ATHENA
CREW PROFILE
Simon Hutchins – Captain, Canada/United States
Born in London England shortly after the European Renascence, Simon's family emigrated to Canada when he was 6 years
old, during the industrial revolution.
After working in his Mothers Photography Studio in Toronto for a few years doing portraits, weddings and custom framing, he
decided that he needed some adventure and so joined the Royal Canadian Air Force where he spent 7 years as an avionics
technician.
Being posted to Vancouver Island and working with 442 Search and Rescue Squadron, he started sailing and diving. Upon
retiring from the RCAF, he set off on an epic world voyage in his 29 ft sloop, only making it 750 miles to San Fransisco before
being recruited to work on superyachts, where his electronics skills were put to use on the new era of PLC driven yachts. (He
has since completed his epic circumnavigation on boats slightly larger than 29 feet).
Now, over 20 years later, Simon has been able to combine all his Photography, Diving, Electronics and Sailing skills, serving
as Electrical Technical Officer, Director of Expeditions and Captain on board the mighty Athena since she was first dreamt
of and worked during her construction on the computer systems, dive systems and deck logistics.
Simon has been with the programme since 1996 and has also served as Captain on the owners other yachts.
Thomas Aveling – Chief Officer, New Zealand, 34
Tom grew up wrestling bulls and tackling sheep on his parent’s farm in Hawkes Bay, New Zealand. Those were the glory
days where life revolved around fishing, hunting, rugby, surfing and performing in the local Kapa Haka group. He then
discovered his artistic side and decided to move to Wellington, where he started a degree in Architecture. Five Years later,
he ended up with an Industrial Design Degree, ready to take on the world. After reading a guide book for England that either
had the wrong title or was written in a foreign language he didn’t understand, he stupidly spent all of his hard earned cash
on a one way ticket to London. Three months later, drenched from constant rain, malnourished from eating from the local
takeaways and poor from spending all of his money on transport, he decided he would rather hang out on the French Riviera.
There he found a job on a 3 masted Schooner called Aquarius and lived happily ever after.
Michael Sheridan – Chief Officer, Ireland/United States, 32
Michael Sheridan is semi-fluent in advanced English, he is also an experienced walker, having been doing it for as long as
he can remember. In the fall of 1998 he completed two full weeks of walking without falling too much at all. In 2008 he
made a career change from financial advisor to Sailor and here he is now, working in the most beautiful office in the world.
He hopes one day to move to Hong Kong and open a small VCR and dagger repair shop.
Roxanne Macdougall – Second Officer, South Africa, 24
Roxanne Macdougall's story begins in Cape Town, South Africa. She is an ambitious 24 year old in an unruly industry. She
can vote, drive and is the Second Officer onboard the mighty Athena. In November 2011 she embarked on a journey by
means of the sea and has found that a 90 meter, three masted schooner can barely hold her drive to overcome her male
counterparts.
Roxy's passions include, but are not limited to, exploring the depths of the sea, learning about the many cultures she encounters
on her travels and Ice skating in the cold climates many miles from her home.
Rory Weafer – Bosun, Ireland, 27
Rory Thomas Weafer was born in Dublin, Ireland. His father played football for Shamrock Rovers and ran a health-food
shop. After unsuccessfully auditioning for all-boy group Westlife when in college, Rory's focus shifted instead towards a life at
sea. He is currently bosun onboard Athena, although he can still be heard belting out a ballad from time to time on deck.
Joshua Mangakahia – Lead Deckhand, Cook Islands, 24
Josh was found in a basket in the deep jungle of Muri, Rarotonga. The Athena crew discovered the young lad and promptly
took him under their wing on board the vessel. He was raised amongst the other seamen and soon became well acquainted
with Yacht life. He began sailing at the age of 10 and has competed in various classes at a national level. Josh is also an
avid kite surfer, wake-boarder and windsurfer. Three years later and Josh has risen to a senior role of “lead deckhand” on S.Y
Athena and now returns to his homelands often as an inspiration to the jungle folk.
William Davidson – Deckhand, United Kingdom, 25
Will is an avid sailor from London and loves every aspect of working on board Athena. He has been a member of the deck
crew since the end of 2013 and has travelled with the boat from Barcelona, Spain all the way to Alaska via the Caribbean
and California and back to the Mediterranean, particularly enjoying the time spent in San Francisco watching the Americas
Cup. He will be the one that none of the uniform fits.
