Mike Cignarale

Background

About Mike Cignarale

Being on the water has always been a passion of mine. I started driving boats as soon as I was old enough and was constantly on the water driving and navigating the Hudson River. When my mother told me that she found a school where I could drive ships for a degree, I jumped at the chance. After graduating SUNY Maritime, I started to work for Great Lakes Dredge and Dock as a Mate on the Terrapin Island. This ship is an unlimited tonnage split hull dredge that operates mostly on the east and gulf coasts with some work on the west coast. What I love about dredging is that the ship is almost always working in a port and that the mates do the actual steering. I get to steer the vessel in areas where almost every other ship has a pilot on board. I pass post-panamax container ships in narrow shipping channels with limited clearance. This has given me tremendous experience operating a vessel in high stress environments. In my free time, I enjoy tinkering on my cars which brings me back to my younger years of restoring an old Buick with my father. I enjoy cooking and the ability to create new recipes for friends and family with my own spin. I also love to explore new areas while paddle boarding.