Nicholas Mace

Nicholas is the proud owner of CROCS and started sailing in Optimist dinghies at age 5. After working his way up through the local dinghy classes and Hobie Cats, Nicholas bought his first keelboat, a Flamenca. This was followed by a Petersen 1 tonner called Chapter 11 which he successfully raced.

Completely bitten by the sailing bug, Nicholas bought a 15m Mayotte Catamaran and he and his wife took off to do some serious cruising in the Indian and Pacific Oceans . This was followed by a stint in Australia expanding his company.

After returning to South Africa to move his companies to the next level, it was time to find a new race boat and after extensive research of the option, Nicholas bought the Fast 40, CROCS that had been lying in Durban . She was made ready and sailed to Cape Town where she was gone through and so the sailing program started.

With the goal set to win the 2006 South Atlantic Race, the boat was updated and new sails were ordered to make her more competitive under the IRC rating system. After a successful year campaigning prior to the race, all eyes were on Nicholas and CROCS for a win in class 1. This was not to be and while on delivery back to Cape Town from Salvador , CROCS lost her mast overboard due to rigging failure.

Not to be put off by this, Nicholas was now determined to refit and update CROCS to make her the boat to beat on the South African circuit. After a total refit, new, updated mast and rigging and a new suit of sails, CROCS dominated the racing scene in Cape Town and South Africa and won all the offshore events outright. First to finish and first on Handicap in all the 2007 offshore events – Walvis Bay, Vasco da Gama and Mossel Bay. Not content to only sail offshore, Nicholas and his crew won the majority of the South African sailing circuit.

Building on the successes of 2007, this year is set to be another fantastic year for Nicholas culminating in the 2009 South Atlantic Race. After which, the Caribbean Circuit and the European Circuits beckon. Nicholas Mace and CROCS have rightfully become the top sailing team in South Africa . The culmination of a lot of hard work, dedication and expense.

Matthew L. Thomas

I come from a family with a long association with the sea. My grandfather was in charge of Simonstown Dockyard, my father was a Royal Navy officer and I grew up with salt water in my veins.

Sailing started early in Table Bay with my father, as well as sailing dinghies on Zeekoevlei. A stint in the South African Navy saw me involved in the BOC campaign of Bertie Reed and the building of Voortrekker II. After leaving the Navy, I worked in the yachting industry and went on to open Cruise Boats Cape Town, a marine retailer and the agent for both Nautor Swan and Gibsea.

After delivering a new yacht from France to the Caribbean , I decided that I wanted to make sailing a career and I headed off to the Caribbean

Having prepared and sailed yachts all over the world, I went back to school and upgraded my license to the highest available to a professional yachtsman: A MCA Class 4 (3,000 tons).

I’ve sailed all over the world and gone through both the Panama Canal and Suez , also through the Caribbean , the Pacific and the Mediterranean . I’ve spent over 20 years in the Yachting Industry and have more than a 100,000 nautical miles under my belt.

After returning to South Africa to launch my own Open 6.5m yacht, I joined the CROCS team and have worked closely with Nicholas Mace to keep the boat as the most winning boat in South Africa . Together we have won all the major South African ocean races and are now getting ready for the upcoming 2009 South Atlantic Race…

PATRICK MICHAEL HOLLOWAY

Patrick Holloway practices as a maritime lawyer and is a partner of Webber Wentzel Bowens. He is married to Dr Susan Holloway of the Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics, University of Cape Town . They have 2 daughters, Sasha and Kayla.

Born in Namibia in 1962 Patrick grew up sailing dinghies at the Cormorant Yacht Club and later sailed fireballs and lasers at the De Beers Yacht Club in Kimberley , before joining the University of Cape Town and Royal Cape Yacht Clubs in 1983, when he commenced sailing keel boats. He has skippered and crewed on a variety of boats resulting in numerous podium finishes. Wins include Table Bay Week, Algoa Bay Week, Hout Bay Admirals Cup Regatta, 3 consecutive wins in the False Bay Spring Regatta, L34 Provincial and National Championships, 3 handicap wins in the Vasco Da Gama Race as well as line honours twice, multiple wins in the Double Cape Race (having sailed 20) and line honours, 2 handicap wins in the Sea Harvest Race and line honours, the Agulhas Race and line and handicap honours in the Mossel Bay Race.

