CONGRATULATIONS SKIPPER!

What a fantastic achievement Jamie, well done.

 

We are very proud to share the fantastic news, that Jamie achieved his Commercially Endorsed RYA Yachtmaster Offshore Skippers Qualification recently, aged just 19!

Both Jamie & Calumn, our sons, have been eager participants aboard our expeditions ever since they could ‘negotiate’ time in Dad’s skipper seat as his assistant. Every moment they could wrangle, they spent at sea. Swimming, diving, kayaking, sailing, diving, snorkelling and ‘skippering’ it’s in their blood.

Their school education culminated at the start of the pandemic, in chaos it’s fair to say. Undaunted, Jamie went on to study Shipping and Maritime Operations NC Level 6 at University of the Highlands and Islands in Mallaig, Powerboat and VHF radio qualifications. Then he undertook and ticked off all of his STCW Qualifications.

Still in lockdown he secured sea-time working as a deckhand on small survey vessels supporting subsea cable layers installing power and communications cables. The first operation, being Skye to Harris in home waters in Summer was an easy start, followed soon after by Autumn & Winter in the Irish Sea, and a Spring-Summer season in the Northern Isles, both of which gave him great experience of long days and lengthy sea passages in much more challenging conditions.

This hands-on time gave him the practical experience and sea-time, required for him to sit his RYA Yachtmaster Offshore Skippers Qualification in November which he passed with ease. Submission of his qualifying time at sea achieved him his commercial endorsement immediately. This qualification allows him to skipper vessels up to 200T and 150m offshore.

We are very proud that aged 17, Jamie stepped up to the challenges of the pandemic, using his time wisely to forge ahead with gaining the experience and great many qualifications required to progress to this stage. Equally impressive, he earned every penny of funding required to complete it at his own expense.

His participation in the company in the immediate future will be ‘in his spare time’, and we look forward to him joining us more formally in the future.

We have no doubt his fun-loving sense of adventure, professionalism, determination and ambition will see him make a success of his career at sea.

Yes, he’s grown up very rapidly from the wee boy in a wetsuit with a water blaster that ambushed unsuspecting customers! ………. he says sorry 😉