Last week, just prior to Melbourne's F1 Grand Prix, Kookaburra had the great
privilege of participating in a Sydney media event for Vodafone and their
celebrated World Champion F1 driver Lewis Hamilton.

Lewis joined the crew of our America's Cup yacht "SPIRIT" with guest
helmsman Iain Murray and a small group of Vodafone VIPs for a quick blast
around the harbour. Surrounded by a gaggle of media journalists and
photographers on various water taxis and charter boats, Lewis enjoyed the
sights of Sydney harbour and managed to display his renowned driving skills
with some very capable helming.

Vodafone went to a lot of trouble to brand the yacht extensively and she
looked fabulous in the new red and white livery. All credit to them as the
coverage they received in print, TV and over the web was absolutely
enormous. The event reinforces the successful ties and long term
relationships that Kookaburra has had over the many years with the racing
car fraternity.

Our "Spirit" crew of Matt, the two Bobs, Mouse and Berger (a special guest
appearance) were busy getting everything they could signed and Lewis
graciously promised to join us for a sail next time he's in Sydney -
hopefully with his girlfriend Nicole (lead singer of The Pussycat Dolls)!!

CONGRATULATIONS to Stuart and Elizabeth!!

The Spirit crew and our Saturday afternoon guests were delighted to participate in the engagement proposal of Stuart Halsall to Elizabeth Scott on the scheduled afternoon sailing recently.

Stuart had tipped us into his plans upon booking and the Kookaburra crew were prepared with a surprise of their own. When Elizabeth happily agreed the crew delighted the crowd with some chilled bubbly to celebrate the occasion.

All the best and smooth sailing to Stuart and Elizabeth!!!

"Dear Spirit team

Elizabeth and I would like to thank you and your crew for an absolutely sensational and memorable day out on Spirit. It was the perfect setting for me to ask the love of my life to spend the rest of our lives together. Despite all the best thought out plans when I boarded Spirit I really didn’t know how I was going to pop the question, however you and your crew swung into action with the perfect plan, there is no way it would have worked out as well as it did without you guys. Thanks to your crew for being at the ready with our camera, we now have the most magnificent series of photos of the moment we got engaged. And then the surprise bottle of champagne helped to make the experience on Spirit one of the highlights of our lives. Thanks heaps mate, and please thank all your crew at Kookaburra for a truly amazing experience."

Cheers

Stuart.

Recent feedback from Customers joining our Scheduled Sailings on Spirit.

Bob Barrington 03/06/2010:
I sailed on this yacht on a cold May afternoon. It was fabulous. I own a power boat and normally don't think too much about yachts but this was something that completely blew me away. Highly recommend this to anyone, any age, any time.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 9/10 Adriana Viljevac 06/05/2010
Wonderful experience with an experienced crew.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 10/10 John Acocks 01/05/2010
The sailing crew were fun, welcoming and paid attention to the guests to ensure that we all had a great time.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 10/10 Rob Tibbertsma 27/04/2010
The professionalism and easy-going nature of the crew made this adventure one not to be missed. Sailing on Sydney Harbour at any time is a thrill. On such a fine boat, doubly so. With such a crew, unforgettable!

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 10/10 Andrew Scott 20/04/2010
It was an awesome day, the perfect weather probably helped. It was a great introduction to sailing, the crew were excellent always ready to answer questions. It was great to get involved at the grinders and the helm and to c first hand how a racing yacht operates!

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 10/10 Kerry Smith 02/03/2010
The Spirit was a truly amazing experience. I planned for an afternoon trip knowing that with some warm weather we would get a N/E seabreeze. I wasn't disappointed. We left the dock at 1:30pm and motored to Luna Park before raising the mainsail and jib and heading easterly down the harbour. My involvement in the "crewing" of the yacht came early as we hoisted the main sail. The shear area of this sail was spectacular and the power developed when we were "on" the wind was awesome. A thrilling afternoon of threading the needle through the harbour traffic as we sailed towards Manly, followed by a relaxing cruise back down towards South Head as we were served some magnificent sandwiches for lunch. The crew were very pleasant and friendly and gave an excellent run down on the detail of the yacht as well as the landmarks of Sydney harbour. As General Manager of a company I see an experience like this as a great team building exercise and will make enquiries soon regarding corporate events. To sum it up: I had a fantastic time which I have raved about to friends and colleagues, and I would have no hesitation in recommending this adventure to anyone who appreciates an exhiliarating time and who can appreciate such a fine piece of engineering masterpiece as this yacht. Thank you to my wonderful children for this fantastic xmas gift. Dad loves you.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 10/10 Peter Jensen 01/03/2010
Great value for money. Get the most out of the trip by participation in the activities offered. Sailing experience and hospitality great.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 10/10 Maggie Mcpherson 28/02/2010

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 10/10 Lisa Schijvens 25/02/2010
A perfect way to see Sydney's beautiful harbour. We went very close to the foreshore and the pace allowed us to see things that usually rush by when travelling by ferry, car, etc. The staff were excellent and seemed to enjoy it as much as we did. Well done to everyone!