He has also finished second overall in the Mauritius to Durban and the MACS Cape Town to Walvis Bay Races.

Highlights include winning the 1989 Southstar double handed Race from Hout Bay to St Helena Island and back to Cape Town in 29½ days; sailing as navigator aboard "Broomstick" in its record breaking overall handicap win in the Gold Cup Trans‑Atlantic Race from New York to Southhampton in 1993; winning class 3 of 1993 Cape to Rio Race and setting the fastest handicap time in the 1987 Bartholomew Dias Race from Portugal to South Africa.

Patrick was first awarded provincial colours in 1985 and in 1989 received the trophy for the most outstanding sports performance of the year by a University of Cape Town sportsperson and was the university's Sportsman Of The Y ear.

Mark Sadler

32 year old, South African
Married to Robyn
Daughter Nicola
Live in Claremont Cape town
Work for North sails Cape town

Sailing CV

2007 Americas cup skipper and J22 world champion

Started sailing in the optimist class in 1982

Competed in 12 world championships in various classes: ( all as helmsmen )

1992 youth worlds 420
1993 youth worlds laser
1994 Fireball worlds
1995 Enterprise worlds
1996 Laser worlds
1998 ISAF worlds Laser
1999 49er worlds
2000 J22 worlds
2000 GP 14 worlds
2007 49er worlds
2007 J22 worlds

National Titles: 9 ( all as Helmsman)

2 x Dabchick
1 x J22
2 x stadt 23
2 x L26
2 x L34

Lipton Cup winner 2000 and 2003

Winner as helmsmen in local offshore events

2 x Table bay week Farr 38
1 x Admirals regatta L34
1 x Spring regatta Mount gay 30
1 x Mykonos race ILC 40
1 x conti week Mount gay 30
Vasco line honours Simonis 53/ ILC 40 / handicap Mountgay 30
RTIR Line honours T7
1 x trans Atlantic fast 42

Match racing

Portugal match cup 04 Downwind trim Swedish match 40
Danish match cup 04 Main trim/ tactician Danish 35
Match race Germany 05 Main trim/ tactician Bavaria match 35
French Grade 2 05 Main trim/ tactician First class 8
Alba Match race Italy 05 Main trim/ tactician Swedish match 40
Split match race Croatia 05 Main trim/ tactician Jenneau 35
Danish match cup 05 Main trim/ tactician Danish 35
French grade 3 event 05 Main trim/ tactician Beneteau 25
Portugal match cup 05 Main trim/tactician Swedish match 40
Bermuda gold cup 05 Bow /tactician One design 30
Elba match race Italy 06 Main trim/tactician OD 35

Americas cup regattas

Act 1 Marsaille 04 downwind trim RSA 48
Act 2 Valencia 04 downwind trim RSA 48
Act 3 Valencia 04 downwind trim RSA 48
Act 4 Valencia 05 Stratagist/ runner RSA 83
Act 5 Valencia 05 Stratagist/ runner RSA 83
Act 6 Malmo 05 Stratagist/ runner RSA 83
Act 7 Malmo 05 Stratagist/ travelar RSA 83
Act 8 Trapani 05 Stratagist/ travelar RSA 83
Act 9 Trapani 05 Skipper / travelar RSA 83
Act10 Valencia 06 Skipper /Travelar RSA 83
Act 11 Valencia 06 Skipper /Travelar RSA 83
Act 12 Valencia 06 Skipper/ Travelar RSA 83
Act 13 Valencia 07 Skipper/ Travelar RSA 83

German sailing Grand prix Tactician RSA 48

Loui Vuiton challenger series 07 Skipper/ Travelar RSA 83

Jan Clavaux (born 22nd October 1955 )

I am married to Juliet Clavaux and have two children, a 4 year old son Liam and an 18 year old son Nicholas. I live in Lakeside and am a director of a Consulting Engineering practice in Cape Town . “

Nick Pratt

Age: 22
Sex: yes please
Occupation: Sailmaker
In a Relationship
Kids: NO!
Sailing Careers:
Started sailing dignhies when i was 11. Went through Mirrors, Dabchick, and Lasers and Fireballs.Achiving top 3 in all at WC Champs. Currently sail Hobie tigers and have just made the RSA team for the worlds in March in Langabaan. In keelboats i have sailed 5 Liptons and 7 Table Bay Weeks.

