggie)

I don't know details, but Mark Paulson passed away yesterday.

wow. just wow.

Wow. If you find out any more details, please post. Condolences to his family and friends.

How very sad. Never met him, but have enjoyed reading his posts. Condolences to his family - and the dogs too.

Just saw it on Facebook. I have lost a true friend.

So sad....he was a great guy and will be sorely missed.

wow, so so sad my deepest sympathies to his family

Oh no....can't believe it! We spent a week with Mark and had a great time with him. My heart goes out to Nicole and Lynn. May he rest in peace.

I just can't believe it. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/cry.gif" alt="" /> This is so incredibly sad.

Very sad. I only met Mark a handful of times, but his big personality is not easily forgotten. I know he was well-loved and will be dearly missed!

Felix (Kris)

I am speechless right now, as Glenn said he was a true friend. Mark would walk to the ends of the earth for the people he cared about. He loved his BVIs and all of the people he met along the way. He will be missed terribly. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Sad.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Sad.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Sad.gif" alt="" />

Wow! I am very sad to hear this. Also saw something on facebook. My thoughts and prayers are with his family. Saildoggie was a joy to be around.

Sad day for his family and friends. Happy Sails Saildoggie!!

no doubt he would go out of his way to help people, RIP Saildoggie

Never met him, but chatted with him here many times. Sad.. RIP.

Not sure what to say...one of those amazing larger than life characters that seem to go too soon and leave a void impossible to fill. Saildoggie drove us all crazy at times and yet we loved and embraced him for all his quirks..I guess my imitation of him would be in really bad taste right now!! All love to Nic and Lynn...

Perfectly stated Mal. And no, your imitation would be fine - the last thing the Dawg would accept is for us to get serious, and forget his true spirit; NOT reverent at all!

I never met him, but "larger than life" is the expression I also thought of. A loving, giving, living life to the fullest kind of guy. Enjoyed his posts here and photos. RIP, Saildoggie!

Shocked and saddened. Much love to Lynn and Nicole.

I'm totally floored. He will be very much missed by many people... And his beloved dogs. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/cry.gif" alt="" />

Dogspeed, my friend. Hope you are rubbing Trinity's belly at the Rainbow Bridge today. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Sad.gif" alt="" />

SOOO sad to hear this news. He was indeed a character and will be greatly missed. My sympathies to his family

....He would probably LOL....

VERY sorry to hear of the Dawgs passing as he was always friendly and full of hell in a great way! Sincere condolences to all the SD family.

This is very sad. He was one of the most enthusiastic and generous people I've met. He will be missed.

I am so saddened to hear of this news.

We have spent several BVI cruises knocking around with Saildoggie (Mark), Lynn, and Nichole. The Dingy Poker Runs and sailing flotillas he helped organize through TTOL were legendary. There are many memories from these trips that I will treasure for the rest of my days.

I send my love and prayers to his family.

Love and prayers to his family and friends.

The Dawg was not one for flowers so I just made a donation to VISAR (a service he had been on the verge of needing on more than one occasion) in his memory.

Good idea! I'm sure he would have approved! Scroll down totally to the bottom of every page on the BVI forum for a link for VISAR..

And a donation in memory of Bill Hartzman is also in order, who truthfully might have had some issues with the Doggie, but no issues with support of VISAR... <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" />

Unbelievable.

Mark will be missed. Many happy memories of time spent with him and his family.

Sad to hear about this. Mark was a fun guy to be around, always made me laugh when I saw him. SIP.

When he came onto Anegada, he was larger than life. May he RIP..
Condolences to Lynn and Nicole..

Took my breath away when I read this news. I never met Mark but feel like I did, thanks to his wonderful contributions here. My heart goes out to all who knew and loved him.

Dan

I am so sorry to hear this... my heart goes out to Lynn and Nicole... I only had to meet Mark a few times to know we were similar souls, and I enjoyed every moment I spent with him... even trying to carry his drunk [censored] home from my boat at Leverick Bay... the fun never stopped around Mark... but nothing was more important to him than his family, and his friends... RIP buddy.

It didn't matter what boat he skippered, he was one of the best competitors and most genuine friend.

I hope that he is starting a flotilla with Walt.

Cat Fight 2011 Free Will

Interesting you should mention the great Walt Bohren..when I heard this news today I could not put either of them out of my mind. So many folks leave a tiny footprint..others like those two..stomp an impression in the ground and on those they meet that never goes away. I hope we can all learn to love and embrace life like those two maniacs!

I came to know Mark in 09 when he was planning the Flotilla for that year. I recommended a customer on Tortola to do the shirts for him. When they fizzled out on him he called me in a panic to get the shirts done in time. I volunteered to do them myself and got dragged into that crazy fun time (as Twanger would say) in the Flotilla where I had a ball with Mark and all you other folks of the TTOL BVI family. He really worked a lot harder than most folks know to make the Flotilla fun for everyone. Fair Winds Mark. Prayers for Nicole and Lynn.

We had the privilege of spending a week on a boat with Saildoggie, and what a week that was. We had a great time and got to know him well. He was a very kind soul that loved to have a good time. He loved his wife and daughter, it was very evident. We walked away very good friends that kept in contact through the years. I will miss him dearly.

I have been thinking about him all day -- and all of the hard work he put into those flotillas and how much fun we all had.

Ah wow... what can I say. I think Malcolm summed it up perfectly. He was one of those people with whom you feel lucky to have crossed paths, a character larger than life.

For our honeymoon my wife and I sailed with him in the 2012 flotilla. I still recall being at the end of the T dock at Leverick and being able to hear his laugh all the way from the bar... and how that made me smile. We won the Anegada Lobster Regatta that year, double-handing a 50' cat through three squalls with pouring rains and sustained winds in the 30's and gusts into the 40's. What a trip!!

Mark also opened his house to me on a few occasions when I could break free from business trips to California. He was an incredibly generous person, absolutely irreverent, and a total blast to be around.

He will be missed... sorely. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Sad.gif" alt="" />

Collin, you and Mal hit the nail on the head. If it were not for Mark, I would know know any of you folks! If it were not for Mark I would NOT be sailing period!

And with that said I want to share some memories that Mark created with many of us TTOL/BVI folks in this short video. Click the picture to start.

You will be missed!