Finn Drummond turned up to Sailability Auckland expecting to put in a single day's volunteering. Ten years on, he's heading to Tahiti as a deckhand on a 120-foot sailing superyacht, carrying friendships, lessons, and memories he says will stay for life.
Drummond was 16 when his own sailing coach pointed him towards Sailability Auckland in 2016. He had no idea what to expect. "My first day I kind of got dropped in the deep end," he says. By the end of it, sailing coordinator Tim Dempsey had offered him a part-time role.
What followed was more than seven years of coaching across two stints, either side of a three-year break between 2019 and 2022. Those who know Sailability Auckland will tell you he became far more than a coach, earning a reputation as a problem-solver, boat fixer and all-round troubleshooter who could keep people on the water regardless of the challenge.
"It's a lot more than just coaching," Drummond says. "It's having a laugh, learning how to communicate through so many different avenues, being the all-round boat fix-it guy, doing electrical work and continuously making bodge-it fixes to keep people out on the water for the day. No two days were the same, and I loved the diversity within the role."
One standout moment came early. At just 17, Drummond was asked to coach the team at the 2018 Hansa World Championships in Japan. "When Tim called me to ask if I could be the team coach, I had to ask him if he'd called the right person," he laughs. "Going over there with such an epic team of Liberty sailors was probably one of my highlights working with Sailability Auckland."
Over the years he worked with sailors across Hansa 303s, SKUD 18s and Liberty boats, with abilities ranging widely. Some sailors controlled their boats manually, others used servo systems or remote controls. One sailor with cerebral palsy steered with her right foot; some quadriplegic sailors used chin controllers.
For Drummond, those moments got to the core of what adaptive sailing is about. "Getting them out of their wheelchairs and away from helpers or carers is so nice for their mental health and their freedom," he says.
He was also there through one of the harder periods for para sailing, following its removal from the Paralympic programme after Rio 2016. "Post Paralympics, a lot of sailors were gutted that the pinnacle of their sport was dropped," he says. "We saw quite a few sailors leave Sailability sadly during this time too."
There are reasons for optimism now, with sailing numbers at Auckland sitting at an all-time high. Drummond hopes the sport will be reinstated for the 2032 Games in Australia. "Hopefully it gets reinstated for 2032 in Australia, and we will have a whole bunch of good options on who to send."
Despite everything he gave the programme, Drummond is understated about his own contribution. "I don't think I have given that much to sailing," he says. "I just had the goal to get others out on the water."
He's left Sailability once before and found his way back, and he's not ruling anything out. "Sailability is like a massive extra family for me," he says. "I have left before and ended up back. Who knows what could happen in the future?"
For now, an offer he couldn't resist has landed him aboard a superyacht in Tahiti. For anyone considering getting into adaptive sailing, his message is straightforward: "Just jump straight into it. It is some of the most rewarding coaching you will do. You will meet some crazy cool and inspirational people along the way too."
