A springboard for leaders
How we coach
Small cohorts. Real roles. Clear briefs and focused debriefs (photos/video where available). Expect honest feedback and measurable next steps each block. You’ll rotate through helm, trim, bow, pit and nav seats to build confidence that holds at 0200.
Skipper & Lead Coach
Sharon Ferris-Choat
Sharon leads with calm authority and clear standards. Crew describe her impact simply as a quiet way of making you believe in yourself.
Selected Highlights:
- Two-time Olympian (1996 Europe; 2004 Yngling)
- Volvo Ocean Race alum (Amer Sports Too).
- First to skipper an all-female crew in the Extreme Sailing Series
- Multiple offshore speed records
- Part of the winning team Doha 2005 nonstop circumnavigation
- Magenta Project ambassador; long-time mentor of women in offshore sailing
Coaching focus
Sharon creates a safe learning environment where communication stays calm and clear. On deck she sharpens helm work day and night, heavy weather handling, and tidy reef and sail change choreography. At the nav station she coaches practical routing with GRIBs and polars and simple stack management that holds speed while keeping calls concise under pressure. Training is tailored to each sailor’s goals so every watch builds the skills they came to advance. This method delivers measurable, repeatable gains across Vixen academies and race weeks.
Qualifications & Certifications
Sharon brings Olympic and Volvo Ocean Race pedigree, backed by current safety training maintained for each event. Qualifications include:
- RYA Yachtmaster Offshore and Ocean Master of Yacht <24m
- LROCP Long Range Radio
- First Aid Level 2
- Firefighting and Prevention
- Advanced Sea Survival
- RYA Radar and Diesel Engine
- Person in Charge of Medical Care on Board Ship
Chief Mate
Brenden Savage
An experienced RYA Yachtmaster Instructor, outdoor leader, mountaineer, and expedition leader, Brenden brings offshore seamanship together with decades of experience leading people in demanding environments. Calm under pressure and practical in his approach, he helps crews build confidence through sound seamanship, clear communication, and consistent preparation.
Strengths on board:
- Calm decision making in challenging conditions
- Watch leadership, crew development, and clear onboard communication
- Practical seamanship, onboard safety, and reliable preparation
- Coaching that builds confidence, competence, and sound judgement
- Teamwork habits that create steady, capable crews under pressure
- Steady leadership in rough weather; measured risk calls from winter Tasman experience
Professional note
Brenden brings more than 50,000 offshore nautical miles, supported by extensive experience in offshore instruction, expedition leadership, and outdoor education. His qualifications include RYA Yachtmaster Instructor Offshore, RYA Yachtmaster Offshore, Sea Survival, Radar, Diesel Engine, First Aid, and Marine Radio Operator, alongside advanced outdoor leadership and expedition credentials.
Coaching Notes:
With a background in adventure education, remote travel, and mountain environments, his coaching style is calm, approachable, and supportive, creating a learning environment where sailors steadily build confidence, practical skill, and trust in themselves, their crew, and the conditions around them.
Boat Captain
Taylor Edwards
A versatile sailor and coach, Taylor has worked across the spectrum — from dinghies and high-performance race boats to skippering offshore cruising yachts.
Strengths on board:
- Calm, clear instruction for evolutions: reefing under load, hoists/drops, MOB practice
- Passage planning and pilotage in remote waters; tidy watch discipline and night orders
- Practical seamanship: rig checks, running repairs, electrical/engineering fault-finding
- Trim and boat-speed coaching that’s simple to action under pressure
- Steady leadership in rough weather; measured risk calls from winter Tasman experience
Professional note
A Yachtmaster Cruising Instructor with a Maritime New Zealand commercial skipper’s licence and a background as a secondary-school technology teacher, he brings hands-on experience in boatbuilding, rigging, and engineering—and when not sailing or maintaining his own boat, he’s often in the hills climbing or trekking.
Coaching Notes:
He discovered a love for coaching while supporting charter crews in the Mediterranean, then returned to New Zealand to formalise his professional credentials. He’s logged miles in the Fiords of Chile and New Zealand, the Mediterranean, and the South Pacific, including deliveries between New Caledonia, New Zealand and Fiji, and a winter Tasman crossing on his refitted 34-ft Sparkman & Stephens.
Where this takes you
Many crew step up from a keelboat racing course or club regattas and aim at tougher offshore programmes. Our yacht racing coaching NZ pathway turns competence into offshore credibility — the kind you can take into Sydney–Gold Coast, Gold Coast–Mackay, Three Kings and beyond.