Review: With the Wind Behind Us
Reviewed by Michael Burgess
Reviewed by: Michael Burgess
Author:Matt Elliott
Publisher:HarperCollins NZ
ISBN:9781775541608
Date Published:
29 October 2020
Pages:368
Format:Paperback
RRP:$36.99
With the America’s Cup set to be staged early next year in Auckland, With the Wind Behind Us is a fitting celebration of New Zealand’s exploits as a sailing nation.
It’s a chance to laud Kiwi nautical pioneers in the Olympics, One Ton Cup, Admirals Cup, Whitbread Round the World Race as well as the battles for the Auld Mug; the dedicated and talented men and women who have established this country’s wonderful reputation on the water.
That would usually be enough to fill a volume – but this book goes much, much further. There’s a chapter on Abel Tasman’s arrival – with some riveting journal entries from the Dutchman – and another on the old-time whalers who created such chaos in Northland and other ports around the country. There are stories about ghost ships, New Zealand’s deadliest race, the notorious Minerva reefs and the history of dinghies, including our beloved P Class.
It’s an ambitious project but hits the mark thanks to the author’s depth of research, storytelling instinct and desire to add to the conversation, rather than simply traverse old ground.
With our sailors, there are interesting angles on well-established names, such as Russell Coutts’ traumatic experience in Los Angeles on the way to winning Olympic gold in 1984, or the genesis of Sir Peter Blake’s Whitbread endeavours over a few pints at the Masonic Tavern in Devonport.
But it’s the tales about lesser known characters that particularly resonate. Like Jim Davern, who was the first Kiwi skipper to win the Sydney-Hobart race, back in 1966. The author visited the 90-year-old Davern at his Milford home and found a national treasure, with some wonderful anecdotes and tales.
Or Chris Bouzaid, whose win in the 1969 One Ton Cup (the first New Zealand triumph in an international regatta) was such a big deal it shared front page billing with the Moon landing in some local newspapers.
Or Johnny Wray who, after losing his job in the great depression, embarked on his crazy dream to build a yacht in his backyard and explore the Pacific, with a budget of eight pounds and 10 shillings. And somehow succeeded.
Or the late Ken Searle, a true character of the Auckland sailing scene, who provided fascinating insight into the sinking of Snow White on a journey from Fiji in 1979 and the 26 harrowing hours his crew spent in their life raft on the open sea, at one point circled by sharks, while they waited to be rescued.
Readers will be enthralled by the tales of Count Felix von Luckner, a German World War 1 mariner, who plundered and sunk enemy ships in the Pacific before being caught and detained in New Zealand in 1917.
Elliott has uncovered a previously unpublished diary of one of von Luckner’s prisoners, which details an incredible attempt at a marathon escape across the open sea, from a tiny atoll in French Polynesia to American Samoa. It’s jaw dropping stuff.
The author spent a year on the project, and that dedication, as well as an obvious affinity for the subject shines through. You’ll learn a lot, laugh a fair bit and be thoroughly entertained, while also coming away immensely proud of everything that New Zealand has achieved as a sailing nation.
The book achieves an ideal, yet difficult balance. It will appeal to sailing fanatics – given the depth and breadth of the topics traversed – but the crisp prose and clear explanations mean it will also be enjoyed by general sports fans and history buffs.
The level of detail is fascinating, without being overbearing, and a good pace is maintained throughout. There are a couple of typos that shouldn’t have slipped past the sub editors, particularly the assertion that the famous All Whites’ World Cup campaign of 1982 took place in Mexico, rather than Spain, but overall the layout and design is well thought out and easy on the eye.
You’ll want to re-read some of the more compelling sections and it’s designed to be a book that can be digested in one sitting or over several legs. New Zealand has a remarkable sailing history – with another chapter to be added early next year – and this book captures it perfectly.
Reviewed by Michael Burgess
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