In September 2021 the CYCA asked me to type out a piece, "People Who Influenced Me". Well I wrote a fair bit more than what they asked for. Here is the un-abbreviated version:
David Kellett AM
My first ever memory was welcoming Dad home after winning the 1981 SHYR line honours on Vengeance. Now, in my mind, the old man of Aussie yachting. He sits at his desk at Woolwich Dock nowadays, but he was the man who ruled the world to me. For decades of our lives, he was flying across the globe organising Olympic Regattas or the world of sailing, year after year, making sure the sport of sailing was on good track for the future. Just endless and tireless devotion to our sport.
Dad had a little boat by the name of Jemima Puddleduck when he was a boy. It was like a Manly Junior, only a bit bigger with seats in her. She was red and when Dad restored her and gave her to me as a five- or six-year-old boy, I was hooked. That was me, sailing the bays and seas, looking back at my family and their friends as they enjoyed the freedoms of the waterways that we do not currently have.
Col Wildman
After travelling the world with Dad’s Army as a child and settling down back in Australia in the late 1980’s, Wildman said to Dad, “bring Brad down to Middle Harbour Yacht Club and get him into Manly Juniors”. That was the introduction to competitive sailing that I still thrive on today. After a year of sailing at Middle Harbour Yacht Club crewing for other people, me jumping ship out of a Flying 11 and swimming to the start boat in shark infested Middle Harbour when I hated sailing for one girl, Mum and Dad got me my own Manly Junior, #2395 (uncannily my CYCA number too), Yankee Clipper, the tall ships that held the records of all the major trading routes.
Hugh Treharne OAM
Dad had gotten chatting to Hugh Treharne and his son Robbie was the right age to start crewing Manly Juniors. It must have been loose the first time Dad and Hughie set Robbie and I adrift in the channel off of MHYC, but my only memory of that day is steering the little MJ with Hughie straddling the centreboard case teaching me the finer points of managing a tiller. Words that I feel obviously sank in as one of my favourite things to do is to helm a yacht or dinghy that is perfectly trimmed, she is telling you what she needs, and you give it to her in smooth, light strokes of the rudder. I will never forget Hughie for teaching me the finer points of sailing with his soft tones.
Ian “Bugsy” Potter
What can say, “chh chh, what’s up Bugs?” One of my favourite people on the face of the planet. Andrew Strachan and Bugsy pulled me off sailing on the dinosaurs with Dad and Dad’s Army after my first three great races to sail on Ninety-Seven with them. With races to Lord Howe Island, Solomon Islands and Fiji (breaking the rig coming home), this was my introduction to real offshore racing with an international twist. Bugs took me on as a nipper and taught me the intricacies of being a paid hand. He introduced me to being paid for pottering on boats, something I had always loved. One of Australia’s best offshore racing navigators, I learnt a lot about seamanship from Bugs. Sailing through Moreton Bay at 03:00am with string tied onto my big toe downstairs sleeping is one incident that will forever be imprinted in my mind. Me waking up with my foot being pulled through the porthole as Bugs was using my waking up string to keep himself upright, so don’t tie VB cord to your appendages when sailing. Oh yeah, also, when you have more wind forecasted on the nose during the night, don’t put the bigger delivery jib up when the sun goes down…
Iain Murray AM
I remember spending Sunday afternoon’s out on Vengeance in the 1980’s, drinking too much Fanta and all the stuff that kids do on yachts, but I loved 15:00hrs, time for the 18’s. KB, Tia Maria, Chesty, Singapore Airlines and Colourbond are a few of the teams that I remember, but watching the Big Fella throw his red hulled skiff around, Bucko and The Admiral fight with the 20 foot long spin pole, set their kite and then send it down the harbour ahead of the trailing fleet, I wanted some of that (that’s another story John Harris Jnr). Iain then went onto to drive Advance for Syd Fischer in the 1983 America’s Cup (every good hand has to work or sail for Syd at least once in their life) and then be in charge of the Kookaburra campaign for the 1987 Cup in Fremantle. It was at this time in life that I loved yacht design (and still do) and the Big Fella was designing his own 12 meters and they were gold. Now that was cool, you are the top of the charts to this day mate. One of the softest-spoken people I have ever had the pleasure of chatting to and no matter what you face at sea, you are there. B-F-A-M, thanks for the America’s Cup Jubilee and the pleasure of having Cambria and her spars in my life. Iain’s recent additions in RORC’s Seahorse magazine are a testament to the professional he has become and why he is at the top of my ranks.
