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It wouldn't take long to find someone in the sailing community who knows Hayden Whitburn, which makes him an ideal candidate to take over as Yachting New Zealand's new regional support officer for the northern area.
Whitburn started in the key position last week, taking over from Kim Admore who left after 12 years in the role, and plans to get around the various clubs north of the Auckland Harbour Bridge to meet and greet.
Not that he will be a stranger to many of them. Whitburn has more variety on his CV than a buffet dinner, having been a sailmaker, travelling salesman, coach, programme head and race officer. He even hosted the likes of Michael Douglas, the King of Spain, John Bertrand and other VIPs at the last America's Cup in Bermuda.
"I have tried a little bit of this and a little bit of that," he agreed. "I have a good idea on how it all works and how clubs work. I know a lot of the people in the northern region quite well already. I think it’s good to have a range of experiences."
His love of the sport started early when he was introduced to sailing as a youngster living in Macandrew Bay in Dunedin. He enjoyed success at a young age, particularly in the P Class, and was recruited by Auckland Grammar to skipper the school's sailing team.
He was heavily involved in 29er sailing for a couple of years with Andrew Burgess and then got into the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron's youth performance programme. That saw Whitburn introduced to keelboat sailing, and he was part of Phil Robertson's team who won the Warren Jones International in Perth, and he also competed at five Hobie 16 world championships and a number of international events on the 18 foot skiff circuit.
Hayden Whitburn enjoyed good success in the 18 foot skiff. Photo: Live Sail Die.
All of that was done as Whitburn worked as a sailmaker with Norths Sails - he joined them straight out of school - and he also worked alongside Sir Russell Coutts and his drive to grow the O'pen Bic (now O'pen Skiff) class in this country which saw him travel the country from Kerikeri to Dunedin introducing clubs to the junior class. Oh, and he also helped grow the popularity of the RS Feva around the country which helped pressed New Zealand's claim to host the 2021 RS Feva world championships.
Travelling will be part of Whitburn's new role and he will aim to get around all of the clubs in his region to talk to them about what they have coming up and how he can help them. He will be on hand at the Murrays Bay Sailing Club from Friday for all three days of the Stack Winter Champs and is excited about joining the team at Yachting New Zealand.
"I have always had a close association with Yachting New Zealand and they have helped me over the years," he said. "I think it’s my chance to give back to a sport that has been very good to me. I have been in the manufacturing game for a long time and I felt it was time for a change. I love getting out and about and meeting new people.
"I want to get more kids into the sport and keep them in the sport. I have learned a lot off Russell about those things. A club has to be a fun environment and have clear goals on how they are going to grow membership because membership is the most important thing. Without kids coming through, clubs are going to struggle."
- You can contact Yachting New Zealand's new regional support officer, Hayden Whitburn, on hayden@yachtingnz.org.nz or 027 210 2383.