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 10/10 Chris Neilson 23/02/2010
That everyone should do it for themselves instead of waiting to be given it as a gift. If you need to buy a gift for someone it is perfect, participation if you want to or relax if not.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 9/10 Peter McCrystal 23/02/2010
The weather helped, but the crew on the yacht was fantastic. All details were accurate. It was a very exciting experience.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 8/10 Ian Wallace 22/02/2010
Great day on the harbour and an excellent way to see Sydney's best. Having been on New York harbour a few months ago it just does not compare to Sydney.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht - Father's Day Special 8/10 Jenny McGowan 15/02/2010
Great way to experience our harbour, especially for visitors to Sydney.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 8/10 Owen Way 09/02/2010
The sailing was great, got soaked from the rain but still had a great time. Also the crew on the boat were very good.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 10/10 Peter Whitson 08/02/2010
The weather was pretty terrible but everyone had a great time with the crew on board and loved the heavy seas and swells.

Sailing America’s Cup Yacht Adventure - Adult 10/10 Karl Roeger 08/02/2010
I would just tell how good it was, and If they ever get the chance to do it grab it with both hands.

ITS A WINNER FOR CORPORATE HOSPITALITY & TEAM BUILDING!

SPECIAL TWILIGHT RACE PACKAGE - Book Now!

Invite your guests to race on a World Famous Volvo 60 Maxi Ocean Racing Yacht during the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia’s Wednesday Twilight Series.

Impress your clients, build relationships and strengthen teamwork amongst your staff by competing against more than 100 yachts in this thrilling mid week race.

The opportunity to race these VO 60s presents a ‘once in a life time’ experience.

Book three Wednesday Twilight Races and we will include the following for up to 18 guests per race:

Charter of the yacht with skipper and professional crew who will host and guide your guests throughout the race.

All catering - pre drinks & catering onboard the yacht during the race PLUS
a full BBQ for your team after the race at our waterside venue.

All entry fees and wharf bookings

We are offering this exclusive package at a discounted rate of $8950.00 + GST

Please call Steffan on 9660 9133 to solve all your corporate hospitality needs and be where most people want to be on a Wednesday evening!

Book any three Wednesday Night Twilight Races from the beginning of October 09 to the end of March 10 to qualify for this great offer.

AFR - Kookaburra Challenge Match Racing Afternoon

Last week AFR held a three Volvo 60 Match Racing afternoon on the Harbour. They invited clients and colleagues to enjoy a magnificent day out racing Maxi yachts. At times the Volvo 60's were nail bitingly close.

Even though the wind was light on occasions all 6 teams pushed for the finishing line with determination and great group dynamics were shown. Each team were allocated a charity to race on behalf of. The 1st prize was a $25,000.00 double page colour advert in the 'Financial Review' for the winning teams charity. Amongst the guests the team spirit and competition was strong with everything to race for and nothing to lose.

The Cancer Council Australia won through on the day to take the massive 1st prize. However, each team member didn't go home empty handed. All the winning crew received a stunning Nautica Jacket. As you can imagine all the guests enjoyed a great day and some mentioned they couldn't wait to come back next year to win such a great prize for their charity.

If you would like to do a similar event for your top clients or colleagues please don't hesitate to contact Steffan on 02 9660 9133. I will be happy to discuss possible options.

SYDNEY - HOBART 2006

A huge congratulations to the crew onboard our Volvo 60 'DHL' that raced in the recent Sydney - Hobart 2006. The DHL Race Team did extremely well and we are very proud of every member. The conditions didn't suit a Volvo 60 at all - most of the race was sailed in light to moderate breeze on the nose - but the DHL team sailed extremely well to come in 8th over the line and 3rd in P.H.S Division A.

The crew consisted of 5 professional sailors, with Olympic medalist Mitch Booth at the helm, plus 11 sailors of varying experience. The team trained hard together over a 3 month period in the newly devised Kookaburra Big Boat Training Program and gained valuable experience from top guest sailors such as Gordon Maguire, Michael Blackburn, Steve McConaghy,
Bruce Savage and Sue Crafer. The fabulous team spirit and mateship that emerged played a huge role in the success of the program along with the fantastic support from DHL (in particular Ken Mouldey (DHL Global) and Gary Edstein (DHL Express) who both were valuable members of the race crew).

1st Place - BIG BOAT CHALLENGE 2006

With the Kookaburra Big Boat training programme under way the Big Boat Challenge was the perfect test for the team before the Sydney to Hobart 2006. The crew didn't let us down and came home with the trophy for first place.

Well done guys.

Corporate Sailing Team Challenge - Sydney Harbour

Don't miss our next 'CTC' days contact Steffan on +61 2 9660 9133

Entertain your top clients, reward your staff or use the day as an excellent team building event. The price for a team of up to 20 guests is just $4,950 incl. GST (great value for a whole day of exciting sailing, prizes, full catering and hospitality onboard a luxurious 'mothership').