Roger Hickman OAM
Hicko used to let me come and go for the five or so years that we enjoyed racing together on many boats, from the Etchell, Mumm 36, Sydney 40, Atara, SAP Ausmaid and the first Ichi Ban, we had a great time together. It started when he inherited me with Atara. That time together was a constant push from the start of the race to the finish. Push, push, push. The start of my usual crewing watch systems going out of the window. I have never witnessed a person throw so much into the challenge of offshore racing. All I can say is, WOW, what a guy, the sport misses him.
Lindsay May OAM CFRE
Linds, the consummate amateur professional navigator. I love the bloke. If you need to be navigated out of a dark stormy night, in a lot of current with minimal sail up, this is your guy. Immaculate preparation and constant monitoring when in the office means that this guy does not get it wrong too often. One year when I was running the Brindabus, we had Lindsay navigating for us. I used to keep my survival suit in a seal-all bag under the lounge seat on the stbd side of Brindabella’s nav station. After a fantastic run across the paddock and down the Tassie coast, we had a bit on unwrapping the kite that went bad during a gybe prior to the south westerly gale hitting just as the sun was going down, great area of the world for that. We jagged it, the front hit, small front sails up and mainsail reefed, I went off watch at about 01:00am and kind of stayed down until about 05:30am where I was woken by my navigator sticking my survival suit bag under my head, saying, “you have had your rest, it’s time for you to go to work now”. With that I was welcomed to 40 knots by my two watch captains struggling to hang onto the wheel in 20 to 30 foot waves, 6 miles SSE of Tasman Island and the crew struggling to pull the blown mainsail down with my little brother in the pit yelling, “it’s not me holding the sail up”. I looked at Linds and asked him what the options were with his reply being, “bail out”. So, we took a run to the shelter of the Tasman Peninsula, got the sails down, took a breather, storm sails up and off we go again at six knots. That was along day getting to the Raoul. Thanks Linds, great call and we were going so well.
Joe “Black” Akacick
Black Joe, what a guy. Thank you Bondy for introducing this guy to Americas Cup and ocean racing. We are all better off for it. Ex former navy clearance diver, come white boat captain, Black loves boats. Big, small, old, new, he just lives, breathes, feels, BOATS. I love his attitude, love his persona, love his morals, love his seamanship, but most of all love him like an older brother. He is the man. Almost everything I do in my professional career, I think, “how would Black handle this?”. Now for someone to have such a presence in your life, he would have to be someone to look up to. I recently created a list of all the people I had been to Hobart with over my 28 years of starting the great race. Out of 277 known characters that I have started the race with, I have had the pleasure of heading south with the Black Fella a chart topping six times between 1992 and 2019, my complete SHYR career.
Captions to images:
1978 Marblehead USA
First time helming a yacht out on the Gulf of Maine with Dad, 1978 northern hemisphere summer.
1978 Yngling USA
Winterising Dad’s bosses Yngling in Massachusetts, looking like early northern hemisphere winter. According to DK, I had climbed up the ladder, so there was nowhere else for me to go except for in the boat. A monkey and a sailor to this day.
1980 Gretel Pittwater
Family cruising after the great race was a huge part of my childhood. It would have been about this age when Mum and Dad decided that I needed my own boat.
2016 RSHYR Finish Crew Photo
Perpetual Loyal team celebrating breaking the record during the 2016 RSHYR after arriving to the dock in Hobart. Black Joe (Loyal’s Captain) centre left with my hand on his shoulder.
Black left another LH RSHYR16-ROLEX-Kurt-Arrigo (2)
Black Joe (left) celebrating beating the RSHYR record on Perpetual Loyal in 2016.
Black on runners 2016 SBBC Loyal
Black Joe at his favourite job on the Big Black Bus, keeping the rig in her during his favourite race, the SOLAS Big Boat Challenge. Black used to cut loose on this Tuesday every December. Our favourite kiwi, Tony Mutter and I are head down, loading winches in front of the helm.
Black pre 1989 12M Challenge
I was lucky as a kid getting to go sailing with Iain Murray’s team, learning the role of the afterguard from the best, like Peter Gilmour. All the boys are in Alan Bond’s Drumbeat’s green crew shirts with Black in Bondy’s Southern Cross black Captain’s singlet (minus the planks).
Black SHYR90 Maloneys
Black Joe with Matt Shillington and Sven Runow, in Maloney’s after their 1990 SHYR on Condor. These guys were the grunt behind what I refer to as, “Dad’s Army”.
Brinda RSHYR13 Storm Bay
One of the better images from the storm in the Lindsay May story on Brindabella. The sun had just come up and it was already carnage on deck. The tackline block hanging over the side of the foredeck banging away, good look. You can see Sykesy Snr and Stu Don falling over each other on the helm! I think this was when Lindsay, our owner, Jim and I were having our what to do next meeting.