Winning Class 2 on the Laser 28 "Ukuswana" in 2006. In 2006 i also had the opotunity to sail in Antigua Race week with the crew from the Fast 42 Tenacity. Last year i sailed many races on Gumption incl. Walvis bay Race, Mossel Bay Race and MSC week in Durban .

Name: Martin Winter

Age: 49
Occupation: Chartered Accountant
Wife: Jane
Kids: Stephen and Katie

Sailing: My Dad built us a Dabchick on our Durban patio when I was in junior school - we even sewed our own sails - launched it in Durban harbour.  Next he built a slightly bigger boat called a Topper.  Later we bought a Flipper - then a Halcat.  After moving to Cape Town in the 80's I bought a Hobie 16 and joined Hout Bay Yacht Club.  Another Crocs crew, Tim Jones, was my Hobie crew.  Not knowing the racing rules very well we enjoyed the long distance races more.  Proud survivors of the 1982 Fishoek to Strand longhaul where numerous hobies were lost at sea.

Keelboat racing for the past 5 years on the L34 SixPack (also known as Webber Wenzel Bowens).

Sailing highlight:  Doing 18,5 knots on our L34 during the 2007 Walvis Bay Race - possibly an L34 class record?

Thanks

Martin

Erik Potgieter

Age – 36
Occupation – Employee Benefits Consultant
Born in Cape Town
Married with two children
Started sailing in 1982
Started keel boating in 1988

Competed in almost all of the local races (I have lost count of how many times), both bay and offshore including:

Rothmans Week, Continental Week, Double Cape Race, Mykonos Offshore, Walvis Bay Race & Mossel Bay Race

Also competed in Fastnet Race & Cowes Week Regatta

I have also done a lot of local cruising up and down the coast over the years.

Name: Martin Winter

Age: 49
Occupation: Chartered Accountant
Wife: Jane
Kids: Stephen and Katie

Sailing: My Dad built us a Dabchick on our Durban patio when I was in junior school - we even sewed our own sails - launched it in Durban harbour.  Next he built a slightly bigger boat called a Topper.  Later we bought a Flipper - then a Halcat.  After moving to Cape Town in the 80's I bought a Hobie 16 and joined Hout Bay Yacht Club.  Another Crocs crew, Tim Jones, was my Hobie crew.  Not knowing the racing rules very well we enjoyed the long distance races more.  Proud survivors of the 1982 Fishoek to Strand longhaul where numerous hobies were lost at sea.

Keelboat racing for the past 5 years on the L34 SixPack (also known as Webber Wenzel Bowens).

Sailing highlight:  Doing 18,5 knots on our L34 during the 2007 Walvis Bay Race - possibly an L34 class record?

Thanks

Martin

Gary John Dix

Born 15/06/1956
Sailing Experience :
Hobie Cats – 14, 16 and 18 foot
Sailed in 8 National events; best finish 3 rd
Competed in Langebaan 100 from Hout Bay to Langebaan on
Hobie 16
Completed 4 Fish Hoek to Strand and 3 Fish Hoek to Cape Point
and back longhauls Keelboats – Sailed 7 Rothmans Week, 5 Lipton Cup, 5 Double Cape , Cowes Week and Fastnet Race 2001 and Americas Cup Jubilee Regatta off the Isle of Wight on a 65 ft Simonis Design yacht “Merlin”. Completed Cape to Bahia Race 2006 on Fast 42 “Maestro”

Robin van Rooyen (born 19 th November 1955 )

 I am married to Brenda van Rooyen and we have two children, Clare and Warren. I live at Atlantic Beach Golf Estate, Melkbosstrand, and run an optometric practice, Century Eyes, in Camps Bay .

I started sailing when I was about six years old at Hartebeespoort Dam, Gauteng . My parents, Rob and Nessa, were supportive of all my sporting activities and not only bought me fantastic boats but also carted me to countless regattas all around the country. I started sailing dabchicks, progressed to tempos and then to 505s which remain my favourite dinghy. Highlights of this time included winning the All Africa fireball championships with Uli Coblenz and having the honour of skippering an FD with the late Brian Metcalfe, an amazing yachtsman and the only sailor in his day to challenge Dave Hudson. I won the national titles in all these classes.

