Brian

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#006699" TEXT="#080000" background="1ccd05a3.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><B>DRUMBEAT</B></FONT><B>    </B><B> |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DRUMBEAT"><B>home</B></A></div> <div> <B>Brian</B>   |   <A HREF="id24.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Linda">Linda</A>   |   <A HREF="id25.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Haley">Haley</A>   |   <A HREF="id26.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Damon">Damon</A>   |   <A HREF="id27.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Millie">Millie</A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFCC66" TEXT="#080000" background="1cdd2123.jpg"> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 width="100%" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>Brian</I></div> <div> <IMG SRC="388acc80.jpg" border=0 width="172" height="200" ALIGN="RIGHT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">I was born in 1960 and raised in the Nambucca Valley of North NSW, Australia.  Our family owned a hobby farm of 63 acres, where we enjoyed the delights of country living - hard work with no pay!  I managed to complete year 12, with reasonable success in maths and engineering science.  I attended Avondale College near Newcastle, but quit the accountancy course after six months, as I couldn't see myself doing the desk thing for the rest of my life.  I held several different jobs until settling into Surveying, initially as a Survey Technician with Ken Amos & Assoc. in Macksville from 1981.  Soon after marrying Linda in 1986, I was retrenched, and worked casually in the local area for a couple of years.  As a result of the retrenchment, I had the opportunity to 'cash in' the superannuation, and purchased a 26' Searle bilge keeled sailing boat, which  Linda & I refurbished.  In August 1988, we cut the ties and sailed north in "Reepicheep" accompanied by Linda's sister Annette, her husband Trevor, and little Nicholas on their 27' yacht 'Summer Island'.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id145.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Reepicheep 1989"><IMG SRC="30fcd2c0.jpg" border=0 width="205" height="300" ALT="Reepicheep 1989" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="3" VSPACE="0"></A>Trevor & Annette had to return to work when the two boats reached Gladstone in Central QLD, however Linda & I continued north until arriving in Airlie Beach in November.  Having run out of cash, we decided to stay and work 'for a few months'.   I quickly found work with Whitsunday Surveys, operating out of Proserpine, & Linda started work with the same company a couple of weeks later in Airlie Beach.  </div> <bR> <div> In 1989 we sold Reepicheep, and ventured into the world of multihulls, buying a run down 36' Piver Lodestar trimaran off the beach in Muddy Bay.  'Troika' provided work and fun for the next 10 years, with innumerable sailing adventures in the Whitsundays, and the Great Barrier Reef beyond.  Troika was sold in excellent condition in 1999, but was wrecked a couple of months later when she was run aground off Cape Bowling Green by her new owner.  </div> <bR> <div> I worked with Whitsunday Surveys for 8 years, and following another retrenchment commenced work with Christiansen & Associates in Proserpine.  Teaming up with Dennis Gregor, a fellow former Surveyor from WS, we purchased C&A and changed the name to Pioneer Surveys.  Dennis ran the Mackay office, whilst I managed the Whitsunday office.  The company rapidly grew to become the premier surveying firm in the Whitsunday area, eventually employing six Surveyors in an endeavour to keep up with the work.  I started into property development in 1999, and by 2003 was able to sell my share of Pioneer Surveys to concentrate on the property development business.</div> <bR> <div> Linda & I have shared the dream of long term cruising since that first trip up the coast.  This has been fuelled by several extended trips on board our friends yacht 'Arythmea', a Grainger designed 40' catamaran.  </div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Interests</B></div> <bR> <div> During the 80's, I was a keen squash player, competing up to 3 times a week.  I played a lot of social tennis at the time as well, but weekends were shared between recreational shooting, dirt bikes and surfing. This never changed when I teamed up with Linda, as she loved to participate in outdoor pursuits.   Linda & I were introduced to sailing when Trevor bought an RL24 trailer sailer, and we spent weekends in the Macleay River, and the coast around the Macleay River in NSW.  The love of ocean sailing commenced for me, on the first day we launched the RL24 into the sea off Hat Head in NSW.  I vividly recall the exhileration of having the tiller in hand, close hauled and sailing into the rolling swells.  It was 'game over'.</div> <bR> <div> The 17 years 'wasted' in the Whitsundays have revolved around snorkelling, spearfishing and generally loving life on board boats.  I love to read anything to do with boats and the ocean, particularly the early years of discovery.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id124.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="My Favourite Photos"><IMG SRC="52d211e0.jpg" border=0 width="33" height="30" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="15" VSPACE="0"></A><A HREF="id124.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="My Favourite Photos"><B>My Favourite Photos</B></A></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id124.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="My Favourite Photos"><IMG SRC="52d211e0.jpg" border=0 width="33" height="30" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="15" VSPACE="0"></A><A HREF="id392.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Title 167">My Spearfishing Photos</A></div> </td> </tr></table></body>