Cruise Control

Rare wine and private islands-—rolling deep on a yacht called Eos.

Jim Cascino is not a man prone to understatement. Whether this is due to his Italian American heritage, his decades of experience running such companies as Discovery Toys and Eos International, his inherently extroverted temperament or some combination thereof, the Lafayette resident doesn't talk so much as make enthusiastic pronouncements. So when you spend a Friday afternoon on his 43-foot Riviera motor yacht, Eos, cruising the Bay and Oakland Estuary with Cascino, his longtime girlfriend, Lili Smith, and a few friends, you'll hear him jokingly explain why boats are given women's names: "Because they're high maintenance and more costly than you'll ever expect!" Though a serial CEO and the current president of the St. Francis Yacht Club Foundation who owns all the toys and comforts a man his age could ask for, Cascino is the opposite of stuffy. He's not beyond making Opie-ish proclamations as we approach McCovey Cove, where boaters wait for home runs to fly over the AT&T Park wall, framed by the SF skyline. "This is, like, the coolest city in the world," he says.

Cascino has spent nearly four decades sailing and motor-yachting around the world, on Eos (named for the Greek goddess of the dawn) and the 13 boats that have preceded her. He's sailed to Hawaii, Mexico and several Caribbean islands including St. Barts, the Bahamas and Martinique. "I could get in a boat tight as a drum and leave it loose as a goose," he says, in trying to explain why he loves the water. "A boat like this is just a social toy—you can drink, eat, watch TV, fish or spend the night." And a well-greased social toy it is. The wine on board is the rarely available DuMol Maranet, the mushroom quiche and chocolate-chip cookies are homemade by Lili, the couches in front of the large flat-screen TV are leather. Impeccably gracious, Cascino points out the sights like a tour guide. "A boat gives you a whole different experience you don't see from a car," he says, and it's true. We pass the picture-perfect white clapboard house on Yerba Buena Island reserved for the Pacific Coast Guard commander; huge ramps used during WWII to build "liberty ships" to transport soldiers to Europe; FDR's presidential yacht, the USS Potomac, moored in Oakland's Inner Harbor; and the lightship Relief, which used to serve as a lighthouse, 12 miles out at sea.



Cascino's favorite destinations revolve around the St. Francis Yacht Club, that tile-roofed bastion of SF boating culture on Marina Boulevard. He frequently ties Eos up for several summer months at Tinsley Island, the SFYC's private island in the Sacramento Delta, where he and his friends barbecue and get away from the San Francisco fog. In fact, Cascino recently spent his 57th birthday at the yacht club, doing his job as foundation president by hosting its annual auction to raise money for Olympic hopefuls and junior sailing programs. Seated in the center of the room, Cascino shook hands, made introductions, yelled to members across the room by first name and teased them from the podium as boat rides, Mediterranean cruises, Mexican vacations and a Mercedes Smart Car were auctioned off at generously inflated prices. During brief interludes, while guests such as Olympic skier Jonny Moseley and world-champion sailor Paul Cayard did their auctioneer duties, Cascino snuck a few bites of dinner and meticulously tallied the final bid on each item in his program. When the night's total far surpassed last year's efforts, Cascino couldn't contain his excitement. "I want as many people as possible to experience the passion of boating," he says. "It centers me. In the drama, toil and fun of life, getting on the water neutralizes the energy that runs through my veins." In other words, he likes it.

Click here to see exclusive video.

Jim Cascino is not a man prone to understatement. Whether this is due to his Italian American heritage, his decades of experience running such companies as Discovery Toys and Eos International, his inherently extroverted temperament or some combination thereof, the Lafayette resident doesn't talk so much as make enthusiastic pronouncements. So when you spend a Friday afternoon on his 43-foot Riviera motor yacht, Eos, cruising the Bay and Oakland Estuary with Cascino, his longtime girlfriend, Lili Smith, and a few friends, you'll hear him jokingly explain why boats are given women's names: "Because they're high maintenance and more costly than you'll ever expect!" Though a serial CEO and the current president of the St. Francis Yacht Club Foundation who owns all the toys and comforts a man his age could ask for, Cascino is the opposite of stuffy. He's not beyond making Opie-ish proclamations as we approach McCovey Cove, where boaters wait for home runs to fly over the AT&T Park wall, framed by the SF skyline. "This is, like, the coolest city in the world," he says.

Cascino has spent nearly four decades sailing and motor-yachting around the world, on Eos (named for the Greek goddess of the dawn) and the 13 boats that have preceded her. He's sailed to Hawaii, Mexico and several Caribbean islands including St. Barts, the Bahamas and Martinique. "I could get in a boat tight as a drum and leave it loose as a goose," he says, in trying to explain why he loves the water. "A boat like this is just a social toy—you can drink, eat, watch TV, fish or spend the night." And a well-greased social toy it is. The wine on board is the rarely available DuMol Maranet, the mushroom quiche and chocolate-chip cookies are homemade by Lili, the couches in front of the large flat-screen TV are leather. Impeccably gracious, Cascino points out the sights like a tour guide. "A boat gives you a whole different experience you don't see from a car," he says, and it's true. We pass the picture-perfect white clapboard house on Yerba Buena Island reserved for the Pacific Coast Guard commander; huge ramps used during WWII to build "liberty ships" to transport soldiers to Europe; FDR's presidential yacht, the USS Potomac, moored in Oakland's Inner Harbor; and the lightship Relief, which used to serve as a lighthouse, 12 miles out at sea.



Cascino's favorite destinations revolve around the St. Francis Yacht Club, that tile-roofed bastion of SF boating culture on Marina Boulevard. He frequently ties Eos up for several summer months at Tinsley Island, the SFYC's private island in the Sacramento Delta, where he and his friends barbecue and get away from the San Francisco fog. In fact, Cascino recently spent his 57th birthday at the yacht club, doing his job as foundation president by hosting its annual auction to raise money for Olympic hopefuls and junior sailing programs. Seated in the center of the room, Cascino shook hands, made introductions, yelled to members across the room by first name and teased them from the podium as boat rides, Mediterranean cruises, Mexican vacations and a Mercedes Smart Car were auctioned off at generously inflated prices. During brief interludes, while guests such as Olympic skier Jonny Moseley and world-champion sailor Paul Cayard did their auctioneer duties, Cascino snuck a few bites of dinner and meticulously tallied the final bid on each item in his program. When the night's total far surpassed last year's efforts, Cascino couldn't contain his excitement. "I want as many people as possible to experience the passion of boating," he says. "It centers me. In the drama, toil and fun of life, getting on the water neutralizes the energy that runs through my veins." In other words, he likes it.

Click here to see exclusive video.

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