Townsville Sailing Club Inc 3 Mariners Drive, Breakwater Marina PO Box 5642 Townsville Qld 4810 Queensland Sailing Awards Nomination Form The Solo Trophy Outstanding Services to Sailing NOMINATOR DETAILS Nominator: Craig Knight Nominator’s Club/Class Association: Townsville Sailing Club Nominator’s Contacts: Mob - 0414 920 523 Email - [email protected] ​ NOMINEE DETAILS Nominee: John Byrne Nominee’s Club/Class Association: Townsville Sailing Club Nominee’s Contacts: Mob - 0427 166 248 Email - [email protected] ​ STATEMENT OF SUPPORT John Byrne, or better known by the sailing community as JB, has been a loyal advocate to the sailing fraternity for as early as any sailor can remember. Below are merely words outing the commendable energy he exerts from when he first stepped on a boat to his involvement today. Early years At the age of 12 in 1970 JB grounded his sailing abilities in a Sabot from a clubhouse built on stumps in a creek, the Townsville Sailing Club. Then there was the Thorpe 12, Flying Ants before graduating into 16-foot skiffs at the age 15. JB felt that sailing as the fourth hand in the 16s in your late teenage years with a crew of rough and tumble blokes can be very, “formulate” to a young man’s character! Catamarans the next step, where JB sailed an Arafura Cadet and Cobra catamaran. Big boats Then over to yachts with offshore races to destinations such as Cairns, Dunk Island and Brampton Island. JB describes these days of yachts up to 40 feet being more like dinghies, very light and with centreboards you could pull up when sailing downwind. A highlight winning a 3 race offshore Championship between Bowen, Airlie Beach and Mackay five years in a row where he recalls some blindingly fast and scary windy spinnaker runs through the night. JB then joined a team that raced Sydney-Mooloolaba; Brisbane-Gladstone; Gladstone-Cairns and Cairns-Port Moresby and this began a semi-professional career in sailing for over 20 years. Over the following years, completing 10 Sydney-Hobart races. International foray The 1984 Sardinia Cup in Italy started the adventure, with over a dozen Australian National Teams, enjoying four times to the famous Admirals Cup in England at the Isle of Wight, representing Australia, USA, Japan and Papua New Guinea. Sailing in Italy, England, New Zealand, Hawaii, New York, San Francisco and Port Moresby. The Alan Bond's America's Cup Defence Team in 1985 was another escapade, winning the 1986 Twelve Metre World Championships off Fremantle on Australia 111. Then onto building a Flying Dutchman with his mate Nigel Abbott, which they campaigned in the 1988 Seoul Olympic trials. From 1988 to 1990 JB coached a Japanese America's Cup Challenge team as full-time coach and operations manager. Sailing on the Australian yacht “Great News” for a USA team during the 1989 Admiral's Cup, JB’s team won the prestigious Fastnet Race (the Northern equivalent of the Sydney Hobart race), beating the Australian Team! Returning home JB continued his sailing endeavours. In 1993, he navigated Townsville yacht Decimator to new race records for Townsville to Cairns race and Cairns - Port Moresby Races. In the 1998 Sydney to Hobart race on B52 they were turned upside down and were lucky not to sink. From 2000 to 2005 JB raced in the highly competitive Farr 40 Class and won two Australian Championships in that class, placing third in a World Title in San Francisco. Current endeavours JB has been on the Townsville Sailing Club committee for many years, and is currently the Club Ambassador, providing advice to the Board and ensuring their focus is in the right direction, out of the boat. He hasn’t restricted himself to just Club involvement, JB has also assisted with many sailing scene activities locally, regionally and Australia wide, with contributions ranging from course setting, race official, judging, protest committees, arranging various sailing regattas. But he also just enjoys helping out around the waterfront. On a daily basis he can be seen helping out on boat maintenance, is involved from the day to day activities, to the assistance of weekend race days. He can be seen occasionally sailing Tasars and Lasers but just loves being on the water in any sailboat or powerboat. Despite living out of the way in North Queensland JB is still sought after in Australian Teams and by regatta managers as a national judge in the sport and as a protest mediator by major regattas. Memorable moments JB remembers his favourite moment was winning the World 12 Metre Class Championship in 1986, with his favourite event the Cowes Week in the South of England. Hundreds of boats from dozens of classes sailing in a narrow tidal waterway in a location so full of English history, pomp and ceremony. There is nothing like it anywhere and he can’t wait to go back. JB was inducted into the North Queensland Sporting Hall of Fame in 1996 and has been awarded the Year 2000 Commemorative Prime Minister’s Medal for sporting achievement. JB’s one piece of advice to younger members For all I have done, I never had any coaching or training as a junior. I just loved sailing and kept turning up and going out no matter what the weather. Do that and you can’t help but get better and better. Do as much as you can for your Club whenever you can. Believe it or not, the more you do around the place onshore, the better your sailing will become on the water. Be a team player. There were probably many times when team selectors could have chosen better sailors from Sydney or Melbourne but they chose me because as well as sailing ability, they knew they were getting an all-round team player onshore and offshore (and that also works for all parts of your life! ) His future - to sail in the Caribbean and the Dalmatian Coast but most of all return to a ​ Cowes Week in England. JB’s quote - it is not the results I remember but the people I sailed with who are now still ​ great friends and they are all supporters of the Townsville Sailing Club. .