by Neil Heselton

I used to work with David, a good friend of mine, as a fisheries officer cruising up and down in a fast patrol boat on the north east coast of England in any weather. The friend I worked with left the fisheries job for some time off, the summer went by, and one day at the start of December I got a call from him while I was having dinner. Knowing my sailing experience, he asked me if I would like to come out to Antigua to be mate on an old 32 metre yacht that needed a bit of work doing to it (probably the biggest understatement I have ever heard!). Catch was, I only had 24 hours to think about it. As you can imagine I was a bit shell shocked.

David put it in a nutshell; he said ‘Do you want another freezing winter in the grey North Sea or cool breezes and blazing sunshine in Antigua?’ It was no contest and five days later I was in Antigua after renting out my house, selling my new car and leaving a girlfriend at home. Within 24 hours of arriving in Antigua I knew this was it for me and I have not looked back since.

My advice to anyone starting yachting no matter what kind of qualifications they have, is to start at the bottom on an old boat with a non existent budget, then slowly build up contacts and talk to crew agents for their advice. Work your way up the ladder. I have two further recommendations. First never upset anyone or make an enemy of them as you never know when those people could be crew on a vessel you are trying to get on or may even be the captain.

Secondly: Collect business cards because a mate or captain is only as good as a telephone number. This piece of advice is a huge asset to any captain or mate. At any given port, in any country, you may be asked to find for example, the best restaurant, a good taxi firm, or a reliable supplier. Being able to provide that useful number reflects very well on you.