Professional Skipper - Free Sample issue (July/Aug 2011)

OUR PEOPLE LIFE TAKES UNEXPECTED TURNS BY CAROL FORSYTH A lthough cruising in an H28 keeler cruising wetted Troy Evans' sailing appetite, he never thought about a seagoing career until he went on a 10-day voyage as a trainee on the Spirit of New Zealand while at high school.d After the voyage he became a volunteer with the Spirit of Adventure Trust and sailed as often as he could. Troy also helped with maintenance, particularly rigging. When he was half way through a degree in biochemistry and microbiology, Troy had the chance to join the trust as a cadet and was soon signed up. This involved total immersion in the tall ship life, including sailing, training, maintenance and navigation. "In 1995 I officially started as a cadet with the trust to get my d e s d e coastal launch master ticket. I had served on board as a leading hand and bosun as a volunteer before being taken on as a cadet," Troy said. He sailed on many 10-day trips and weekends, with a roster of six weeks on and 10 days off. "I was paid a small sum as a cadet, so during my time off I went commercial cleaning to help pay my bills." After completing his cadetship he also served time ashore and as relieving mate. Berthed further along the wharf was the tall ship Soren Larsen, and it was only natural Troy would soon find himself on board as deckhand/bosun. He particularly enjoyed visiting Raoul Island and Long Island (Chesterfield Reef). "I enjoyed the isolated places and anchorages. Sometimes we'd meet with locals and they would come on board." At times he would launch his kayak (with permission) and paddle over to an isolated reef in the middle of nowhere. While surfing on the reef he often wondered if anyone else had ever surfed there! Troy was ship-hopping along a Wellington wharf in 1998 when he saw his next career move to Strait Shipping as a deck cadet. "I started with them to get my second mate's certificate and stayed until 2000." During this time he had the opportunity to go on board a coastal tanker and, as luck would have it, the ship travelled to South East Asia. By the time Troy returned to New Zealand he had completed most of the required sea time and he qualified as second mate at the end of the following year. He returned to the Spirit of New Zealand for a short while before d heading offshore, where he worked out of Singapore in the offshore oil industry until 2007. During this time he gained his mate's and master's tickets. "On one trip from Singapore to Turkey we were delivering an anchor-handling tug straight out of dry dock. With stores loaded, we set off up the Malacca Strait with smooth sailing across the Indian Ocean. As we entered the Gulf of Aden we were approached by three small vessels doing a reasonable turn of speed. "Choosing to alter course, I decided not to wait and see what would happen and put the hammer down. They lost interest in us and proceeded in a nor'easterly direction." 38 Professional Skipper July/August 2011 r were sometimes pissed off if a pas Four hours later, this group of pirates attacked a small fleet of yachts. "We could hear what sounded like gunfire as the yachts called for help over the radio, but we were at least four hours steaming away. b "A container ship was on the scene in half an hour and a US warship on the scene within an hour apprehended some of the pirates. We received no word on what happened to the yachties." This follows his abhorrence of modern pirates: "Five to 10 years ago, the local fishermen were sometimes pissed off if a passing ship damaged their gear and would demand payment for it. We got boarded due to running over someone's gear . Now it's a business near Somalia. Ships and crews are taken, recently ransoms have been paid and some of the crews have not been freed." During his time off, Troy occasionally sailed on the Spirit and continued as a volunteer at the Voyager New Zealand Maritime Museum. Troy has no time for freeloaders. "There's more to just going out for a sail. It's the time beforehand and afterwards preparing the ship for sea, maintenance, and getting the ship ready for the next crew at the end of a shift or sail that makes it all tick along nicely." A life-long quest to learn has seen Troy move from ticket to ticket and he currently holds a coastal launch master, foreign-going masters, a Nautical Institute square rig certificate and an MEC5 certificate in marine engineering. His experience has been gained on a broad mix of commercial vessels, including square-rigged tall ships, ro-ro vessels, tankers, small passenger ferries, tugs, and offshore support vessels. Not content to be an absorber of knowledge, Troy is also a casual tutor at the New Zealand Maritime School in Auckland. In 2009 life for Troy and his family took an unexpected turn. "We had a new baby, I was working a lot and had various other projects on the go. A minor blister from new work boots wasn't healing and I hadn't been feeling well for a while. I put it down to all that was going on in my life. In the end I finally listened to my wife and went to the doctor." Eight hours after a blood test, Troy received a phone call saying the hospital was expecting him. "I didn't know what was happening. By 2300 that night I had some idea and a couple of days later it was confirmed with a diagnosis of acute myeloid leukaemia." Seven months of chemotherapy followed, with half the time spent hospitalised. It was a trying time and Troy is thankful for all the support and visits. He is now in remission. His advice is: "If something doesn't heal, you are feeling run down, go and get it checked out. If left too long it could kill you." Currently ashore due to family commitments, Troy continues his maritime career with Ports of Auckland Ltd, where he works on the ASD tugs Waipapa and Waka Kume, along with other duties. During his spare time he enjoys working with traditional rigging and going sailing. Troy Evans

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