Jeff
Peltier
Chairman
Jeff now spends his winters in Punta Gorda, FL and summers on Pelican Lake. He re-established the Pelican Lake Sailing School in 2000 with the first ever fleet of training boats and 15 students. Filling the roles of chairman, director, and instructor for many years until 2020 when Evan Furr became the acting director. Now in his 70s, he and his wife Anne still enjoy Sunday racing in the summers and have cruised all of Florida and Bahamas in the winter months.
Evan
Furr
Director
Evan lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota and spends his summers on Pelican Lake. He began attending the Pelican Lake Sailing School at the age of 8. He became an instructor in 2011 when he was 15, then director in 2020. Most of his sailing experience comes from sailing catamarans. On summer weekends Evan enjoys racing his sailboat in the Sunday races and can be found sailing his Hobie Getaway whenever time allows. He also enjoys running, hiking and biking.
Evan graduated from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities with a Masters in Landscape Architecture.
Ethan
Lantz
Instructor
Ethan is from Fargo, North Dakota, and has spent every summer at Pelican Lake. He began sailing at the Pelican Lake Sailing School at age nine and has raced his Laser every Sunday since he was twelve. Following in the footsteps of his two older brothers, Ethan became an instructor at fifteen. Outside of sailing, Ethan is pursuing a degree in Biology and Neuroscience at Concordia College, Moorhead, with plans to graduate in the spring of 2027. He aspires to attend medical school and currently works as a nurse’s aide at the Sanford Medical Center in Fargo.
Genevieve Heese
Instructor
Genevieve is from Stevens Point, Wisconsin and a current student at the University of St. Thomas where she is majoring in Exercise Science. She started sailing at PLSS when she was 9 and has been back every summer since. She has been an instructor for the past four years. Most of Genevieve’s experience sailing is on 420’s, but she has discovered a recent interest in sailing keelboats during her time with the St. Thomas sailing club! Outside of sailing, Genevieve loves, to stay active by running and lifting, and spending time with family and friends.
Conner Smart
Instructor
Conner lives in Maple Grove, Minnesota, and spends most of his summer at his cabin on Pelican Lake. He first attended the sailing school in 2017 at the age of eight, and he began teaching there in the summer of 2024 at fifteen. Most of his sailing experience comes from the sailing school and, more recently, from high-school sailing. He spends his weekends at the lake enjoying watersports such as skiing, wakeboarding, and surfing, and he also takes part in the Sunday sailboat races. Outside of the sailing school, he enjoys snow sports, traveling, fishing, playing soccer, and spending time with friends.
Emma Jaszkowiak
Instructor
Emma is entering her first season as a fully certified sailing instructor after spending many years in the sailing school and serving as an assistant for the past two seasons. She loves continuing to develop her skills, especially mastering how to sail a Laser, and you can often find her racing in a Club 420 on most Sundays. Her favorite part about teaching sailing is seeing kids face their fears on the water, grow into confident sailors, and watching friends evolve along the way. She also loves being apart of the staff, enjoying how close everyone becomes over the summer, and now having friends from Spain. Outside of sailing, Emma enjoys spending her summers surfing, water skiing, tubing and watching the sunset. She lives in West Fargo and will be going into her senior year at Sheyenne High School in the fall. Her family also has a cabin on Detroit Lake, where she spends much of her free time. Emma is active both on and off the water. She plays competitive soccer, figure skates, and also works as a skiing instructor and Figure skating coach.
Ansel Nestingen
Instructor
Ansel lives in St. Paul, MN. He has been attending sailing school since 2018 at the age of 8, and has been teaching since 2023. He got into sailing from racing with his grandpa on his Hobie Getaway at 7 years old, and has loved it ever since. When he's not sailing, Ansel enjoys running long distances and playing hockey. He is currently a junior in highschool at Nova Classical Academy in St. Paul.
Isabel (Izzy) Hernandez Johnk
Lead Assistant
Isabel lives in Madrid, Spain, and is currently a student at the Fundación Jiménez Díaz School of Nursing, where she is studying to become a nurse. Her mother is from Colorado, and her father is from Granada, Spain. She first attended sailing school at the age of 8 and began working as a sailing assistant in 2022. She has continued in this role ever since and hopes to become a certified sailing instructor in the near future, pending the availability of certification dates during her visits to the United States. Isabel’s sailing experience is primarily in Club 420s, though she also enjoys racing Hobie catamarans with her grandfather and uncle. She regularly participates in the annual Pelican Lake Regatta. Outside of sailing, Isabel enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, painting, and going to the gym.
Emily Erpelding
Assistant
Emily lives in Fargo, North Dakota, and will be a senior in high school this fall. She loves playing violin in her school orchestra and the Fargo-Moorhead Youth Symphony, as well as being involved in her school’s speech and debate team. Emily has been attending PLSS since 2019, at the age of 10. She has had one year of teaching experience as an Assistant Instructor and is excited to be back teaching again this summer! When she’s not instructing, Emily enjoys spending her summers at her cabin on Lake Lizzie, where she loves being on the water and hanging out with friends and family. On Sundays, she enjoys racing and learning new skills from the other experienced sailors.
Eli
Elshaug
2026 New Assistant!
Eli Elshaug is a life-long, year-round resident of Pelican Lake. Eli has been a sailing school student of PLSS for 6 years, including racing classes. He participates in Sunday races and regattas. Eli attends Detroit Lakes High School. Plays hockey, and enjoys all water sports including jet skiing and is a member of the North Star Waterski Show Team.
Luna Gasevic
2026 New Assistant!
Luna lives in Fargo, North Dakota and is a sophomore in high school. She has been attending PLSS since 2019 at the age of 9, and raced in her first regatta and first Sunday race last year. Outside of sailing, Luna enjoys spending time with family and friends, playing the viola, training jiu jitsu, reading, and traveling.
