Mark Orams, one of few people to have winner's medals from both the Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race and the America's Cup will be speaking at a function being held at the Algoa Bay Yacht Club on Wednesday 24th June from 20h00 to 22h30. He sailed with Sire Peter Blake on Steinlager 2 and was the inaugural Executive Director of the Sir Peter Blake Trust from 2004 to 2007.

Mark is the Associate Director of the Coastal and Marine Tourism Research Institute, located within the New Zealand Tourism Research Institute at Auckland University of Technology is going to speak at ABYC. He has plenty of good light hearted sailing stories and is an excellent and entertaining public speaker.

Mark spent a year at St Andrews College in Grahamstown where he fondly remembers being a part of the winning team on the Swartkops River (sailing out of Redhouse) at the 1981 Eastern Cape Schools Sailing Championship. On the same team was Brett Clark from PE. Subsequently both Brett and his father gained Springbok colours in sailing.

He is in Port Elizabeth taking part in the 6th International Coastal & Marine Tourism Congress (CMT 2009) - a small congress of specialists which has its foundation in Honolulu, Hawaii way back in 1990. CMT 2009 is being held at the Feathermarket Centre, Port Elizabeth from 23 to 26 June. The congress hosts researchers, educators, postgraduate students, and practitioners from government and industry involved in the broad field of tourism related to the marine environment.

Of particular relevance to Port Elizabeth and it's citizens, the theme of the congress is; 'The Spirit of Ubuntu, Connecting Continents, Places and People".

The talk by Mark is open to ABYC members and conference delegates only.

If you are going to attend please let Dee know by Friday the 19th of June 2009 as limited seats are available.