What women sailors really think

Published as ‘WOMEN IN SAILING IN AUSTRALIA’

Reflecting on Women’s History Month, the Autumn 2024 issue of Offshore is dedicated to celebrating women in sailing: highlighting the achievements of talented sailors, the programs and events championed by the CYCA to introduce more women to the sport, the women-focused series on Sydney Harbour, and more.

Sailing is often considered an equaliser sport. A sport where a top competitor’s skills are defined by their balance of knowledge, strength, and experience, rather than their gender. A sport where men and women compete on the same playing field, aiming for the same prize. A true sailor is always learning and infinitely growing their skillset. However, historically, sailing has been a male dominated field, but it’s important to note that women are no strangers to the sport.

Women have been competing in sailing for centuries, such as in the America’s Cup, the oldest international sporting trophy. In 1886, Susan Henn sailed on-board the Irish challenger Galatea, tasked with keeping track of race timing. Less than 50 years later, Elizabeth Harvey became the first woman to win an international sailing event during the 1934 America’s Cup.

Crossing over to the Pacific, Jane Tate became the first woman to finish the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race in 1946, during the event’s second iteration. In 1975, the first all-women crew competed in the Sydney Hobart on-board Barbarian, 14 years before Tracey Edwards led the first all-women crew on Maiden in the 1989 Whitbread Round-the-World Race. In Sydney in 1989, the second ever all-women crew competed in the Sydney Hobart on Belles Long Ranger. One of the crew, Kathy Veel, went on to become the first all-women double-handed Sydney Hobart competitor with Bridget Canham in 2022.

Three women have gone on to earn the prestigious honour of sailing 25 Rolex Sydney Hobarts: Adrienne Cahalan, Felicity Nelson, and Vanessa Dudley. In 2018, professional ocean racer Stacey Jackson skippered a crew of all-women on Wild Oats X in hopes of capturing the revered Tattersall Cup, sailing home to a close 2nd place, and to prove there is no skill difference between men and women sailors.

These achievements highlight just a few of the incredible sailors and their milestones for women in the sport. While sailing is making great strides in women’s involvement and inclusion, there is still a road ahead before we reach 50/50 involvement in all sects of the sport, professionally and recreationally. The CYCA is ahead of the curve with its management team, comprising of over 50 percent women, and the Club is constantly aiming to further advance women in the sport of sailing.

In order to dive deeper into this story and for its format to make sense, a few introductions are required. My name is Vito Feremans, I’m a 26-year-old Belgian marketer and passionate offshore racer. I work at the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia in the Marketing and Communications department. I’ve spent the past four years writing and practicing storytelling. However, I must be honest, when I was asked to write an article on ‘women in sailing in Australia’, I felt out of my depth. Because, let’s face it, I am not Australian, I did not grow up here, and perhaps my biggest flaw for the sake of this story, I am a bloke.

Armed with this realisation, I did what every sensible storyteller would do: talk to people with a story to tell. Together with my colleague at the CYCA, Ashley Dart, a photographer and sailor hailing from New York, we assembled a panel of sailors who focus on different areas of the sport in Australia: from inshore to match racing to offshore to Olympic classes, from seasoned veterans to young sailors eager to make their mark. Their varied experiences across generations not only added depth to the story but also added perspective to the insights they shared, bridging the gap between innovation and experience in sailing.

Before we head into their discussion, first, let’s meet our panel:

Meet the Panel

Alice Parker

Growing up in the Blue Mountains just outside Currajong, weekend trips to Newport with her family ignited her love for sailing. Her journey began with dinghy sailing and evolved to include match racing and offshore races along Australia’s East Coast. Currently, Alice thrives as a navigator, steering boats through challenging courses like the Rolex Sydney Hobart. Most recently, Alice won the 2023/2024 Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore and came in second in the 2023 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race with URM Group as Navigator. Her passion for offshore racing and her commitment to mastering navigation makes her a formidable force in the sailing community.

Bridget Canham

Bridget has been navigating the seas since her school days, transitioning from cruising to competitive sailing after relocating from the UK to Australia. Her zeal for racing has her hitting the waters about five times a week on various boats. Although she’s putting her racing on hold due to upcoming travel, she aims to participate in her 10th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race. Bridget’s journey showcases her ongoing dedication to studying the art of sailing, and her love for the thrill of the race.

Dinah Eagle

Originally from the UK, Dinah has been sailing since the age of four, initially focusing on cruising. Her move to Sydney and subsequent membership at the CYCA saw her diving into racing, sailing various boats both offshore and inshore. With 12 Rolex Sydney Hobart races underway and her first Rolex Fastnet under her belt, Dinah thrives on the constant learning opportunities that come with each race. She aspires to explore more international offshore races while balancing her sailing adventures with her professional life. As a member of the CYCA Sailing Committee, Dinah is actively working to create more programming for women in sailing.