Daniel Sheridan – Deckhand, United States, 25
For a moment imagine a person, 25 years young, who, when faced with the day to day challenges that could make the
average man crumble, takes these adversities in his stride, somehow making light of any difficult situation. Danny has expertise
in carpentry and fine woodwork, which has also led to an extensive knowledge in power-tools. Along with his positive vibe
and hilarious skewed perspective on ‘our world’, it’s no wonder that Danny is a crucial piece to the Athena puzzle, contributing
more than his share to the working day amongst a close knit family of employees.
Alexander Carey – Deckhand, New Zealand, 26
Alex Carey is an enthusiastic deckhand jumpstarting his yachting career onboard Athena. He is a dynamic figure, often seen
hauling lines and scaling masts. He is an expert in gastronomy, a veteran in love and a citizen in New Zealand.
He occupies himself with his eye for practiced photography, his ear for live music, body for calisthenics and heart for
travel. Prior to an evening’s event, the crew will often take time to swoon over his vast line of original eveningwear.
Rhys Cochrane – Deckhand, New Zealand, 22
Rhys comes from a small town on the east coast of New Zealand’s North Island. He has a vast water sports background and
is a fully qualified dive master. At the sprightly age of 22, he is the youngest, yet wisest, member of the Athena crew. Rhys
joined Athena in May 2014.
Thomas Broadhead (Oscar-Tom) – Deckhand, United Kingdom, 24
Tom, known onboard as Oscar or Oscar-Tom (a crude, ironic joke at a failed acting career) is the most junior crew member
Athena has ever had. Since learning to sail on a small pond in northern England, he has broadened his horizons. Tom recently
finished his degree at Edinburgh University and insists that it will one day be of some use. He enjoys 20th century dystopian
literature and the many breads of the world.
Alan Goldman – Chief Engineer, United Kingdom
Alan grew up outside Birmingham UK and to avoid coal mines and the car industry he joined the Royal Navy – the recruiting
poster said “Join the Navy and see the World”, however Glasgow and submarines were not quite what he had in mind.
Leaving the Navy after 8 years for a short spell on cruise ships, he boarded his first yacht in 1989. He joined Athena whilst it
was under construction in 2002.
Married with two children, Alan lives in Palma in Spain where his attempts to speak Spanish are ridiculed by his children. He
dislikes organic objects mistreating inorganic equipment. Machines need love too.
Eun Dunbar – Chief Engineer, United Kingdom, 34
The role of Chief Engineer is no better suited by none-other than Eun Dunbar. At a young age gasoline flowed through his
veins where his appreciation for engines flourished back home in the United Kingdom.
Now onboard, he dodges, weaves and clambers through the many bilges and systems to keep the mighty Athena sailing
forward at her unflagging speeds. Away from his wife Hayley and daughter Emeli, he spreads his jolly demeanor amongst
his beloved colleagues.
Paul Foster – Second Engineer, United Kingdom, 34
Paul is 34 years old and hails from a little known island called Britain. When he left school he served an apprenticeship as a
machinist but got bored very quickly and left to go away to sea. He initially worked on big boats for the British government
where he gained all his seagoing qualifications and experience and found his drinking legs. Paul likes to spend his spare time
in the kitchen and also walking, mountain biking and playing guitar. Paul is in his 4th year of working on Athena and still finds
new things he didn’t know about the yacht regularly.
Christopher ‘Cliff’ Lewis - Second Engineer, United Kingdom, 35
Chris has always been an energetic and somewhat theatrical person. He spent his younger days doing Ballet in a small
mining community in the North East of England where he grew up with many people citing him as the inspiration for the movie
Billy Elliot; a claim Chris bashfully denies. Chris takes his nickname “Cliff” from two places; one is Cliff Richard, his favourite
artist and the other is Heathcliff the musical, which he has seen so many times he sings it in his sleep. When he became too
big to be graceful at his beloved ballet he decided to take up amateur musical productions to keep his interest in all things
theatrical going. He regularly puts on productions with a bunch of like-minded friends in the local village hall and has received
warm reviews for some of his more recent productions such as a stage version of the Disney movie Frozen. Chris can often
be heard whistling and singing the tunes from his favourite musicals as he walks around the boat, a particularly hearty rendition
of “Let it Go” is always a favourite amongst his fellow crew (a few of them even join in). Never one to be shy, Chris is a truly
excellent engineer and will always perform as if Athena is his stage.
