Vale - Graham Norman Evans
Vale - Graham Norman Evans B.Eng (Syd), MBA (Wharton)
5 Mar 1928-2 Mar 2013
Members will be saddened to hear of the death of long standing member Graham Evans.
Graham started sailing in the early 1950s and owned various racing and cruising yachts including Windover, Shanco, Pilgrim, Lady Caroline, Andiamo, Mandalay and Nyora. Of recent years he was a regular member of the Swish crew sailing from RSYS.
Graham was a wonderful navigator of the breed who could genuinely shoot the sun. He was an acclaimed racing sailor and as runner up in the World One Ton Cup in 1972 came within the closest of margins, just 0.125 points of the world championship. Sailing his yacht Pilgrim from MHYC he was a member of the NSW Southern Cross Cup Team in 1971 alongside Polaris and Ragamuffin.
Graham was also served as a flag officer of the CYCA from 1974 and was Commodore of the Club in 1976.
He competed in numerous Sydney to Hobart Races, the Kenwood Cup series and the Sydney to Noumea Race of 1977. He won the Brisbane to Gladstone race in Pilgrim in 1972 weathering a hurricane in the process. He often told the story of making 12 knots under bare poles with the boom removed and strapped to the deck and weathering 80 knot wind gusts. Those were the days!
A true navigator he was always his happiest when 'making a passage' as he would say. His much loved yacht Pilgrim was named after his favorite poem, "The Golden Journey to Samarkand", a poem which so much personified his spirit and enthusiasm for travel to different lands.
We are the Pilgrims, master; we shall go
Always a little further: it may be
Beyond the last blue mountain barred with snow,
Across that angry or that glimmering sea,
White on a throne or guarded in a cave
There lives a prophet who can understand
Why men were born: but surely we are brave,
Who make the Golden Journey to Samarkand.
Graham is survived by his beloved wife Carole, children Brad and Debbie and step-children Walter and Tracey Carpenter.
A memorial service will be held at Ann Wilson Funerals, Pittwater Rd, Dee Why at 1400 hrs on Wednesday 6 March and afterwards at the RSYS. Members and friends of Graham are welcome to attend.