Chelsea Williams

Growing up in a sailing family, whose own parents met at a regatta, Chelsea’s destiny was set from the start. Introduced to the CYCA Youth Sailing Academy in 2018, Chelsea has steadily climbed the ranks through mixed and women’s events, aiming for international titles like the World Sailing Youth Match Racing World Championship. Her impressive goals, and her notable results so far, paired with her commitment to learning and growing, demonstrate Chelsea as a rising star in the sailing community.

Felicity Nelson

Sydney native Felicity discovered her passion for sailing during university when she joined a friend in building a FARR 11.6. Her introduction to racing was direct, stepping onto boats ranging from 34 to 40 feet. With a preference for boats where crew members can engage in all positions, Felicity quickly became a regular offshore competitor. In 2021, Felicity became the second woman to complete 25 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Races. Each sea journey offers her a unique experience, reinforcing her love for sailing and the unpredictability of the open waters.

Kathy Veel

Melbourne-born Kathy embarked on her sailing journey when she was 18 years old on an S&S 34, fuelled by dreams of solo-circumnavigation adventures. Over the years, she has owned and sailed various yachts, with a preference for smaller boats that offer more manageable single-handed or double-handed sailing experiences. Kathy’s progression from cruising to offshore racing, including three Rolex Sydney Hobart races, highlights her passion for adventure and her commitment to introducing more women to offshore sailing.

Stacey Jackson

Queensland native Stacey’s sailing journey began at the age of seven, leading her to explore various facets of the sport. After moving to Sydney for a sail-making apprenticeship, Stacey’s passion for offshore racing grew exponentially. She has since twice competed in the Volvo Ocean Race, once with an all-woman team and once with in a mixed team, offering her unique insights into both experiences. Additionally, Stacey has raced in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race over 15 times.

Olivia Price

Born and bred in Sydney, Olivia started her sailing adventures at the age of six on dinghies on Sydney Harbour. Over the past 15 years, she has excelled in Olympic classes, becoming the youngest woman to win an Olympic medal in the sport of sailing in the Women’s Match Racing class at the London 2012 games. Today, Olivia is campaigning in the 49erFX class for the Paris 2024 Olympics and has been selected for the Team Australia Challenge for the first-ever Puig Women’s America’s Cup. Olivia’s focus on high-performance sailing and her interest in foiling technologies reflect her drive to evolve with the sport’s advancements while also nurturing pathways for future sailors.

The Discussion

To learn more about women in sailing in modern-day Australia, their experiences, their goals as sailors and hopes for the sport, the assembled group prepared questions for one another for an around-the-table discussion. The questions included: Do you have any mentors that shaped your experience sailing? How should women go about finding positions on boats? What are the best tools for deepening your skillset and learning new roles? What are your goals for women in sailing?

The conversation provided a platform for the women to not only tell their story and agree on their shared experiences but to also celebrate one another’s achievements and recognize collective goals for the sport.

Mixed Crews vs. All-Women Crews

For some of our panellists, sailing with crews of men versus crews of women present different experiences. When Stacey Jackson sailed her first Volvo Ocean Race in 2014 with Team SCA, she competed with an all-women crew. The most challenging aspect of Team SCA, Stacey describes, was their lack of collective ocean racing experience. “We were sixteen women in the squad, three had participated [in the Volvo Ocean Race over 12 years ago]. So, three had been into the Southern Ocean and the rest of us were yet to experience that,” she says. “We were certainly limited by our own experience and how much could be taught to us in that one year of training, leading into the race.”

Returning for her next Volvo Ocean Race in 2017 with 11th Hour Race Team, Jackson matched her teammates in experience, and yet the team questioned most things she did. Stacey says it was “down to the point where I suggested I could go and fix that situation that was going on, which required going up the rig. And they said, ‘Oh really, are you able to do that?’ And yet I’d done the previous race as a bowman. So for me, that was a challenge that I just kind of had to deal with.”

Facing that unnecessary challenge isn’t always prevalent. For Alice Parker, sailing on URM Group with nineteen men, she’s treated like any other member of the team. The only difference she notices “is the fact that they all get to wee off the back of the boat.”

One of the bright sides of Stacey’s experience sailing with 11th Hour Race Team was learning from her watch partner, six-time Ocean Race sailor and 2023 Rolex Sydney Hobart Line Honours winner Tony Mutter. “He shared a lot of his experience, and I gained a lot of knowledge from getting to sail with him, and by no means did he treat me any differently as either a female or a more novice person in the race”, Stacey commends.