Simon Steel – ETO, United Kingdom, 49
(Formerly know as Data, has been called Basil and various other terms not mentionable here). Simon grew up north of London,
he left school and worked at the local McDonalds, eventually graduating from Hamburger University with a certificate four
years later. He later graduated with a diploma in electronics and communications engineering, which, along with radar and
Morse knowledge, took him to sea as a Radio Officer. He worked around 11 years in the merchant navy and then took up
an ETO role on Talitha G in 2002, followed a couple of years later by the similar role on SY Athena. Simon left in 2007 to
settle down a bit and in 2008 he gained an ex-girlfriend and a lovely son, now 6 years old, both of whom live in Auckland.
He worked at Bournemouth Airport as an air traffic engineer before returning to Athena in 2011.
Simon enjoys cycling, skiing, diving, flying and many activities that end in "ing". He can count up to one hundred by himself
and when he grows up he wants to be an astronaut.
Emma Crawshay – Purser, New Zealand, 26
Emma grew up in Auckland, New Zealand where she spent much of her childhood on and in the water, sailing, diving, fishing
and water skiing.
In 2007 Emma decided to embrace her inner geek and studied Computer Science at University. She joined the yachting
industry at the age of 21 and enjoys the fast paced lifestyle that it involves.
Emma has been on Athena since July 2011. She likes yoga, swimming and sunshine.
Derek Allomes – Head Chef, New Zealand, 39
The foundations of Derek’s cookery are etched in French and European cuisine with a distinctly New Zealand feel to his
modern style and composition. Through the course of his career, he has fostered a strong respect for the natural beauty in
flavours and textures of the ingredients and products that are seasonally and locally available. He emphasizes this in his
preparation, believing that quality ingredients speak for themselves when prepared without unnecessary complicated flavours.
As New Zealand is a melting pot of South East Asian cultures, he has knowledge of the fundamentals of these cuisines too
and where appropriate uses them to enhance the dining variety. Derek believes that every meal is as important as the last, be
it a healthy balanced lunch, the finest of gastronomic feasts and all those in-between.
Jordan Hrycyshyn – Sous Chef, Canada, 25
Jordan was born and raised in Ontario Canada. He left home when he was 17 years old to study and travel. He has since
earned a degree in economics and has worked in many 5 star resorts and restaurants across Canada. He has been to 11
Asian countries and is truly inspired by the freshness and creativity in their diets. He has a great passion for everything culinary
and is excited to learn and grow as a chef in the yachting industry. In his free time, Jordan likes to live an active lifestyle in the
mountains or around water.
He loves hiking, running and playing any sport that involves a ball. He is fascinated by travelling and being in unfamiliar
territory. He loves to explore areas off the beaten path and eating his way through local restaurants and vendors.
Brittany Fuller – Chief Stewardess, Canada, 30
Brittany was born and grew up in a coastal community on Vancouver Island in Canada where her family owned a small boat.
She has always enjoyed being on the water and in 2008 decided to expand on her hospitality skills in the yachting
industry. Brittany has gained her experience mostly on yachts above 50 meters such as M/Y Man of Steel, S/Y Mirabella V
and M/Y Baraka. She likes travelling and prior to joining yachting, she visited Australia, South Pacific, USA and Mexico. She
is interested in interior design, fitness and nutrition and she loves cooking, swimming, yoga and reading. She has been on
board Athena since May 2014 and has a positive ‘can do’ attitude. Her goal is to give guests the perfect experience!
Jackie Moran – Stewardess, United States, 32
Jackie was born and raised in Philadelphia, United States. She attended Temple University and graduated with a bachelor’s
degree in Tourism and Hospitality Management. After completing university, Jackie decided she wanted to work and travel
internationally. She has embraced the unpredictability of the yachting industry where the environment is culturally diverse and
exciting. She enjoys the many new activities and the water sports the industry has allowed her to participate in and she is a
huge fan of Athena’s waterslide.
Emily Bowman – Stewardess, United Kingdom, 26
Emily was born in the seaside town of Bournemouth, UK. She originally trained as a beauty therapist and spent 8 years of her
life working in Salons. Her desire to travel led her to a life on yachts and she has not looked back since. One of her hobbies
is scuba diving and this has led her to places like Thailand and Indonesia.
Laura Havill – Stewardess, New Zealand, 27
Laura grew up in Auckland, New Zealand. After completing her studies she moved to Melbourne, Australia to pursue a career
in photography and make-up artistry. She then moved to London to expand her career and travel. Laura’s love of travel led
her to the yachting industry. She has been onboard Athena since February 2014
NOTE: Some crew work on rotation