Peter Daly is the Owner and principal; he is the only RYA Powerboat and Personal Watercraft Trainer in Africa. His 30 plus years of teaching watersports including Sailing yachts, Motor yachts and powerboating / Personal watercraft gives the centre excellent leadership, offering clients the best training available.
Today I got to sit down with Pete Daly, the owner and head instructor at Sail and Power SA, as well as Skipper Training SA. Pete’s knowledge of the industry is amazing and the stories and advice I got to hear was just incredible!
What advice would you give to anyone wanting to join the yachting industry?
Pete: “Research the career path that you are wanting to take as there are so many to choose from and select the training schools wisely, you also need to expect that there are always ups and downs and it’s not for everyone however if it is for you the rewards of travelling around the world and the financial benefits are fantastic”.
In the industry, this question is often asked so I would love to ask you. Sail, or power?
Pete: (LAUGHS) “Well I love passing on my knowledge of the industry to anyone with regards to Kayaking, windsurfing, dinghy sailing, powerboating, motor cruising but if I want to have a beautiful day on the water it has to be a sailing yacht!”
What is your favourite water sport?
Pete: “Windsurfing, definitely”
Do you battle with people that come from overseas that do not understand English when instructing?
Pete: “We don’t battle with the students understanding English as all the courses are extremely practical, so sign language and pigeon English always gets us through”
You are a very busy man, what do you do for downtime?
Pete: “The best down time to me is spending time with my family, William (Pete’s son who is 6 years old)and Yolanda” (Pete’s wife).
Why did you get into this industry?
Pete: “I was 14 when I had taken a liking to all things boating and it was just a great passion from the start”
What course is your idea of fun? Not the one that most people go for, but the one that makes you tick?
Pete: “The instructor courses and the PWC course are always great fun, just watching people become instructors and enjoying the sport as well as teaching a student the basics and then having them come back to expand their career is truly fulfilling”
When was Sail and Power SA founded?
Pete: “It was started in 2012, I was training in schools in the UK and I met Yolanda, my wife there, we were both doing Powerboat racing, she came from South Africa and I relocated here to be with her and it just started from there”
So it was a genuine love story, where you couldn’t be without her?
Pete: “I would say so, yes”
(At this point, we are loving this story!)
Would you recommend doing the SRC VHF Radio course from the start as you would eventually need to do the course as you progress anyway?
Pete: “Absolutely, not just for regulations but also it teaches you how to summon help correctly when you are in an emergency situation as often people think that they can just call for help using their cell phones but most of the time they do not have signal out on the boat so it is very important to understand the procedure and how to use the radio effectively”
You stated recently that you would have liked to go to Antarctica a long time ago. If you were given the opportunity, would you still go or do you find it fulfilling being here and passing on your knowledge to the students?
Pete: “Maybe if I was a singleton but now I would have to say travelling and sailing around the world with my family would be a more rewarding experience for me”
You spent 4 months in Chile on Powerboats, would you say it was one of the most rewarding experiences you have had?
Pete: “Powerboating in Chile for 4 months under the stars with amazing people in an amazing country has to rank as one of my best adventures”
Interview By Natalie Fowle
Marketing Manager at Sail and Power/Skipper Training SA
