Guy Salter - a madforsailing profile

The Gurnard Nipper

What is your date of birth? 5th March 1972

Where were you born?
Newport, Isle of Wight

At what age did you start sailing?
Learnt at about 8, started racing at 13

What inspired you to take up sailing?
My old man, the king of the beach!

Where was your first sailing club?
Gurnard Sailing Club

Which class did you first race in?
Working / Middle Class

How did you buy your first boat?
Have never owned a boat always spent my money on CDs or going out.

What was your first regatta win?
Gurnard Mirror Marathon 1986

What’s your biggest event or championship win?
Gurnard Mirror Marathon 1986
1999 Top boat Admiral's cup, 2000 Tour Voile

Any other notable regattas that you have taken part in you would like to mention?
The Folly regatta is a favourite. Any regatta with or against my brother are usually pretty special, there are a lot of regattas out there and a lot of good people to sail with.

Which event will you be taking part in next?
I’m signed up with Team Tyco for the 2001-2002 Volvo Ocean Race

Do you do any sailing-specific off the water training?
At the moment it's one to two hours in the gym every day six days a week, but my training differs for different regattas, I find the hardest to train for the Kings Cup as more endurance is required.

Which coaches do you use if any?
I don’t really have a lot to do with coaches just learn off my teammates. If I could choose a coach it would have to be Glen Hoddle after the work he has done at Southampton, brought easily the greatest football team on the planet out of the 70s at long last. Pity his faith healer hasn’t seen what a mistake leaving Southampton was. What a complete F***wit

If you weren’t doing the job you are, what would you like to be doing instead?
I would love to be the presenter of Jazz Club from the Fast Show. Mmmmmmmmmm niiice.

Which other sports do you take part in?
Mini Golf, Darts, Football and Subbuteo

Do you have other hobbies or interests outside of sailing?
I enjoy hanging out with my mates and generally having a laugh and taking it easy.

Do you have favorite bar, pub or restaurant?
I have thousands but special ones include The Pier View (Cowes), The Cheeky Monkey (Newport RI), The Woodvale (Gurnard), The Shark Club (Patong),The Crowbar (Auckland)

Tell us about your most memorable sail?
At the moment it has to be the most recent Hobart race and the follow on to Auckland on the Volvo 60 TYCO. Had it all from nasty upwind to a light air park up, but best was flying along and trying not to get washed off the bow with the big gear spinnakers up. Also any delivery with Led Pritchard is memorable as they are always upwind.

Who are your role models?
Anyone who takes the sport seriously but can still have a laugh, the likes of Tom McWilliam, Steve Hayles, Marco Constant, Big Jim, Boycey, Brookie, and most of the other decent people in the sport spring to mind.

What’s your biggest remaining goal in sailing?
To win the Volvo race

How much time do you spend on the water each week?
Between 35 - 60 hours per week, but soon to be a lot more!

Who are your sponsors?
Tyco are my main sponsors at the moment

What is the best excuse you have ever given for a poor performance in a race?
Being wrongfully detained at Her Majesty's pleasure for a few hours in Hong Kong the night before an offshore race, luckily I still came out of it well and turned a very bad situation into just a bad situation; just don’t be mistaken for a US marine when it's past their bedtime and the MPs are doing the rounds

What is the funniest thing you have either witnessed or experienced whilst sailing?
One memorable moment wasn’t actually racing but was watching Jim Turner pulling an anchor up. I’m sure Jonathan Taylor and Boycey will back me up but to be quite honest every time I go out yachting there is usually a lot of amusing stuff going on which is nice.

Do you have a favorite sailing venue and what makes it a great place to sail?
Yes, it has to be Cape Gurnard the gateway to the west, where the sun always shines and the wind always blows; you can’t beat the Isle of Wight aka the English Caribbean.

What’s the single thing that could most improve the running of regattas?
Professional race management

What is your greatest strength in sailing?
Not taking it too seriously - why would you?

What is your greatest weakness in sailing?
Being seen not to be taking it too seriously but why would you?

What’s the single most important piece of advice you could give to younger sailors?
Take up football the money is better and so are the celebrity girlfriends, or if you have to go sailing then make sure you learn something from every time you go out.

Who are your sailing heroes and why?
Paul Stanbridge - anyone who knows the bloke will understand why.

If you could sail for a day with anyone of your choice who would it be and why?
I would love to sail with all the other Volvo campaigns for a day to find exactly what stage they are at and what they are up to.

Who do you think are the best sailors in Britain?
The best sailors in GB are the perpetual winners - we all know who they are, but the likes of Stead, Powell, Mitchell and the Barlo Plastics lads of the past few years stick in my mind.

Who do you rate as the best sailor in the world?
So many different elements in yachting that it’s impossible to pick one. After all I can’t give anybody too much respect as I may end up sailing against them in the next few years.