For much of his life, Surf Beach yachtsman George Imashev has had two burning ambitions - to live in the Batemans Bay area and to sail in the Sydney to Hobart yacht race.
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A year ago, the former Canberra resident achieved the first of these objectives, and on December 26 he will achieve the second when he takes his part in the eight crew of the 44 foot yacht Namadgi for the running of the classic race.
Imashev is 58 but only got into sailing when in his early 40s.
“I had read a lot about it, and I decided I didn’t want to be an armchair sailor,” he said.
Imashev got his first taste of the Sydney to Hobart when he was in Hobart for the finish of the 1975 race.
“Seeing the boats slip up the Derwent in the middle of the night was amazing,” he said.
Imashev, a member of the Canberra Ocean Racing Club, bought his first yacht, the Halloween Australis, in Tasmania in 1997 and sailed it to Batemans Bay in 1998. It is currently berthed at Batemans Bay Marina, where is being refurbished.
“So I have covered Bass Strait once, but it is easier when you are not under race conditions,” he said.
Imashev’s first big race was the 2007 Sydney to Lord Howe Island race.
Winds of up to 65 knots provided nerves and excitement.
“The adrenaline run was good, and I’m glad I did it, because it gave me a taste of what to expect in the Sydney to Hobart,” he said.
Imashev will head up to Sydney today for a last week of training with the crew, before coming back to Surf Beach for Christmas and returning to Sydney on Christmas night.
While mindful of the dramas of past races, particularly the tragic 1998 event, Imashev and his crew are confident of getting to Hobart intact.
“It’s just a reminder that you have to treat the ocean with respect,” he said.
“Our crew are not going to be heroes. It will be hard work, but we will be there to enjoy ourselves.”
Imashev’s wife Margaret will greet him in Hobart at race end.
The son of a Russian immigrant, Imashev worked as the film and sound curator at the Australian War Memorial between 1983 and 2003.
Many trips to the coast over the years fuelled a desire to live in the Batemans Bay area.
“I hitchhiked here the first time I came here,” he said.
“I studied for my HSC in a tent at Broulee.”
For the record, Imashev passed with flying colours.