wrr
Active member
Sad news that Don has died. He explored much of the Caribbean with Iolaire and later became part of sailing community in West Cork.
See Don Street RIP
See Don Street RIP
Don Street
- Thread starter wrr
- Start date
Bajansailor
Well-known member
Don certainly had an amazing sailing life and career.
I met / bumped into Don on various occasions in the Caribbean over the years, and he was invariably lurking under a large Tilley hat while clutching a bottle of cold Heineken and offering his opinions on everything related to sailing to a fascinated audience . He must have been the best unpaid advertisement ever for Heineken!
And at the Brest '92 classic boat festival - he had sailed his classic Dragon from his home port of Glandore to Douarnanez and Brest with his son Richard and friend Niall - I think it was about a 3 day passage each way, and they were taking turns to sleep on sails under the tiny Dragon 'cuddy' cabin. Hard core sailors, and Don would have been in his 60's then.
And at St Georges, Bermuda a few years later, in May 1995 - I was crewing on a pal's S & S 34, and we took 11 days from St Maarten, including some motoring; Iolaire took 9 days from St Thomas, and of course they had no engine...... the wind was on the nose when they approached the very narrow entrance to St Georges harbour, and I remember seeing them short tacking up this channel, sailing in to the harbour, and then rounding up alongside the Customs dock with a flourish, and still under full sail.
They stayed a few days, and I think there were 4 or 5 crew on board - I helped them load provisions on board for the next leg to the Azores, and the food appeared to almost be an afterthought, in comparison to the quantity of Heineken taken on board......
I met them again a couple of months later at Cowes Classics, and was honoured to be invited to sail for the day on Iolaire - except that there was absolutely no wind that day. So we drifted with the tide, and later drifted back a bit when the tide turned, but we did have to accept a tow in the end to get back to the mooring. A very pleasant day out on the Solent, getting sunburnt, and partaking of a few greenies....
Sail on Don, on that eternal broad reach with Iolaire, still clutching that ubiquitous greenie - you were a real legend.
I met / bumped into Don on various occasions in the Caribbean over the years, and he was invariably lurking under a large Tilley hat while clutching a bottle of cold Heineken and offering his opinions on everything related to sailing to a fascinated audience . He must have been the best unpaid advertisement ever for Heineken!
And at the Brest '92 classic boat festival - he had sailed his classic Dragon from his home port of Glandore to Douarnanez and Brest with his son Richard and friend Niall - I think it was about a 3 day passage each way, and they were taking turns to sleep on sails under the tiny Dragon 'cuddy' cabin. Hard core sailors, and Don would have been in his 60's then.
And at St Georges, Bermuda a few years later, in May 1995 - I was crewing on a pal's S & S 34, and we took 11 days from St Maarten, including some motoring; Iolaire took 9 days from St Thomas, and of course they had no engine...... the wind was on the nose when they approached the very narrow entrance to St Georges harbour, and I remember seeing them short tacking up this channel, sailing in to the harbour, and then rounding up alongside the Customs dock with a flourish, and still under full sail.
They stayed a few days, and I think there were 4 or 5 crew on board - I helped them load provisions on board for the next leg to the Azores, and the food appeared to almost be an afterthought, in comparison to the quantity of Heineken taken on board......
I met them again a couple of months later at Cowes Classics, and was honoured to be invited to sail for the day on Iolaire - except that there was absolutely no wind that day. So we drifted with the tide, and later drifted back a bit when the tide turned, but we did have to accept a tow in the end to get back to the mooring. A very pleasant day out on the Solent, getting sunburnt, and partaking of a few greenies....
Sail on Don, on that eternal broad reach with Iolaire, still clutching that ubiquitous greenie - you were a real legend.
