Kay Cottee 56

by Media Release on 22 Apr 2002 Sailaus is launching worldwide Kay Cottee's first new fast ocean
cruising yacht - the Kay Cottee 56 at the Sanctuary Cove Boat
Show on May 31 - June 2.

Kay Cottee is one of Australia's most renowned sailors - she was
the first woman to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around the
world. The Kay Cottee 56 is the result of two years' intensive
development at Sailaus factory at Yamba.

The Kay Cottee 56 is the result of Kay's lifetime spent in and around yachts. The layout and shape are Kay's own designs, she personally worked alongside the shipwrights with daily input into the construction.

Leading yacht designer Scot Jutson provided the marine architecture to ensure
optiumum performance.

The yacht features lifting keel, twin rudders, three staterooms with ensuites, a fully appointed-galley with corian bench tops, a separate casual dining area, spacious saloon, air-conditioning and the latest electronics.

Interior features include a washing machine/dryer, dishwasher, alcantra fabrics.

The yacht has viewing ports below the water line in the two aft cabins for watching marine life.

Kay Cottee's voyage from November 1987 to June 1988 aboard the 37ft Cavalier Blackmores First Lady took 189 days and covered 22,000 nautical miles.

Kay rounded the five great capes in the southern hemisphere and sailed north of the equator to round St Peter and St Paul Rocks in the Atlantic to complete a long circumnavigation.

Aged 34 years at that time, Kay survived 25m seas, winds of more than 80 knots, icebergs, rogue shipping containers, being washed overboard and nearby being run down by a ship off the Cape of Good Hope. In the Southern Ocean, her yacht suffered a broken boom and throughout the voyage, she got less than one hour's sleep at a time.

She was named Australian of the Year and made an Officer of the Order of Australia.

As a result of her voyage, Kay raised more than $A1 million for drug education charity Life Education.

Her book First Lady became the highest selling non-fiction title in Australian publishing history and a television documentary of the same name, won the German Sports Film Festival.

Since returning to Australia, Kay has been Chairman of the Australian National Maritime in Sydney for six years. Kay plans to build three yachts every two years.

Website: www.kaycottee.com