Gerry is an All Australian
Marine Training Provider.
Gerry's speciality is sail and motor sailer training.
Gerald "Gerry" Fitzgerald has a life long interest in sailing, commencing in off the beach catamarans in the 1960’s. He campaigned the Olympic class tornado catamaran in the1970’s for a decade, quite unsuccessfully, before moving into larger offshore mulithulls in the early 1980’s sailing and sponsoring well known trimarans such as "Assassin" (Syd Luxford) and "Yumi Maru" (Phil Smith) he then moved into offshore monohull racing, competing in his first Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race in 1984 in "Overdraft" (Dayle Smith).
So began a decade of offshore yacht racing, competing in every offshore racing event many times in a variety of yachts.
Long distance sailing during the 1990’s included transpacific crossings, trans-Tasman as well as Pacific Rim races to Ambon, Indonesia, Noumea, New Caledonia, Ghizo in the Solomon Islands and Port Moresby in PNG, with a summer in the Mediterranean thrown in (1990). The decade finished with a round trip to Antarctica from Hobart, Tasmania as relief skipper on Don and Margie Mc Intyres’ expedition vessel "Spirit of Sydney"(1998).
During this decade commercial maritime qualifications were obtained and so began a "sea change" in personal outlook and career.
Square rigged ships held the romance of a bygone era and led to command of the brigantine STV "Windeward Bound" (2000) as well as first officer roles on "Svanen" and experience on "James Craig" and "Batavia" and the replica "Endeavour".
A deep southern ocean crossing from Lakes Entrance, Victoria, to Ushuaia via Cape Horn as master on Roger Wallis "Spirit of Sydney" during the spring of 2002 rekindled his association with this grand expedition vessel, which continues to this day.
Commercial sea time on cargo vessels in the South Pacific led to command of the Australian Federal Police vessel MV "Jackpot" and the military resupply vessel "Tina 1" during the regional assistance mission to the Solomon Islands 2003-4.
Command of general cargo and trading vessels in the south west pacific added to his commercial trading experience
Gerry spends about 130 days a year at sea in a variety of sail and power driven vessels, both commercial and recreational, and regularly competes in offshore yacht races.
He is a life member of the Cairns Yacht Club.
He has been a member of the Multihull Yacht Club of Queensland since 1982.
He is a Maritime Safety Queensland Accredited Recreational Marine Training Provider for All Australian Boating.
