IRISH COACH DOWN UNDER
Hi all at IODAI!!
George Kingston here, currently on the New Zealand leg of a Backpacking World Trip that started in Bangkok, Thailand last October. After 6 weeks traveling through Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia and Singapore, I arrived and settled; flat broke, in Melbourne in January.
Since then I've been doing heaps of sailing work along the way, I ran a 50 boat Optimist Clinic in Davey's Bay Yacht Club in Melbourne, worked with Olympians at Sandringham Yacht Club, and worked as a private Optimist Coach with sailors all over Port Phillip during their busy season. I met a lot of really nice people in Australia and plan to get back there soon!
From here, I went to sunny Napier, New Zealand, and now live on an apple and peach orchard with the Mannering family. I was lucky enough meet them while coaching at the Optimist World Championships in Turkey last year. Adrian Mannering is the NZ Youth Sailing Manager. He has me working all over the country with 420s, Team Racing Teams and Optimist sailors. It's a great job and after each event I usually have a few days to drive around and see the sights!
I’m just back from the National High School Team Race Championships and the Optimist Nationals and Trials (Naomi, whose family I live with, was 2nd). I was on the road for five weeks with great young teams – It was awesome!
Once the season ends here, a three week trip around New Zealand with a mate from Cork is on the cards. I have the use of a Jeep and plan on seeing everything from Auckland - The City of Sails, to the Fox Glaciers, Queenstown, and the Milford Sound.
After that it's Hawaii for three weeks in May, and on to a ten week Head Opti Racing Coach job at Sail Newport in Rhode Island until August.
So that's the news from the Southern Hemisphere, sitting here with 20 square miles of orchard around me, 20 degrees, clear blue waters and very friendly people, still miss home from time to time though!
Talk soon,
George Kingston! |
