Written by Warwick Crossman

In May last year, Phil Burgess and I were lucky enough to sail in the DF65 World Championships in Nynasharm, Sweden. That was easily one of the most competitive and well-organised regattas I have ever sailed in and one of the clever initiatives the organisers put in place was to appoint a Swedish competitor as liaison for each visiting nation. 

As it turned out, Tim Shuwalo was the liaison for the Australian team, and not only did he do a brilliant job of looking after us, but in his spare time, he went on to win the World Championships.

So when Phil heard that Tim and his family were coming to Australia for a holiday over Christmas, there was never any doubt that we had to reciprocate, and Phil organised a visit to RPAYC followed by a cruise on Pittwater aboard Ken and Nolene Noble’s beautiful Maritimo 60 “Karma”.

It was a picture-perfect day on Pittwater on Sunday for our visitors, who were overwhelmed by the hospitality extended to them by RPAYC, RMYC and, in particular, Ken and Nolene Noble. 

In recent months we have proudly welcomed DF65 sailors from England, Canada, New Zealand and Sweden to RPAYC, and it never ceases to amaze me what a wonderful global community the class has become.   

DF65 racing resumes this Thursday 9 January. Everyone is welcome to join in. Reach out to Warwick Crossman or Phil Burgess to find out more about how you can get involved in the fastest growing fleet at RPAYC!