Julian Van Aalst
It was a sad day for me when Dene and Andrea retired and I guess also for Paul, Shirley and Jonathan
Like Paul and Shirley (and Don of course) we treasured the privilege of not just being members of a unique club in one of the World’s best Harbours, but we also had imbued a strong work ethic and commitment towards the upkeep and maintenance of the Club.
Dene was always the master of the ribs and radios, Andrea (they were each other’s alter ego) never had to be asked to contribute. She just did.
In addition to Dene’s obvious talent with all things mechanical, he also undertook the task of overseeing the trophies -- old and new.
He was so obsessed with making sure everything was shipshape, he had a sign made which was installed in the men’s change room toilet above the toilet roll holder, providing clear written and diagrammatical instructions on the proper way to mount toilet rolls on the holder!!!
Now that I think of it, I have never seen Andrea sailing or on any boat, but she was there with Dene during every sailing season, helping out.
One event which stands out for me was the World Laser Master Regatta in Roses, Spain (about mid-way between Barcelona and the French border).
Dene and Andrea were there along with a reasonably large number of members from DBSC. We all stayed in the same hotel. On one lay day, all of us from DBSC got a ferry to somewhere I cannot recall. We were chatting together and we walked along the foreshore of a small bay when it came to lunchtime. We saw a small, interesting café which was closed, but with somebody inside. Mark B, with encouragement from all of us, and especially from Dene and Andrea, knocked on the door. With his not inconsiderable charm, Mark persuaded whoever, to open the café for us Aussies from DBSC. As a result we were provided with a wonderful lunch sitting outside where we spent an easy afternoon testing Spanish vino.
On the way back to the ferry we walked past Salvador Dali’s house, which had an old broken dinghy opposite the front door with a large tree standing gracefully standing inside the dinghy. The trip back on the ferry was also memorable, with the crew providing the passengers with wonderful Spanish Sherry and nibbles included in the fare.
We will miss them.