This past weekend I returned to a place I had not visited in more than 30 years; Simonstown Naval Base on the Cape Peninsula of South Africa. Back then I was nearing the end of my compulsory two year stint in the army and had been selected to represent the army to race in the Defense Force yachting champs. I made the long and dusty trip from Pretoria riding second class on the train. When I arrived in Simonstown I was shown the barracks where I would live for a week and realized that the navy was a tad more cushy than the army. I mean there was a real bed and edible food. We ate in the mess and then readied a fleet of old bosun dinghy’s for the regatta which took place in False Bay, a windswept patch of water on the back side of the Table Mountain Range that extends from Cape Town to Cape Point. I was lucky enough to have a good crew and we won the regatta against the navy’s star sailor, Chief Petty Officer Bertie Reed. Reed later left the navy and went on to become South Africa’s top solo offshore sailor racing not only the Around Alone but the Vendée Globe as well. In any event by pure luck more than anything else I managed to show Bertie my transom enough times and took the large floating trophy back to Pretoria. Actually the trophy went in a jet; I rode the train, second class. The win earned me an early discharge from the army as thanks for nailing the navy, a long standing sports rivalry. So it was a long walk down memory lane this past Saturday when I returned to Simonstown. Things could not have been different. Apartheid was becoming a distant (bad) memory. The South African navy was a shade of it’s former self without much budget for warship, and thanks to the kindness and generosity of the current Admiral in charge of the Naval Base, Admiral Koos Louw, there is a thriving sailing school within the bounds of the base whose mission is aimed at teaching life-skills through the medium of sailing to underprivileged youth. The non-profit foundation, Izivunguvungu, was founded by Olympic gold medalist Ian Ainsley and it’s clearly working. The young sailors are dedicated and excellent sailors. The skippers of the Portimão Global Ocean Race were invited to join the Izivunguvungu sailors in a friendly regatta in False Bay. I was the official photographer and took some lovely images of the massive smiles on both the faces of the race skippers as well as the children. I looked back at the base from the water, looked at the same bosun dinghies slicing through clear water, the dramatic backdrop of the mountains and it all felt a little like coming home. I am one of those people who like things orderly. The symbolism for me to return 30+ years later as co-founder of a great around-the-world yacht race, to sail with the kids, to see their obvious delight and to know that despite what politicians do at the top, their are good and kind people all over the world making a difference to those at the bottom. It was truly an inspirational day made better when Admiral Louw cooked a slap-up meal for everyone afterwards. How often do you get an Admiral donning an apron and throwing steaks on hot coals? If could have have looked into the future when I first visited Simonstown I would not have believe my eyes.