Bugs B&T Wedding 2005 cropped
Bugsy Potter was also our photographer at the B&T Wedding on JBW & Sydney in 2005. I cropped Helen “Mrs Bugs” out in this one.
Bugs B&T Wedding 2005
Bugsy Potter was also our photographer at the B&T Wedding on JBW & Sydney in 2005. I didn’t crop Helen “Mrs Bugs” out in this one.
Condor 1992 SHYR Finish Crew Photo
The finish of my first SHYR on board Condor. It was the start of my ocean racing apprenticeship with “Dad’s Army”. You can see Dad and I in the centre and down low respectively, but I think Black Joe was standing on the right hand out of the shot next to Col Wildman on the right. The old boy in his drinking days.
Crack at the mast join Cambria 2001 Americas Cup Jubillee
I cannot remember which race it was during the 2001 America’s Cup Jubilee in Cowes when we heard a large crack from up the rig, but we thought the campaign was over. After reducing all the load (note forestay sag), with the rig check, the crack was found to be the glue in the carbon fibre tip’s sleeve to the main wooden section of the spar. It was obvious, but completely structurally sound still. Our 1st Mate Grantly Pellew and our old school mast makers from Harry Spencer’s in Cowes added more glue overnight and were good as gold for the remainder of the regatta, plus a whole lotta breeze getting across the Bay of Biscay enroute to Saint-Tropez and as far as I know, still going strong 20+ years later.
David2c-chloe-and-brad-kellett-credit-andrea-francolini
Dad and I were doing a father son segment for Di Pearson prior to the 2016 RSHYR. Andrea was taking the photos, which I had Chloe with me. Andrea was all about getting her in the photo. It was great, because our little hoover loved Dad more than she loved Tors and I.
DBK 2005 Cape Horn
Watching over Dad and Uncle John Mulderig from Marblehead USA, drive the 55’ Pelagic away from our rounding of and visit to Cape Horn in 2005.
DBK Sovereign 1989 Newport RI
Dad manoeuvring Sovereign back into her berth after we won the 1989 Maxi World Championships in Newport, Rhode Island. Our delivery captain, come navigator had left his glasses somewhere (we suspect the Hai’Lai) and my eyes were the sharpest to drive the Loran GPS unit. I oversaw binoculars describing the race flags to our fearless navigator Louby Lou and then punching the course into the Loran under Lou’s instructions with a lot of, ‘f—k Brado, I misread it, we gotta press the back button again” coming from Lou. I was 13, welcome to the REAL afterguard.
DBK Sydney 2000 470 Gold Ceremony
Dad presented the gold medals to the girls 470 winners here in Sydney on the Opera House steps in 2000. It was pretty cool. I was too busy yelling over, ‘give her a kiss” and cheering when he was presenting the gold medal to Belinda Stowell to get a photo of him actually presenting the medal.
DBK Vengeance 1981 CYCA
Photo supplied by Mum. It says January 1981 on the back, so Vengeance must have just arrived from Perth after Bernard Lewis (between Tony Cable and Dad) purchased her. I would say that the prizegiving has just happened and the was a little ham up for the family?
DK CW BK Sovereign 1987 Range Rover regatta Port Stephens
My first ocean race on Sovereign in 1987. I was supposed to do the whole Range Rover Regatta from Sydney to Port Stephens and then the second race home to Sydney, but the weather was so heinous for the Friday night race up that Dad sent me up in the car with Mum. There was only a 20 knot westerly forecast for the Hunter for the Sunday race home so I was on! 11 years old and fully in the zone. Dad driving, Col Wildman trimming genoa, our delivery captain Louby Lou on mainsheet. My two oldest mates to this day, Trent Wildman and Mark Bannister are in the aft cockpit with me. As Spanna has a winch handle in the leeward runner winch ready to go, the lads are probably positioned on the runners.
DK CW MHYC late 80’s
The men who got me into competitive dinghy sailing, Dad and Col Wildman down on the parking lot lawn at MHYC in probably what was 1989.
Dredge Master Lindsay May Brinda SGCYR14
Never tell Bradshaw Kellett that he cannot go somewhere when he works for some individuals. We had a plane to catch, and it was time to get to the dock after the 2014 SGCYR. We obviously caught the attention of the locals, with Lindsay May and his purple pants, but I got a visit from a local authority to claim the barge was dredging us out of our situation and that we would have to pay a fine. I showed the guy our footage, who then still didn’t agree. Two hours later I re-joined the boys at the SYC after going down to the dredge master with the said authoritarian, with the dredge master fortunately knocking off and then agreeing that we were not in the way and he was not dredging under Brindabella’s keel! The bloke in the purple pants had gone bye bye by then and was happy not to be around.
