Don Buckley’s, aka “The Admiral”, story began when he was about 11 years old learning to sail dinghies from Gwen12s to Fireballs and Moths with a small and enthusiastic sailing club on Lake Wyangan in Griffith NSW. The sailing interest continued after the family moved to Sydney and he soon found himself in the boat building business working for Miller & Whitworth, laying up FRP moulds for small dinghies and keel boats.
He started to sail extensively with some of the biggest names of Australian sailing. With Peter Blaxland he represented Australia in the Talin, USSR pre-Olympic regatta in the Tornado class. With Grant Simmer and Jeff Grover became the Lightweight Sharpie National champions. He then joined Iain Murray and Andrew Buckland racing the 18foot skiff Color 7. This team revolutionised many aspects of the 18s and in doing so picked up 5 consecutive world titles.
18s had been relatively heavy, timber boats, but were rapidly transformed into the composite 18 foot rockets we know today using Kevlar, foam, Nomex, and Carbon which were materials that were better known in the aerospace industry. The committed team also built most of the 18-footer fleet and then raced against them on the weekends.
After the Color 7 team retired Admiral moved into managing and building the Colorbond “fleet” of 18s, which also included a Nomex/Carbon partial wing mast.
The move to keel boat and ocean racing was next and he developed an extensive yacht rigging and deck hardware maintenance business to support it. This also introduced him to hydraulics for sailboats and to the increasingly high tech systems required to succeed in modern racing yachts.
He was a key member of the 1987 Americas Cup in Fremantle, doing some sailing and responsible for the complex on-board hydraulic systems and maintaining the boats.
Offshore sailing experience included an Admiral’s Cup, Sydney to Suva and many other blue water classics in Australia, Asia Pacific and further afield. His involvement in a number Sydney to Hobart races included the infamous 1998 race, where he was on “B52”, which was dramatically rolled and dis-masted. This experience led to an ongoing interest in the structural and safety requirements of boats that are exposed to rough conditions.
Admiral was working in and around Sydney on the myriad yachts that make up the Sydney boating scene. Keeping a small club cruiser/racer going or checking an offshore racer’s rig before a major offshore race or after a heavy Southerly had hit was all part of the job.
His experience, innovative approach and attention to detail paid off during many years involved with the Etchells keelboats where Admiral fitted out custom Etchells for the likes of Dennis Conner, John Bertrand, Peter Gilmour and Andrew Hunn.
During this time, he also acted as the commissioning and warranty agent for Princess Motor Yachts UK, which are built to the very highest standard and needed to be handed over to their demanding new owners in perfect condition after being shipped from the UK.
Admiral’s skills in developing all aspects of a vessels’ performance are widely recognised. Optimising racing yachts or making cruisers do their job well so the owners can enjoy them. He took on the management of a 2-boat IRC race program in Australia and throughout Asia. This included all optimization and maintenance of these highly advanced racers leading to multiple wins on the Australian and Asian circuits.
In 2013 Admiral spent time in Zhuhai, China working in a QC role for McConaghy Boats who are world renowned for their ultra-modern composite boats and spars.
Following this he then acted as Owners Representative for Clipper Ventures PLC, managers of the famous Clipper Round the World Yacht Race which is a race for adventurous amateurs in matching 70’ yachts.
Admiral was located in Qingdao in north-eastern China, overseeing the construction and completion of the current fleet of 12, 70 foot yachts. As Owners’ Representative he was balancing the interests of the multiple stakeholders in this demanding project from construction quality to safety.
This experience has provided a valuable insight into the rapidly developing Chinese boatbuilding industry.
Until recently Admiral has been based in Airlie Beach in the beautiful Whitsundays as Operations Manager at Queensland Yacht Charters (QYC) QYC, part of the global Dream Yacht Charters.
With a fleet of nearly 30 boats including yachts and powerboats, both monohulls and catamarans which are used for bareboat charter in this spectacular part of the world. Yes, the location is beautiful but these boats work hard for their living and are subject to a comprehensive maintenance schedule and the issues related to human error. Because these boats are Commercial vessels, he had to make sure that they always adhered to strict Commercial Survey specifications.
