In this one-of-a-kind, "not-about-sailing" episode, I sit down with the bold and enthusiastic Stephanie Neil , Founder of Fiji Surf Charter, to uncover the story behind her leap from the laid-back shores of Northern NSW to launching a live-aboard surf adventure business in the heart of the South Pacific.

We explore the serendipitous way our paths first crossed and the incredible vision Stephanie has brought to life: a floating surf retreat aboard the stunning Sea Breeze III, set among the world-class breaks of the Mamanuca Islands. With a passion for waves, remote destinations, and turning dreams into reality, Stephanie has created an unforgettable way to experience Fiji from the water — board in hand, ocean breeze in your face, and not a tourist crowd in sight.

Stephanie’s no stranger to the world of ocean adventures. With 12 years of experience living in the Maldives and Fiji, she’s navigated the highs and lows of starting businesses in some of the world’s most breathtaking — and logistically challenging — corners. Her entrepreneurial story is gutsy, inspiring, and filled with the kind of insight that only comes from years spent living life off the beaten path.

If you live for the thrill of uncrowded surf breaks, tropical sunsets, and waking up on the water with the next wave just a short paddle away, this episode is your call to adventure. Join us as we dive into what makes Fiji Surf Charter more than just a surf trip — it’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Find out more: https://fijisurfcharter.com/fiji-surf-charter-7-night-luxury 

David shares an update on the latest challenges at Ocean Sailing Expeditions. Buying an IMOCA Open 60 yacht complete with a carbon mast and canting keel is enough of a project, without adding a 105 foot motor-yacht to the fleet at the same time.

From start-up to 4 vessels in 5 years, it's been a roller coaster ride at times. Battle weary from 6 months of boat yards, budget blow-outs and upgrades, and on the eve of his first ocean passage in a motor-vessel, David talks candidly about what's keeping him awake at night at the moment.

Join us onboard for a sailing adventure: https://oceansailingexpeditions.com/sailing-calendar

 

Do you have the drive for adventure and the desire to push your limits? Whether you're an experienced sailor or a keen adventurer looking for the ultimate challenge, this episode is a live webinar recording, designed to invite you as a crew member, inside the exciting world of high performance ocean racing.

Join Sharon Ferris-Choat and David Hows as they dive into what makes the Ocean Sailing Expeditions offshore racing events an unforgettable experience. Whether you dream of competing in an iconic race or want to test yourself in an adrenaline-pumping passage, this webinar will show you how you can take part – full training provided!

No matter what level of experience you are starting at, we have racing events that can match your goals.

Sharon Ferris-Choat was the first female to win a round-the-world race, is a veteran of 2 Olympic Games, has competed in the Volvo Ocean Race, holds 5 World Sailing Speed Records, Match Racing Titles and was Co-Skipper on the yacht Maidan in 2019.

Sharon is Skipper, Team Development Manager and Race Program Director for Ocean Sailing Expeditions.

Since joining Ocean Sailing Expeditions, Sharon skippered our 2024 Hamilton Island Race Week entry to 1st place in the division and crossed the line 14th on our IMOCA Open 60 yacht Awen in the 2024 Rolex Sydney Hobart Race.

David is a sailing addict and loves introducing new people to his love of all things - sailing. David has sailed more than 100,000nm as Skipper and have introduced more than 1,300 people to offshore sailing over the past 5 years through Ocean Sailing Expeditions. David is the Founder of Ocean Sailing Expeditions and has completed more than 400 races as Skipper.

Join the crew: https://oceansailingexpeditions.com/awen-sailing-events 

Watch the webinar video: https://oceansailingexpeditions.com/imoca-open-60-racing-webinar 

David Hows catches up with Sharon Ferris-Choat for a debrief on the IMOCA Open 60 project - Awen. With less than 8 weeks to get Awen into MCA Cat 0 survey and to the start line, for the what turned out to be a treacherous edition of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, it was mission impossible.

Despite the odds, Sharon led a passionate team, who worked around the clock during October and November of 2024, to then cross the Tasman from Opua to Sydney in early December and make it to the start line. Miraculously final approval to race was given by the CYCA just 4 hours before the race started. It was a refit and upgrade project of epic proportions and nail biting right to the end. We had no plan B, we simply had to complete the 700+ tasks in less than 7 weeks, to make the dream possible.

And then the race got underway with gusts of 50 knots plus, hitting the fleet of 103 starters on the first night. The carnage that unfolded over the following 2-3 days was horrendous, as 30 yachts retired with broken masts, lost steering, water ingress, torn sails, injured bodies and the list goes on. Tragically 2 lives were lost, when crew members were hit by booms and mainsheets and a man overboard was successfully recovered during a moon-less night at sea. There are lessons in this for all of us.

This the remarkable story of Sharon’s leadership and seamanship, to pull a rookie crew together for the first time, 3 weeks earlier and to deliver them safely from Sydney to Hobart, despite hitting speeds of 24 knots plus at times, on a boat they were still learning to sail.

Race with Sharon on Awen: https://oceansailingexpeditions.com/sailing-calendar-racing

 

David's daughter Madison interviews him about life lessons, building a sailing business, setbacks, challenges and the future ahead. In this episode, Madison dive's into Davids background as a 16-year school leaver and the 34 year journey he took, to launch and build Ocean Sailing Expeditions at age 50 as COVID 19 hit.

This episode as about passion and resilience and not being afraid to take risks, if you believe in something, no matter what stage in in life you are at.

