Sailor Brian Trubovich, 79, at Westhaven Marina, Auckland. 2 October 2019 New Zealand Herald Photograph by Chris Rattue
Sailor Brian Trubovich, 79, at Westhaven Marina, Auckland. 2 October 2019 New Zealand Herald Photograph by Chris Rattue
Veteran sailor Brian Trubovich's most famous scalp was that of Chris Dickson, of America's Cup fame.
At the tender age of 79 and after a half century of sailing, Trubovich is taking to the Waitemata Harbour once again for the New Zealand match racing championships this week.
His victory overthe famed Dickson does stand out - along with the many years spent assisting blind sailors - although he doesn't want to gloat.
"It was just in the one race, " he says modestly.
"It was a great feeling though. I remember he went straight up to the race officer and said that I'd gone over the line early. She said 'sorry Chris but no, you are not going to win it.'
"That's what I love about match racing - occasionally you can fluke a result."
Age is obviously no barrier for architect-builder Trubovich - who lives in Waimauku near Helensville - although he admits that his body doesn't handle the sailing rigours so easily these days.
His opponents in the match racing championship - which uses a fleet of Elliott 7s bought by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron for their youth training scheme – will be less than half his age.
One of his crew members will be teenager Holly McNeil, from the youth training programme where Trubovich is the race officer.
Sailor Brian Trubovich, 79, at Westhaven Marina, Auckland. 2 October 2019 New Zealand Herald Photograph by Chris Rattue
"I love throwing these boats around," says Trubovich, who only took up match racing in his late 50s.
"The most exciting part of racing is the starts. These races are very short and you might have eight in a day, which means you get to do a lot of starts."
Trubovich won his first match racing title, the Auckland series, at the age of 60. His opponents this week include a Kings College crew, skippered by 16-year-old Hamish McLaren. Other opponents include world ranked Nick Egnot-Johnson and Celia Willison, plus Laser star Tom Saunders.
There will be match racing of a very different sort taking place in Auckland waters in two years' time when the massive foiling America's Cup monohulls duke it out.
Trubovich is a big fan, while remaining nostalgic for slower times.
"There's a misconception that yachting is a rich person's sport," he says, looking across the Westhaven marina.
"It's a misconception – I know lots of young people who own $5000 boats here who struggle to keep them in the water.
"I ignore all the big mouths who say the America's Cup is a waste of money. It's really exciting, the thought of it happening again in our waters.
"Things go in cycles and some of us have nostalgic thoughts about times when the boats had 10 tonnes of lead in the bottom of the keel.
"I've always loved match racing, even when the boats were going more slowly. But young people don't have that nostalgia trip, and they love the foiling.
"I like moving with the times. If you stop you die."