Admiral has now returned to his hometown of Sydney and knows most of what there is to know about the practical aspects of running your boat. If he doesn’t know himself, you can be sure he knows someone who does.
The broad range of experience over the years has developed a very practical and common sense approach and understanding of boats and the industry itself.
He started to sail extensively with some of the biggest names of Australian sailing. With Peter Blaxland he represented Australia in the Talin, USSR pre-Olympic regatta in the Tornado class. With Grant Simmer and Jeff Grover became the Lightweight Sharpie National champions. He then joined Iain Murray and Andrew Buckland racing the 18foot skiff Color 7. This team revolutionised many aspects of the 18s and in doing so picked up 5 consecutive world titles.
18s had been relatively heavy, timber boats, but were rapidly transformed into the composite 18 foot rockets we know today using Kevlar, foam, Nomex, and Carbon which were materials that were better known in the aerospace industry. The committed team also built most of the 18-footer fleet and then raced against them on the weekends.
After the Color 7 team retired Admiral moved into managing and building the Colorbond “fleet” of 18s, which also included a Nomex/Carbon partial wing mast.
The move to keel boat and ocean racing was next and he developed an extensive yacht rigging and deck hardware maintenance business to support it. This also introduced him to hydraulics for sailboats and to the increasingly high tech systems required to succeed in modern racing yachts.
He was a key member of the 1987 Americas Cup in Fremantle, doing some sailing and responsible for the complex on-board hydraulic systems and maintaining the boats.
Offshore sailing experience included an Admiral’s Cup, Sydney to Suva and many other blue water classics in Australia, Asia Pacific and further afield. His involvement in a number Sydney to Hobart races included the infamous 1998 race, where he was on “B52”, which was dramatically rolled and dis-masted. This experience led to an ongoing interest in the structural and safety requirements of boats that are exposed to rough conditions.
Admiral was working in and around Sydney on the myriad yachts that make up the Sydney boating scene. Keeping a small club cruiser/racer going or checking an offshore racer’s rig before a major offshore race or after a heavy Southerly had hit was all part of the job.
His experience, innovative approach and attention to detail paid off during many years involved with the Etchells keelboats where Admiral fitted out custom Etchells for the likes of Dennis Conner, John Bertrand, Peter Gilmour and Andrew Hunn.
During this time, he also acted as the commissioning and warranty agent for Princess Motor Yachts UK, which are built to the very highest standard and needed to be handed over to their demanding new owners in perfect condition after being shipped from the UK.
Admiral’s skills in developing all aspects of a vessels’ performance are widely recognised. Optimising racing yachts or making cruisers do their job well so the owners can enjoy them. He took on the management of a 2-boat IRC race program in Australia and throughout Asia. This included all optimization and maintenance of these highly advanced racers leading to multiple wins on the Australian and Asian circuits.
In 2013 Admiral spent time in Zhuhai, China working in a QC role for McConaghy Boats who are world renowned for their ultra-modern composite boats and spars.
Following this he then acted as Owners Representative for Clipper Ventures PLC, managers of the famous Clipper Round the World Yacht Race which is a race for adventurous amateurs in matching 70’ yachts.
Admiral was located in Qingdao in north-eastern China, overseeing the construction and completion of the current fleet of 12, 70 foot yachts. As Owners’ Representative he was balancing the interests of the multiple stakeholders in this demanding project from construction quality to safety.
This experience has provided a valuable insight into the rapidly developing Chinese boatbuilding industry.
Until recently Admiral has been based in Airlie Beach in the beautiful Whitsundays as Operations Manager at Queensland Yacht Charters (QYC) QYC, part of the global Dream Yacht Charters.
With a fleet of nearly 30 boats including yachts and powerboats, both monohulls and catamarans which are used for bareboat charter in this spectacular part of the world. Yes, the location is beautiful but these boats work hard for their living and are subject to a comprehensive maintenance schedule and the issues related to human error. Because these boats are Commercial vessels, he had to make sure that they always adhered to strict Commercial Survey specifications.
Admiral has now returned to his hometown of Sydney and knows most of what there is to know about the practical aspects of running your boat. If he doesn’t know himself, you can be sure he knows someone who does.
The broad range of experience over the years has developed a very practical and common sense approach and understanding of boats and the industry itself.