Much of my childhood was spent making a nuisance of myself on the water; rowing on the river after school in Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, and discovering my uncanny ability to capsize sailing dinghies in almost any sea state. I’m fairly certain that my subsequent introduction to internal combustion engines at such a young age not only shortened the life of several Seagull outboard engines but the Yarmouth Harbour Master’s too.
Before long I learned to ski behind my father’s 1969 Poole Powerboats Sovereign 17 (the forerunner of Sunseeker), which has stayed in the family ever since. It was watching the Cowes-Torquay race boats hammering through Hurst Narrows that further drew me to fast motorboats: the speed, shape, sound and thrill of seeing these monster offshore powerboats left a lasting impression on my adolescent mind.
The moment that really set me on the path towards my latest obsession, though, was working as a boatyard apprentice on the restoration of a Levi 27 Corsair called in 1996. Anybody who has been involved with a boat restoration knows that it isn’t only fibreglass dust that works its way under your skin. The boat’s design, build quality and styling details fascinated me. As a reward for my efforts, I was treated with a blast round the Solent in the newly restored Levi – the
