Skipper saved from strong wind

The crew of the Cat Knapp, skipper Chris Bone, Joetta Perrett, Aga Odzidmczyc, Radek Majewski, and Bara Gabzdylova are thanked by Brian Sweeney (second from right).

Renee Pilcher

A STORM that brought wild weather to the Cooloola Coast stranded Brian Sweeney's catamaran on Thursday night also brought in his rescuer.

Mr Sweeney, who regularly takes backpackers over to Fraser Island for a day of fun in the sun, was caught unawares in strong gale-force winds about 5.30pm.

The Tin Can Bay resident and experienced skipper of the NPFS has been sailing since he was 12 years old, and was not worried when the wind picked up, but the crew of the Cat Knapp said he looked to be in a spot of bother stuck on a sandbank near the Tin Can Bay inlet.

Mr Sweeney said the storm "blew out" his sails, and his rudder had been damaged the week before.

"It was bloody terrible," he said of the storm.

Skipper of the Cat Knapp and CEO of marine conservation group OceansWatch, Chris Bone, said he was making his way down from Cairns to Mooloolaba when he decided to seek shelter at Tin Can Bay.

He said after 5000 nautical miles his catamaran needed a break.

The OceansWatch crew has travelled to Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea on-board Cat Knapp before coming back to Australia.

Read more Original Post:- http://www.gympietimes.com.au/story/2011/12/03/skipper-saved-from-strong-wind-brian-sweeney/