Richard “Jud” Henderson began sailing on the Chesapeake Bay at the age of six. In addition to countless races since the early 1930s, his sailing experience includes a cruise to the Azores with his family aboard his thirty seven-foot sloop, Kelpie.

Henderson is the author of many books with nautical themes, including Chesapeake Sails: A History of Yachting on the Bay, Essential Seamanship, and First Sail. Subjects range from famous yacht designers to singlehanded sailing and seamanship training, including one title that has been a standard textbook at the U.S. Naval Academy for thirty years.

Henderson has been a guest columnist for Yachting magazine, a member of the Seaworthiness Technical Committee of the American Boat and Yacht Council, a judge for the Cruising World Boat of the Year award, and a board member and writer for The Telltale Compass, a yachtsman's consumer's report.