My sailing experience

I started sailing when I was 7 years old on my uncle's Moth. My brothers and I leant to sail on a Manly Junior, an 8 foot dinghy which we raced at Oyster Bay Sailing Club. I raced various other dinghies, catermarans and a 19' Sharpie for Sydney Uni.

I joined the Ocean Youth Club of Australia and progressed through their sail training programmes, culminating in a 9 day cruise to Lord Howe Island, and the Hobart to Sydney Tall Ships race in 1988.

I sailed again to Lord Howe Island on Casha, a Farr 11; and later skippered my own yacht there with a crew of 5.

In May 1995 I bought Weatherly, a 39' steel cutter, with the purpose of ocean cruising, planning to sail to Europe from 1998. Short coastal trips up and down the NSW coast were made for trials.

I set sail in May 1998, on Weatherly with my partner, Kathy, cruising the East coast of Australia from Sydney to Thursday Island through the Barrier reef. We sailed on to Darwin then Bali, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, frequently stopping to exlore and travel.

We parted in Thailand and I spent some years working and on major repairs such as a total engine rebuild, steel replacement in deck and hull, and restoring the mast.

I sailed numerous times between Lumut, Malaysia and Phuket, Thailand to perform various maintenance tasks. I often sailed solo on Weatherly in this wonderful cruising ground, and other times with backpackers or friends.

I am now ready for the next stage to new cruising grounds, cultures and adventures.