ROY FINLAY

THE PIONEER OF MULTIHULL OCEAN ROWING, RESPONSIBLE IN WHOLE OR IN PART FOR EVERY MULTIHULL TO HAVE BEEN ROWED ACROSS THE ATLANTIC.

Including the first trimaran and first catamaran.

A total of 23 World Records can be attributed to Roy as a result of his own ocean rowing experience, or indirectly as having been awarded to Skippers and crews of the boats he conceived, designed and built, the most successful being the trimaran.

Roy also introduced what’s now become known as “pay per place” ocean rowing in 1997 in order to reduce the individuals cost of entering an Atlantic rowing race, a method which has since been adopted by numerous independent record breaking boats.
Currently the cost of crossing in a organised fleet remains high at 20000 race entry fee per boat plus 1000 per crew member and separate from purchasing and equipping a boat.

MARITIME EXPERIENCE

ROYAL NAVY 1979-1984

Served aboard HMS Thornton, Guernsey and minehunter Brinton as a diver in the mine countermeasures Scottish squadron based in Rosyth near Edinburgh.
 
ADDITIONAL NAVAL TRAINING.
Qualified air crew, fire fighting courses HMS Pheonix , numerous first aid courses, radar and sonar operations, coxswain of fast rigid inflatables (seariders) as part of North sea fishery protection squadron.
6 months with Captains weapons trials in association with the  R.A.F involved in the testing and rating of safety equipment (marine and aviation) 
Character reference on discharge “exemplary”.
 
SEA FISHERIES BOARD AND DEPARTMENT OF MARINE RESOURCES 2002
BIM certificate of proficiency in personal survival techniques on board ship including responsibility of life raft deployment and crew entry planning and supervision, fire prevention, and general safety awareness (certificate number PST 3342).
BIM certificate of proficiency in medical first aid on board ship (cert number EFA 0414).
 
In addition to naval diving qualifications, PADI open water diver.
VHF Marine operators license No Y750001
RYA International certificate of competence No 311317
 
GENERAL MARINE EXPERIENCE
Introduced to the sea aged three aboard “Parella” aged three as a family member of The Royal Sottish Motor Yacht Club.
Aged twelve became a member of The Royal Gourock Yacht Club gaining the helmsman certificate, skippering the clubs Piper yachts, racing and instructing younger cadets.
 
 
FIRST ATLANTIC CROSSING 
Aged 26 – 27th Birthday mid Atlantic
 1985 E-W from La Gomera (Canaries) to St Lucia (Caribbean) as a crew member of three, aboard Abherlain a 27 foot wooden gaff ketch built it Tarbert Scotland 1930.
 
Skipper of various charter yachts, cruising the Caribbean based in Saint Martin.
Numerous deliveries to other Caribbean islands and to Florida.
 
SECOND ATLANTIC CROSSING W-E
 Delivery Skipper of 45 foot steel sloop “Ganesh” from Saint Martin to Gran Canaria via the Azores.
During the same season, part crossing, delivery of French sloop from Azores to Gibraltar.
 
FLOTILLA SKIPPER (former Yugoslavia)
Based in Split Croatia, (every two weeks) responsible for the instruction and safety of typically 40 people aboard 12 yachts, engineer and hostess of the lead boat and maintenance of all 13 boats.
 
FIRST MATE 
Baltic Trader based in Cape Town South Africa cruising the South coast and Indian ocean, whilst in South Africa during the “off season” employed as a commercial diver with Oceaneering Durban S.A. and as an independant diamond diver Port Nolloth.
 
CHARITABLE EXPEDITIONS.
1997 In an effort to raise one years funding for a friends orphanage in Romania, rowed for five weeks solo across Scotland from Crinan in open water to Fort William then through the sea lochs which form the Caledonian canal to Inverness.
In the same summer of 1997 to make up a shortfall of funds, kayaked for a further five weeks around “The Top” of Scotland with a friend James Marshall.
Despite intensive research, there is no record of a kayak expedition around the top of Scotland prior to our own…..maybe it was a first, we will probably never know.
All subsequent expeditions have had various charities attached.
Raising approximately £38,000.

OCEAN ROWING

THE RACE FOR THE WORLD RECORD.
Three boats left the Canaries in 2007 in an attempt to break the World Record of 35 days set by La Mondiale in 1992.
Each Skipper was free to decide on design, amount of crew, which made the race interesting. La Mondiale which was the longest monohull in her day. Orca the first trimaran, and Oyster Shack a carbon monohull.
Leven Brown Skipper of La Mondiale and 14 crew ……33 days breaks the World Record and received a letter of congratulations from the Prime Minister of U.K.
Roy Finlay Skipper of Orca and 3 crew ……………………36 days World Record as a first, fastest four (tbc) and a letter of commendation from The New York State Senate.
Simon Chalk Skipper of Oyster Shack and 4 crew……..37 days First five.
Described by the Ocean Rowing Society as the most interesting race in modern day ocean rowing in terms of material, design, size of boat and amount of crew as they consider power to weight ratio.
As above.
Co/designer, builder, Skipper and rower of  27 ft ORCA 2007.
The first multihull (trimaran) to be rowed across any of the worlds oceans, missing the then Atlantic E-W speed record of 36 days by one day.
Boat and crew awarded Guinness world record as a first, commendation from The Ocean Rowing Society for services to ocean rowing.
Orca being registered in NY  U.S.A  and Roy as Skipper / resident of long Island N.Y received a letter of commendation from The New York State Senate.

It is worth noting the four main skippers of independant boats between approx 2000 and 2010 Leven Brown, Roy Finlay, Simon Chalk and Matt Craughwell.

Leven Brown lost La Mondiale as did Roy and Simon who subsequently lost later boats Orca 2 and Toby Wallace . Matt Craughwell lost Sara G. “The learning curve” of the early days.

Designed and built the second trimaran 40 ft Team Hallin, 2011.

Team Hallin and her crew of six broke the E-W speed record on her maiden voyage in 31 days …..two days faster than La Mondiale in our race of 2007…..sorry Leven

The superiority of the trimaran was established after only two crossings.

CORPORATE

Roy Nickel Finlay M.I.C.T