Andrew Cully is the owner of http://www.classicyacht.info and has been involved with classic yachts for over 10 years
He began with the Fife design ‘The Lady Anne’ in her debut season back in 1999 where she proved great competition for her sister-ship, Tuiga. Andy revelled in the new experiences of a ‘nipper’s’ life on board, involved in everything from scrubbing the bilges to sailing in awe at the head of the classic fleet.
Being ‘mothered’ by the mighty 3-masted schooner, Adix, it was with no regret that Andy found himself clambering on board in the 2000 New Year to head off across the Atlantic and discover the more secluded parts of the Caribbean. With the legendary Paul Goss as skipper and ex-Whitbread hand Terry Gould as Mate, it was the perfect yacht to pick up all those vital tricks of the trade. Everything from never-ending varnish practice over the endless beautifully shaped teak, to the traditional polishing of brass, to the more exciting clambering out to the end of the bowsprit and bringing down that tired yankee or the endless cloth that made up the spinnaker.
After two years aboard, undergoing a 10-month refit in Falmouth, UK, and with two more summers of racing on The Lady Anne, which included the spectacular America’s Cup Jubilee, Andy left for Myanmar (Burma) in December 2001 to help in the restoration of Moonbeam IV. There he joined the owners and the skipper, Morgan Castle along with fifty or so Burmese lads who, it turned out, still had 6 months of restoration to go. Secluded in Yangon Shipyard it was probably the closest one could get to see how it was done ‘back in the day’. One man and his lathe turning aluminium bronze rods into keel bolts, skilled carpenters working with their local teak, and a few westerners running around trying to make sure everything went to plan. After 6 months they were successfully on their way and heading down to the limelight in Auckland that was the America’s Cup.
After an eventful voyage that included engine failure, harsh challenges from an Indonesian naval frigate (“Stop or I shoot!”) and a battering in the Pacific, Moonbeam finally arrived in New Zealand, did the necessary repairs and sailed straight into the chartering game.
At this stage Andy rejoined Adix as bosun in March of 2003, and for the following two years enjoyed the challenge of more responsibility, racing at the Fife Regatta on the Clyde in Scotland with The Lady Anne, and cruising the eastern seaboard of the States and further north to the rugged Nova Scotian coastline.
At the end of 2004 he left Adix and headed across the ‘big pond’, once again to the classic regattas in the Mediterranean. Andy joined the 19-Metre Fife-design, Mariquita, venturing out on her debut season, and loved the sensation of soaring along at the head of the fleet, the rail easing through the summer swell and the endless canvas towering above the attentive crew. In St Tropez he joined the newly restored Sparkman & Stephens yawl, Cometa, where Andy enjoyed racing against an equally competitive class, where crew numbers were down-sized and the involvement and camaraderie had a more intimate feeling.
Needless to say, having enjoyed the thrills of racing on a big gaff cutter again, and noticing that various crew positions were open, Andy joined Mariquita as First Mate in 2005. The season brought cruising and race training in Greece and in the latter summer months they attended five regattas that took them to Menorca, Sardinia and the south of France.
After a busy and exciting year he settled in Palma de Mallorca with his girlfriend, Jenna, and worked for a rigging company that was involved with both classic and modern yachts.
After a winter of soaking up majorcian life Andy assisted in the training of the new(2006) Mariquita race crew and then went off to take on his first command – a 57′ C&C sloop. She was unfortunately only 20 years old and built of fibreglass making it a change from the classics, but great for a first time skipper’s role that was spent mostly in the Atlantic heading from south to north among the rugged sublime islands.
2008 brought a new project again. Commissioning a Swan 82 in Finland and then sailing her to Antigua with a crew of 4.
More recently(2009) he has been free-lansing in Palma and skippered the Alfred Mylne 12-Metre, ‘Kelpie’ at the Mylne regatta in Scotland and the BCYC regatta in the Solent.
September 14th saw Andy start his first command of a real classic….. the William Fife ketch, Eilean.
When Andy has or makes time he continues to build the classic yacht website for those that are interested, involved or passionate about classic yacht’s past, present and future.
