NEVILLE Bransby is no fair weather fellow.
He prefers sailing yachts when the wind is blowing hard and the waves are wild, anything placid, and he feels “cheated”
Bransby, 75, details his re-acquaintance with sailing in his retirement years, sea conquests, and winning the Vasco Da Gama Ocean Race 2023 after narrowly missing out the year before, in his recently released self-published book: My Vasco Da Gama Quest - A yachtsman’s path to glory.
While the book is dotted with some sailing jargon, the non-seafaring types will be able to navigate it easily, courtesy of Bransby’s straightforward storytelling.
Members and associates of the Point Yacht Club got a taste of Bransby’s sailing anecdotes during a talk he delivered at their Durban yacht mole base, last month.
Before retiring at age 60, he had a successful commercial diving career that lasted 34 years, which also churned out numerous Bransby-styled thrills and spills along the way.
He’s worked in many parts of the world as a commercial diver including six years in the North Sea as a bell diver, plunging nearly 150 metres below the surface at times while working in oil fields. He also had an internationally reputed underwater ship cleaning business with his wife Heidi as a partner.
“I spent the best part of my life as a commercial diver, it was a challenging and amazing experience.”
With so many stories to tell about his diving experiences, Bransby captured them in his first book: Memories of a Commercial Diver. 1974-2008, also self-published, which was first launched in August 2014.
“Having moved over to sailing, I've had the most wonderful time in the world.”
It was inevitable that Bransby would develop sea legs at some point, they’ve become more pronounced from age 60 onwards.
His father Don, who died at age 96 in 2022, was a seasoned sailor with nautical experiences spanning more than 30 000 miles, which included the first Cape to Rio Yacht Race in 1971.
Bransby and his brother Lawrence were boys in the 1960s when they sailed in a dinghy in the Durban Harbour with their father, who served on a destroyer vessel in World War II.
After retiring from diving, Bransby met his old school friend, Trevor Donald, who invited him to sail on his L26 yacht.
Although he was ring-rusty and reluctant initially, Bransby took up the challenge and they sailed for a season together.
Bransby’s involvement with sailing ratcheted up a few notches after Heidi suggested “why don’t you get yourself a yacht”.
An 11 metre L36 cruising yacht (Deo Volente) was his first boat and he spent three months refurbishing it, that’s when the idea to attempt the Vasco began to take shape in his mind. His boat was entered in the 2015 Vasco.
Bransby’s boats thereafter were a Shearwater 39, a Farr 38, and a Farr 40 that ferried him and his crew to the Vasco line and trophy honours last year. It was Bransby’s eighth Vasco attempt.
The race runs nearly 300 nautical miles from Durban to East London, includes the notorious “Wild Coast”, and is known to be the country’s oldest and toughest sailing event that usually attracts sailors who are worth their salt.
Bransby admitted: “Sailing is an extremely expensive game, especially when you become competitive.
“As I improved and got more experience, I went for better boats.”
In this year’s Vasco, Bransby and his only crew member (Sean Jones, 65) sailed his 12.5m boat “double-handed” and took line honours in their class.
“Double-handers are becoming very popular.
“Recently we did a race from Richards Bay to Durban against fully crewed boats, and we won.
Bransby said it was “hard and physical. We are not young, but very experienced.”
He said many in the sailing fraternity complained that double-handers were “too dangerous…”
“Our response is that boats that ran aground and were wrecked have been fully crewed ones.”
Dicing with danger, whether intentional or not, has become a path that Bransby has chartered often.
Once while on board Deo Volente, in a 180 nautical miles yacht race from Inhaca Island to Richards Bay, Bransby got the fright of his life. He and two others were fast asleep below deck and Trevor was on duty.
“I suddenly woke up having heard the deep throbbing sound of a ship’s engine. We were heading towards an enormous passenger ship.
“Trevor turned sharply to starboard to avoid a collision.”
Bransby asked Trevor afterwards whether he had fallen asleep who said that he had thought it was a fishing boat.
“In fact, it was the MSC Symphony, a 275m passenger liner. Passenger liners sail with their deck lights on, on multiple decks.”
In his acknowledgements, Bransby thanked Trevor for his encouragement, support and friendship. He recognised Heidi for never complaining when a new yacht arrived on the scene, instead being patient and supportive. Besides thanking his father for teaching him about sailing, he also expressed gratitude to him for encouraging him to write about his sailing experiences.
Bransby has fond memories of his father, including their 85 nautical mile coastal trip to Richards Bay. His father was 96, mentally sharp, and hinted about doing one more sail with him.
“He walked with a walking stick and I made a special seat for him to steer. It was not one of my brightest ideas, but I wanted to share this last trip with him.”
Stronger winds were forecast for the outing but Bransby didn’t want to cancel and disappoint his father. Conditions worsened and they eventually got to five miles from the port, Bransby radioed the control tower for permission to enter. He was told the port was closed because of the 50-knot gale and to wait off-shore until further notice.
“I had no intention of staying out any longer with a 97-year-old in those conditions.”
Bransby started the engine, it ran sweetly for a few minutes before it died. He was four miles off the and afraid of missing the port entrance. Drawing on all his skills and sailing experience he manoeuvred the craft in the dark and into the port, despite the foul weather conditions.
“Port control was trying to contact us but I had more important things on my mind.”
He had been to Richards Bay Yacht Club many times before and followed the clear track on his plotter, which helped him into the port.
“Dad was exhausted, the stress had taken a toll on him. He didn't look well the next day.”
Bransby got Heidi to drive up and fetch him. “It was absolutely fantastic to do the last sail with my father, in a gale. He must be the oldest man ever to have done the trip in a yacht.”
He said his penchant for daring exploits developed from a young age, thanks to his father.
Bransby detailed in his first book how his father, brother and he walked over 600 kilometres to Maptuo in 1962, and two years later cycled to Beira, Mozambique.
“I've always been an adrenaline junkie. I was a surfer, paraglider… and did all sorts of crazy things, and yachting. How I am still alive, I don't know.”
Email [email protected] for more details on Bransby’s books.
