Joined HOEOCA in 2007. Day Skipper, Competent Crew. Love the club as you get to meet and sail with an amazing variety of people.

Learned to dinghy sail as a boy and owned Albacore 341 'Ginger Nut'. Started RYA navigation classes in early 1990s and was a founder member of HOEOCA and its third commodore. Sailing is still great - always something new to learn!

I stated my association with the sea in 1980 when I trained as a commercial diver at Fort Bovisand in Devon as an option to my degree course in Civil Engineering.

I started sailing in 2008 when I did the RYA Level 1 and 2 dinghy courses at Shustoke Sailing Club. After the course I purchased a Laser Dinghy which I now race regularly at Shustoke Sailing Club.

Whilst at Shustoke I did the RYA Day Skipper and yacht-master theory courses and have subsequently been on a number of sailing excursions including a trip across the channel to Guernsey and Alderney last summer.

In addition to be being the Hoeaca Treasurer I am also the Treasurer of the RYA Midland Regional Volunteer Team where I have been in post for three years. I was the Treasurer of Shustoke Sailing club for 7 years but retired from this post 18 months ago.

My working life has been spent as a design Engineer on major Civil and Structural Engineering projects but towards the end of my career I moved into Project Management for a large multidisiciplined organisation involved with the design and construction of pharmaceutical, food and chemical plants.

I retired in October last year to spend more time cycling, sailing, digging the allotment and amusing the grandchildren.

My first experience of sailing was in a dinghy in Christ Church harbour with my cousins when I was a kid and I hated it...
I picked it up again in 1995 having done theory up to Yachtmaster at night school before really stepping on a boat! I joined HOEOCA the same year.
Since then I have clocked up over 25,000 sea miles having sailed with more Sailing Schools than I can remember and cruised in many locations including Scotland (which I love), the French Coast (which I also love), the Med (another great love), Ireland (I want to go back), the Faroes (was a long crossing), Teneriffe, Holland, the Caribbean and The Scillies (been lucky enough to get there twice) in addition to the traditional sailing grounds in England.
I was the first person in HOEOCA to do the Fastnet in 1997 and since then have dabbled with a few Sunsail Races and RTI campaigns.

Hooeca member for many years, I gained almost all of my qualifications through the club training programs, and have looked after the website for over 10 years. By trade, I'm a computer programmer, and Sailing is my escape from work!