David shares lessons from childhood, the challenges of finding yourself in a career you don't love and how to pivot and head in a completely new direction, even when the odds of success are stacked against you.

• Watch 2024 in pictures with Ocean Sailing Expediitons on YouTube
• Join an Ocean Sailing Expeditions Adventure

 

In this episode we share the webinar recording with David Hows, Skipper and Founder of Ocean Sailing Expeditions, where he covers: - Details on the upcoming 15-leg Australian Circumnavigation in 2026-27 and why its bigger, better and more exciting than the previous event in 2023 - A sneak peek at the new sailing destinations, that haven't been released yet - Information about the new racing events on the sailing calendar - Insights into the challenges of expanding our fleet from two, to four yachts in 2024 and all of the challenges and costs that come with that and the expanded team of 20 people required to make it all work - Exclusive access to our brand new End of Financial Year "Sailing Adventure Auction," where 30 selected sailing events (valued at up to $14,750) will be auctioned off to podcast subscribers with a $1 reserve (held on 8-9 June 2024 AEST) - Special discounts on over 30 events available only to webinar attendees / podcast listeners   Find out more at: https://oceansailingexpeditions.com

Skippers David Hows and Matt Harvey catch up to review their 2-yacht circumnavigation of Australia in 2023. With 8,500nm covered in just 4 months, they share the highs and lows of covering the 7th largest coastline in the world. The event was spread over 5 legs and 102 crew in total, across the two 72-foot yachts; Silver Fern and Salt Lines, including 3 circumnavigators that completed all 5 legs. With 4,600 meals prepared, it was a planning exercise of military proportions.

With engine failures, crocodiles, storms and boat fatigue to deal with, sailing some sections of this vast country are not for the faint hearted. The stunning Great Barrier Reef, North Queensland islands and reefs, Cape York, Thursday Island, the Kimberley’s, 9 metre tides in Broome, the Montebello Island Group, the Great Australian Bight and the wilderness of Tasmania, there is just so much thats remote and incredible to explore.

David announces the launch of the next edition of this great event which kicks off in March 2026, with a plan to take 4 yachts, 15 legs and 13 months to circumnavigate Australia next time. With 75% of the time spent exploring and ashore next time, we'll go even deeper into remote Australia. It just gets better.

Find out more and join the crew: https://oceansailingexpeditions.com/australian-circumnavigation-2026

Save an extra $1,000 on any leg/s you register for as crew, if you use the podcast listeners promo code: AC26.

Sharon was a teenager heading for trouble when she discovered sailing. Starting in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand, Sharon watched Maiden race around the world with an incredible international team of women. They inspired her with the determination and belief that if they could do it, then maybe with a lot of hard work and determination, so could she. Every opportunity to sail was taken. Sharon discovered her passion, the need for camaraderie, the endless adventure seeking and new challenges to overcome. 

She wanted to race around the world, but the opportunity to compete in the Europe Class at the Olympic Games came first as the age of 22. At the 1996 Atlanta games, she finished 5th and competed again in Athens in 2004, placing 7th in the Yngling yacht. She has raced around the world 3 times, logging more than 107,000 offshore miles. The first was as part of Tracy Edwards’ first all-female crew, to attempt the Jules Verne non-stop round the world record. She then joined the crew of Amer Sports Too, in the Volvo Ocean Race in 2001/02.

Sharon has won sailing titles in multiple classes and holds 5 world speed records. A country girl at heart, she has been an inspiration to many, a great leader and passionate coach.

Join Sharon's race crew in 2024 & 2025: https://oceansailingexpeditions.com/racewithsharon 

David Hows catches up with Jon Bilger to talk about a long list of innovations and new features at PredictWind. As an Olympic and America’s Cup sailor, Jon is one of the sailing world’s, cool geeks. Very few people have competed at the level Jon has, and possess the ability to turn their knowledge into tech tools that any sailor can use. PredictWind is the global leader in weather forecasting for sailors and its used by both top racers and everyday cruisers alike.

As a user of PredictWind for almost a decade, I have found it perfect for my departure planning and weather routing at sea. Having crossed the Tasman 18-times and sailed to increasingly higher latitudes, having good forecasts helps me stay out of trouble. The advent of faster download speeds with Iridium Go Exec and Starlink, along with the new PredictWind Data Hub has made PredictWind even more valuable to use.

I don’t normally plug products, but this technology is must have for safety, so here are some extra resources to help you research it further;

Features

Weather Routing - https://www.predictwind.com/features/weather-routing

Departure Planning - https://www.predictwind.com/features/departure-planning

AIS Data - https://www.predictwind.com/features/ais-data

GPS tracking - https://www.predictwind.com/gps-tracking

 

Products

Iridium GO - https://www.predictwind.com/iridium-go

Iridium GO exec - https://www.predictwind.com/iridium-go-exec

Starlink - https://www.predictwind.com/starlink

DataHub - https://www.predictwind.com/datahub

In this episode David Hows and Matt Harvey share their advice and highlights from cruising the stunning Yasawa Islands in Fiji over the past 2 winters. They share tips on getting there, provisioning, repairs and maintenance in remote locations, navigation and weather.

From sailing to swimming, snorkelling, underwater caves, untouched, white sand beaches, delicious local cuisine, incredible sea life and the beautiful Fijian people and their rich culture - this destination is a “must do” for cruising sailors and those planning a sailing holiday to a unique destination.

• Find out more: about sailing in Fiji