In the early eighties I moved onto skippering small keelboats and had a mini-tonner, Manyana, specially commissioned for the world cup in Germany . Manyana won every small keelboat event on offer in South Africa , won the European championships in Germany and came fourth in the world cup at Bodenzee. Thereafter I moved into J22 sailing and won the national title in this class too.

I have Springbok colours in all three yachting disciplines (dinghies, keelboats and windsurfing), was granted the President’s Sport Award, ave SAYRA colours for sailing and was Junior and Senior Yachtsman of the year. I have represented South Africa in the many international events including:

• three world youth championships
• 16 open world championships
• three keelboat world championships

My interests are not limited to sailing and I also have provincial colours for canoeing and swimming. I have completed 13 Duzi Canoe marathons and numerous other events such as the Berg, Breede and Fish River canoe marathons. I used to run marathons and competed inTwo Oceans, but I now run only to keep my weight down!

Other sports :

• Surf Lifesaving – National Junior Surf Ski Champion
• Completed 5 Berg River Canoe Marathons
• Completed 6 Argus Cycle Tours
• Run Knysna Half marathon every year
• Present passion is to Kite Board
• Keen Golfer

Oli Dawson

-33 years young
-Height 6ft
-Weight 102kg’s
-Crew position: Mast/Grinder and Chairman of “The Fines Committee”
-Born in Cape Town in 1974
-Grew up in the Southern Suburbs and Somerset West
-Schools attended: SACS Jnr & Wynberg Boys High (Same as John) -Dating Janene Gerber
-No kids yet…that I know of ………..
-I am a production manager at Robertson and Caine International yachts in Cape   Town .

Sailing background:

Started sailing as a kid in Gordon’s Bay in the early  80s, a friend of  my father's  had a 31ft Dogga called Spartan. This was when the bug bit me.

Dad got me a dinghy which I used to sail around the Gordon’s Bay harbour.

I became an active member of the Wynberg Boys High Sailing Society from 1989 to 1991, where I met John Martin for the first time. He came to give a talk to the sailing society about his up and coming solo round the world race. He brought the SABC with him. (Very exciting for a school kid)

I sailed socially until meeting up with Andrea Giovanini in 2005. At the time I weighed 125Kg and he needed “weight on the rail” for the up and coming Table Bay Week. “And so it began”

We sailed an L34 called Sensation for that season. With Andrea at the helm and the help of Greg Davis from time to time we won all our regattas except for Table Bay week.  

We also sailed the 2006 Lipton cup on Escape where we came fifth. For sure the hardest sailing I have done.

At MSC Durban 2006 I heard for the first time that Shosholoza  was  looking for grinders. Since July 2006 Shosholoza became my focus. It has been a life changing dream to sail on Shosholoza. I lost 25kg’s and have got super fit in the last 18 months.

Not sure what the next year or two will bring so  I’m keeping as fit as I can.

At the end of 2006 I was fortunate enough to have been asked by Greg Davis to sail on Gumption for the 2006 Table Bay Week. This was a big step up for me and took a while to find my feet. The fact that we had guys like Greg Davis, Graeme Wilcox, Gareth Blankenburg and Ian Ainslie (for one race) on board, made the learning curve steep but manageable. Things didn’t go quite to plan and I think we got a 4 th. With a few crew changes and Graeme running the boat for the rest of the 2007, there was no looking back! We got silverware in all but one regatta and were by far the boat to beet in 2007. A great bunch of guys and a great boat, what a blast ! (I deleted the inverted commas -- they're not necessary!)

The culmination of 2007 was the phone call from Mark Sadler. “Could I sail Lipton Cup?”

 Having never  sailed at professional level, it was an experience.

What I learnt for Mark and Mike Joubert in those 5 weeks was immeasurable. You also learn how to shut your mind off to pain….... L26’s have got to be the most painful boats to sail in the world!

The next step was to get a Finn, kindly organised by Greg Davis. I’m looking forward to the rest of summer and being able to give some of the old codgers a run for their money.

here are some new exciting boats coming to Cape Town next year, so we will have to work hard to maintain  our  standards.