Frank Walsh – new Life Member | Middle Harbour Amateur Sailing Club

MHASC Commodore Frank Walsh was appointed a Life Member at the Club’s presentation night on Saturday 13 May 2015.

Life Membership is a rare offering at MHASC, the only other current Life Members being Penny Marshall, Michael Blackburn and Glenn Bourke.

The notes below are extracted from a short speech on the night by Rob Lowndes giving some background to Frank’s untiring work for the Club  and for Laser sailing in general.

“Frank bought his first Laser in 1974, just a year after they were introduced to Australia by Rob Mundle.  He initially sailed at Balmoral SC and joined Middle Harbour in 1978.

Frank sailed in the first ever NSW/ACT District Championships which were held at Toronto in January 1975.  He was keen to set a record by sailing in every state championship since then, except he missed out in 1988 when the organiser changed the dates on him a few months before the event.  Now I was that organiser and I don’t think Frank has forgiven me since!

Of course the peak of Frank’s sailing career was Race 2 on Day 3 of the Masters Nationals at Paynesville in February last year. And I f you don’t know what happened just ask the person sitting next to you!

I only really got to know Frank when I joined MH in the mid 1990’s.  Frank is of course an architect but he is the most practical architect you will ever meet.  Not only can he personally do just about any task needed to maintain and develop our clubhouse, but he also knows how to do it on the smell of an oily boat cover.

Nothing is ever too difficult and, as David Flakelar said after the recent damage “thank goodness I was not Commodore at the time and it is in Frank’s hands”.

Frank, we all owe you so much.  You were Commodore way back in 1982 and you ran our District Laser Assocn a few years before that.  The District made you a life member many years ago – so it has taken us a while to catch up!

You have had a hand in every bit of work done on the club since you joined all those years ago and we have been the better for it.  We have also appreciated you good leadership as Commodore for the last three seasons.

So it with great pleasure that I ask our members to stand and congratulate you on being appointed a Life Member of MHASC.”