Hanging with IM 1993
Designer Andy Dovell's wedding with his wife Sue. With Iain Murray, suited up, probably after the 1992 America’s Cup with Spirit.
Hicko & Sal 2000 Sydney 40 Worlds Majaroca
Hicko with Sally Gordon. One of the many tours we did with Team Hicko was the 2000 Sydney 40 Worlds in Majorca, Spain. This was on a day of no breeze, so we went tekkie touring on the Sydney 40 instead of sailing. A rarity for Roger. You had to train to drift as well. We had a mixed nation of characters that tour and came 2nd out of 10. Not bad for a bunch of louts who joined the season late.
Hicko 2000 Tatersalls SAP Ausmaid Win
Roger Hickman and crew receiving the Tatersalls for our overall SHYR victory in 2000 on SAP Ausmaid. 70 knots of wind across the deck with Hicko on the helm and I hear, “Bradshaw, ciggie” from him. That one took a while to light and when I got back to the helm he asked, “what took you so long?”. I was Chris Gorman’s boat captain on the J44 Adria at the time, so had to rush off to go and win the Coffs Race after we finished in Hobart and celebrated for one night. Hicko loved accepting that one, we smashed it.
Hicko 2001 SHYR start - Ready to defend the title
Boxing Day, 2001. Aim was to defend the Tatersalls and get Ausmaid her third SHYR victory. You can see the determination on the faces. We were ready, we had the most proven boat in Australia, we knew the forecast, had the game plan, it was our year again, two in a row. I remember Hicko going through the plan methodically with Flanno at the back. Going into the first night we had Bumblebee 5 on our bow heavily healed over well into the front. Going on midnight, B5’s stern light was still there. This was a good start, we started highlighting our efforts and really became good at doing 115% target boat speed in 30 knots of wind with three quarters of our crew below off watch hiding. I was to leeward trimming the headsail. Hicko, Enzo or Flanno, I don’t remember who was driving, but then bang. Rig down.
Hicko 2002 SHYR Ichi Ban
Hicko giving instruction from the helm of the gold boat, the Farr 52 Ichi Ban during the 2002 RSHYR.
Hicko 2002 SHYR Ichi Ban SE Tas Coast
Hicko driving the gold boat, Ichi Ban down the SE Tasmanian coast during the 2002 RSHYR. We had a pre-start mechanical failure and started late. It was a massive push to catch up our sistership, Hollywood Blvd, in which they we behind us here. After listening to Hicko tell us profusely that we don’t go close to the Raoul in a drift off, there we are drifting about two miles off the Raoul and H’wood’s lights just cruise on past us at 3-4 knots boat speed and gone. Rog was so angry, stomping and screaming. Very passionate about his sport. Looking at Craig, Thomo, Charley, Stacey, Pete and Sal’s faces behind Hicko, there was something going on that he would not of liked too much.
IM Cambria 2001 Americas Cup Jubilee
Iain Murray on Cambria on the final day of the 2001 America’s Cup Jubilee in Cowes. He had to jet off, so had the blazer from the bondi’s at the gig with him. We snapped this with our owner, JD’s captains’ hat on, thought he looked the part (note Hawaiian shirt underneath).
JD IM PM Cambria 2001 Americas Cup Jubilee
Iain Murray with "JD", John David and Cambria’s Captain Pete Mandin with a replica America’s Cup during the 2001 Americas Cup Jubilee in Cowes.
Jemima Puddleduck sailing
Dad and I in Jemima Puddleduck, probably in Refuge Bay in the mid 1980’s.
Jemima Puddleduck
Me in Jemima Puddleduck, probably in Refuge Bay in the mid 1980’s.
Macca IM 1991 Spirit Launch
Spirit designer & campaign head Iain Murray and builder John McConaghy launching the 75’ America’s Cup yacht at the Sydney Northern Beaches Bayview boat ramp, NSW in 1991.
Manly Junior 2395 Yankee Clipper
Manly Junior #2395 Yankee Clipper.
Maxi Rags SHYR93 Start Crew Photo
Maxi Ragamuffin team photo prior to the start of the 1993 SHYR. There was carnage out there and we pulled out while leading line honours and left it for the 47’ Ninety Seven to win line honours. I ended up in Pambula Hospital stitches above my eye and a lesson learnt.
Pre 1989 12M Challenge
I was lucky as a kid getting to go sailing with Iain Murray’s team on the Kookaburra’s, learning the role of the afterguard from the best, like Peter Gilmour, helming here. Dad on the mainsheet. I loved those three 12’s and still get a glint in my eye when I see them looking all smick doing the modern day 12M circuit.
SYHO16DF_03010
Dad presenting my 25th SHYR medallion to me after breaking the record on Perpetual Loyal in 2016.
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