After the around-the-table discussion, Tony shared his insights with Offshore: “the first time I sailed with Stacey was during the Volvo Ocean Race onboard 11th Hour Racing. Stacey and I were on the same watch and straight away I could tell that she was an absolute professional. She was just as much part of the crew as I was and that’s how we rolled. We have a similar approach on LawConnect. As far as I am concerned there’s no distinction between women or men sailors on our boat, we’re just called the crew. I have had the pleasure of sailing with incredible professionals like Sophie Ciszek and Rosalin Kuiper who are really pushing the sport, and their work ethic was phenomenal, often outworking other crew members.”

Mentorship

Mentorship plays a pivotal role in shaping a sailor’s journey across the waters. Sailing requires more than just outright skill; it demands resilience, teamwork, and a thirst for continuous learning. For Chelsea Williams, her mentor is Olivia Price. She says, “Olivia has set a pathway that inspires me,” citing Olivia’s transition from the Youth Sailing Academy to the Olympics in both Match Racing and the 49erFX class. “It’s empowering to see and follow in the footsteps of other women sailors,” Chelsea adds.

Similarly, Stacey emphasizes the significance of the achievements of the women that came before her, such as Adrienne Cahalan. Expressing deep admiration for her mentor, “Adrienne has been instrumental for me”, Stacey shares. “She proves that barriers like size and gender don’t have to limit success in sailing,” lauding her ability to excel in more challenging times.

Both Kathy Veel and Dinah Eagle underscore the importance of believing in oneself, even in the face of doubt. Dinah shares, “It’s about confidence, which can be a hurdle for many sailors. Trusting in your abilities pushes you to grow”. Kathy adds that having a mentor can boost your own confidence, “having someone believe in your capabilities can be a game changer”, she asserts.

Mentorship can take on different forms. Reflecting on her early sailing days where formal mentors were a rarity, Felicity Nelson shares that “For [her], learning was always a collective effort,” she recalls. “We were novices learning alongside each other, emphasising teamwork and continuous growth. Mentorship, to me, isn’t always about the traditional model.”

As a high-intensity skiff sailor, Olivia Price agrees on the importance of collective learning and balancing confidence and competence when making quick decisions on the racetrack. “Confidence stems from competence”, she describes, “It’s about understanding our strengths, being adaptive, learning from mistakes and embracing challenges.” Emphasising the importance of learning from her crew and teammates, Olivia adds “Mentorship is a collective effort. We learn from each other.”

In the spirit of learning from one another, it’s important to remember that mentorship can be found wherever you dare to look for it, even within your own crew. Felicity recommends to “go and find the men and the women who you want to sail with and who are just great people to sail with.” It is not new that surrounding yourself with likeminded and more experienced sailors allows you to pick their brains and analyse their actions. Gaining insights and improving your skills under their often watchful and critical eyes. The better you aim to perform, the more essential it becomes to be a part of a yacht that is a seamless hub of communication and teamwork, laying the groundwork for successful races and individual growth. Dinah practices what she preaches and has gained most of her experience and knowledge under the motto “find your boat, find your people, find your crew”.

Boat Ownership

Some women create opportunities for themselves through boat ownership. The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race is witnessing an upward trend of women yacht owners, with ten women owners and co-skippers in the 2023 race, up from nine in 2022 and three in 2018. Once you own your own boat, the sky’s the limit, providing a platform to learn about seamanship and push yourself in a different way.

A few of our panellists, Felicity, Kathy and Bridget, have sailed down the path of boat ownership. Felicity advises caution when making the leap to purchase your own yacht, “you’ve got to know the boat from day one. Bow to stern and from the top of the mast to the bottom of the keel. You’ve got to know everything about it.” Furthermore, as the yacht owner, your responsibility for your crew multiplies, especially in the safety aspect of sailing offshore.

Felicity finds joy in “enabling her crew to have the best time they can possibly have and to bring out the best in them,” she says. At the end of the day, Felicity expresses gratitude for having the ability to own and co-skipper her yacht, while acknowledging that “it’s an incredibly steep learning curve.”

Size, Strength & Skill

When contemplating potential differences between men and women, size is an obvious factor. However, the panellists are all quick to point out that size does not have to be an inherent weakness.

Stacey reminds everyone to “Work smarter, not harder. You don’t only have to do the easy jobs,” she says, “you just have to find a way that works for you to get the hard jobs done.” As an example, she cites Carolijn Brouwer’s ability to drive the boat downwind with a tiller during the 2022 Rolex Sydney Hobart on the mixed TP52 Patrice. “It requires a lot of strength to control a yacht that size, at that speed with a tiller and she raced the 52-footer in 30 knots as if it was a dinghy. I don’t know how big the waves were, and it did not seem to matter to her because she was just so good helming in those conditions. She had developed the technique to tackle those conditions.”

