Sail away with me …

Western Port Marina
Thursday 23 January 2020

Sounds like an offer too good to be true doesn’t it?! Step aboard and sail away across the South Pacific … albeit the more southerly reaches of the South Pacific.
But whilst a few friends and family were signing up for the “Bay of Island” leg of the upcoming NZ adventure, few had signed up for the Trans-Tasman leg; the delivery stage.

That is, except for my good ol’ mate John Land. I first met John in 1980 as a fellow flat mate at university in New Zealand, and it was John that would be travelling with me for most of the voyage.

So here I was, 10 days out from departure, with John flying in from New Zealand three days before departure, with no other crew but each other to make the passage.
“Get on the web” … suggested a fellow yachtie staying aboard a boat on the hardstand at Western Port Marina. “Yeah, all ya do is put up your profile on Find-a Crew, tell em where ya going, and you’re bound to get a crew”.

He then went on to describe finding two absolute sailing-novices in North Queensland … “seeking adventure and friendship” … who turned out to be fantastic. After a few weeks of training and direction they could even sail the boat … which was a … “hell of a lot cleaning after they came aboard than before”. One of the girls stayed a few years, but that’s another story!

So, I gave it a go … on findacrew.net and crewbay.com. And who would have guessed, within 7 days I had a ship’s complement of six vastly different souls, ready and willing to take part; three of whom actually flew down from Queensland. No doubt you’ll be learning more about the valient crew of the good ship Chimere more in the days to come … John, Jim, Ghigo (pro Jee), (and young couple) Jorge and Jodie … plus me make six.

Here’s my profile and see if you’d be willing to sign up …

“Rob, 60, seeking short term relationship for the duration of a voyage to New Zealand” … no, sorry, that’s NOT it (Linda) … here’s the correct one …
https://www.findacrew.net/en/boat/348224#avl

Rob, 60 Sailing vessel, Cutter, 16.2 m (53 ft), sail, monohull, Custom-built One off
Destination planned to take the vessel next ; New Zealand – Marlborough – Picton
this destination is around 1,338 nm from the boarding location
Team request: position for individuals only
Nationality of crew: anyone
Gender of crew: anyone
Age of crew: preferably between 25 to 65 years of age
Eating: Preferably crew with an unrestricted diet and aboard any or no specific diet is fine
Drinking: Anyone and aboard moderate drinking is allowed
Smoking: Only strict non-smokers and aboard there is strictly no smoking
Nudity: not relevant
Romance: No romance and please don’t contact me if looking for romance! Only members not looking for ‘romance’ are included in your search results or notifications.
Your profile is only shown to ‘non-romance’ members. Find a Crew™ is not a dating site! Your true intentions make the difference.
Experience: Coastal/Ocean sea time, preferably crew with at least 3.3 months spent at sea Coastal/Ocean sea miles, preferably crew with at least 5,000 nm (nautical miles) logged Contribute, preferably from $30.00 AUD to $50.00 AUD per day
Dear Shipmates
Introduction: Having used our boat to transport medical teams around the remote islands of Vanuatu since 2009 as part of Medical Sailing Ministries Inc, I am now planning a 4-5 month “recreational voyage” to New Zealand – to fulfill a 42 year dream. I have recently retired and with a view to putting our beloved yacht on the market later this year, this will be something of a farewell to her. My key and immediate task, however, is to first sail the yacht across the Tasman. Most of my friends are still in the workforce and with a couple of crew having to pull out recently I am keen to lock in a delivery crew as soon as possible. A friend suggested I register on this website, so here I am. A little about the boat, the plans, and the current crew usually clean, comfortable, very safe, seek adventure, fulfill a dream.
The yacht has 5 cabins, can sleep up to 10 in reasonable comfort. She has a big saloon, a cosy, warm, enclosed cockpit, immensely strong steel hull, satellite weather, tracker, text and email plus most of the comforts of home – no hair dryer though!?
I have co-owned this yacht since 2006, having originally sailed her from Perth (WA) to Melbourne, around Tasmania and 4 times to Vanuatu where we spent 6 months each time transporting medical volunteers around the remote islands; truly a unique experience.
I grew up on dinghies and have a lifetime’s experience on boats. I try to maintain behaviours and attitudes that reflect my Christian values and beliefs, and appreciate patience, compassion and understanding in others.
Having made it to the age of 60, I suppose I’m just looking for a commonsense, no-nonsense person with some sailing experience who can fit in with others to assist me in delivering the yacht to New Zealand.
I hope to have a total crew of around 5 or 6 people and based on a 48 day trip I did around Tassie earlier this year I expect the cost to be around $30 per day. You’ll also have to get a flight back from New Zealand, assuming you aren’t already a New Zealander.

https://www.crewbay.com/owner/8923/edit/adverts

With seven days to go … I now had a crew. Which ticked one BIG item on my “To Do List” . So here’s hoping the 10 day sail across the Tasman won’t end up being a cross between Survivor, Big Brother and Lord of The Flies. What can possibly go wrong?!

Smooth seas fair breeze and Sea-Harmony

Rob Latimer

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