In order to make yourself a vital member of the crew, “it’s good to know every role of the boat and be well rounded”, Dinah states, “but then find what you’re really good at”, she stresses. “If girls are good at trimming in light winds, you don’t have to be big to be able to trim, but you have to be able to trim really well. Or if you’re really good at communicating, then do the pit, or if you’re a really good Helms person, then you’ll earn your place on the boat because you’ll make it go faster.”

For Alice, competing as a Navigator, her size is one of her many strengths, fitting comfortably into the nav station. The most challenging and equally rewarding aspect of the position is the amount of depth to the role, she describes, from studying oceanography and meteorology to the evolution of technology and then communicating the information back to the rest of the crew. Alice shares, “every time I get on a boat in the position of navigator, I’m exponentially learning.”

Quotas & Inclusion Initiatives

As the sailing community and race organisers are looking for ways to get more women involved in the sport, the importance of quotas is universally agreed upon by the panel. Stacey asserts, “it creates the experience for the opportunities to come”. For the 2024 Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Yacht Race and the 2024/2025 Audi Centre Sydney Blue Water Pointscore, the CYCA has implemented a rule modification to IRC, citing that when a yacht crew includes a minimum of two women crew members, or two youth crew members, or one woman and one youth, a yacht may carry one person more than the crew number printed on their IRC certificate. The goal of the IRC modification is to encourage more competitors to bring women and youth sailors on board to create more experience opportunities for these groups. Additionally, Kathy would like to see more women’s helm divisions in offshore racing, “to me, that’s the logical next step,” she says.

Gender Blindness & Growing Equality

For all the sailors, they’re excited about the growth they’ve witnessed for women in sailing over the last 50 years. Kathy contrasts her experience sailing on-board Belles Long Ranger in 1989 with her experience sailing today: “Back then, the general expectation and talk was we [as women] can’t do it. We’re not competent, we’re not strong enough and we don’t have the experience. The expectation was that women couldn’t do it and now that’s completely changed. The assumption is, well, of course, women can do it.” Bridget adds, “When Kathy and I did our two-handed campaign, we had nothing but total support from everybody.”

As an active competitor at the Youth Sailing Academy, Chelsea emphasizes the importance of merit over gender in the program, affirming “gender blindness is probably the best way to put it”. She’s always sailed on mixed teams, noting that the squad has a pretty close split of men versus women sailors. “I don’t feel discriminated against or that I have special needs because I’m a girl on the team,” she says, “Even at the [World Sailing Youth Match Racing World Championships], every team had a girl on board, not just because of quotas but because of their skills. They all competed in various roles on the boat.” Olivia, a YSA alumnus, applauds the program, highlighting that the YSA teaches them “to be sailors, not female sailors”.

Gender blindness is becoming more prominent in all areas of the sailing world as more women are breaking the glass ceiling. During the 2017 Volvo Ocean Race, every team had a woman on board, meaning the 2017 edition was the first time in the history of the race that a woman would win the Volvo Ocean Race. As a competitor, during a presentation a local sailing club, “we were banging on about how exciting it was that a woman will win the Volvo Ocean Race”, Stacey reminisces. “And in the front row, these two little kids, Opti sailors, said to us ‘I don’t get it, why is that such a big deal?’ Because for them, it was totally normal to have boys and girls winning side by side.”

The Road Ahead

Stacey commends the other sailors in the discussion around her, saying “We’re in a very fortunate time right now, where the opportunities [for women] are becoming more frequent. And that’s because of the women in this call and many others have set the bar high with their achievements.” For all the panellists, they agree they’d like to see an all-women crew win the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.

While expressing her gratitude for connecting with other women sailors, Olivia stresses the importance of talking to the community at large, saying “It’s not just women that need to have this conversation or be a part of this conversation. We’re only a part of the sailing community. And if we really want to get across the values of having mixed crews in the sailing community, or women in the sailing community, then we have to talk to the whole community.”

Until we reach split participation with men and women in all areas of sailing, it’s important to keep celebrating the accomplishments of women sailors and empowering more women to sail after their goals. Offshore would like to congratulate Lisa Blair on her World Sailing speed record solo-sail from Sydney to Auckland in addition to congratulating Cole Brauer for becoming the first American woman to sail around the world non-stop and un-assisted during the Global Solo Challenge.

“If you can dream it, you can do it.” — Stacey Jackson

Featured image – ROLEX/Andrea Francolini pic