“Excellent tutoring on my own yacht after a period of inactivity, which helped me regain confidence. Trustworthy, helpful and professional. I can highly recommend Olly.”
-Anne Kjerrstrom | “Delcia”| May 2021
“Olly was tasked to bring Tintin (Ovni 435) back to seaworthiness after more than a year laid up ashore and I can honestly say it was a pleasure to deal with him and his colleagues throughout the process. Although lockdown meant things were difficult at the start of the process Olly was upbeat and proactive in dealing with anything that was thrown his way. Nothing was too much of a problem and there was always a plan clearly outlined and communicated as he worked through the process of getting Tintin back into the water. Olly's engaging manner and humour make him a joy to work with. In summary, I was very impressed with the way Olly handled everything and would highly recommend him to others considering using his services.”
-Garry | Ovni 435 “TinTIn” | October 2020
“Olly was amazing!! He was really flexible around timings for a weekend of tuition and tailored his teaching to what we really needed (lots of parking!!!). I had never been in a sailing boat before, though my husband had, and we had our 2 and 4 year old on the boat too, none of which phased Olly at all. He managed to teach me some basics without my husband getting bored, but also expanded theory and detail for my husband. An incredibly useful and fun weekend - we both learned loads. Olly is a font of practical tips and advice, and was really friendly and patient. I would definitely highly recommend!!”
-Becky | Beneteau First 32 “Freya of Dunstaffnage” | August 2020
Olly did a brilliant job during lock down of getting my new (to me) Contessa 32 ready for launch. Olly was very adaptable and managed to get loads done on her in a relatively short time. In difficult circumstances (we couldn’t meet as I couldn’t travel) his communication was excellent - working off a spreadsheet of jobs and sharing pictures of progress, potential hitches and pragmatic solutions via phone and WhatsApp, I wouldn’t hesitate to use his services again or to recommend him to others.
-Simon | Contessa 32 “Stargazer” | July 2020
“Olly, you’ve done a great job on fitting the clutches - the attention to detail, both above and below decks, really stands out.”
-Graham | Hallberg Rassey 34 “Bertha” | July 2020
“Just wanted to say how wonderful Olly was . We instructed him to deliver our yacht from Oban to Whitehaven . He did this in a timely manner and kept us updated at all times . On arrival at the marina he ensured she was cleaned , fuel filled and ready for us to take delivery . At all times during communication he was really helpful and always professional to the utmost ! I believe he went above and beyond his duty as even after delivery he was super helpful offering advice ! I would absolutely recommend Olly !”
- Rupert and Karen | Jeanneau 39i | June 2020
One of the things I love most about sailing is that there is always more to learn. For me, looking for new challenges is part of sailing. I had the good fortune to sail in the 2019 Arc on board the Swan 80 Umiko with Olly as my skipper. Whilst I have a reasonable amount of experience on more modest boats, stepping up to a Swan 80', I felt like I was stepping on board a boat for the first time. The danger is so much greater, the power is immense. That is the first thing you need to learn. From the outset Olly's emphasis was on safety. His experience as a training skipper was clear. He has obviously learned a thing or two whilst racing around the world with amateurs. We were systematically taken through all the manoeuvres we would be doing whilst racing. We made some mistakes, these were always used as an opportunity to learn.
We had all signed up to race, that is what we wanted to do and that is what we did. Once across the line the boat was run with military precision, as any yacht racing on the ocean should be. Olly's daily briefings were detailed and accurate, log keeping, daily checks, regular rig inspection, these were all mandatory. His weather routing and navigation speak for themselves. He took a team of 9 people that were, all but one of us, new to sailing a big boat, across the Atlantic in 13 days and 9 hours. Beating a sister Swan 80' sailed by her regular crew into the bargain.
When we were unfortunate enough to have a serious incident whilst still a long way from shore I was once again impressed by how Olly handled the situation. It seems to me he is able to carry an enormous weight of responsibility with ease.
I consider myself extremely lucky to have had my introduction to big boat sailing under the guidance of such an excellent skipper. I would jump at the chance to sail with him again. I would have no hesitation in encouraging anybody else to do the same.
- Brian Uniackel | RYA Yachtmaster Ocean | ARC 2019
Olly helped Mia & I get our new-to-us Swan 59 ICEBEAR commissioned in Antigua and registered in the UK. Olly actually got to see the boat before we did, jumping aboard in Falmouth while we were crossing the Atlantic on our other boat. He provided a comprehensive survey, testing all the systems for us ahead of our arrival. We run commercial charters and Olly was instrumental in helping us wade through the bureaucracy and MCA regulations to get the boat flagged in the UK and properly coded Cat 0 for the offshore and expedition trips we run. In short, Olly was timely and professional and continues to be our go-to resource for us in the UK.
“Ollie is a very reliable and valued captain of UMIKO. His boat and crew management is consistently to a professional and high standard and we always receive incredibly happy feedback from both racing and cruising charter guests. He is very organised and runs the boat by-the-book yet still maintains a fun and very positive atmosphere onboard.”
— Jasmine Kent | Shore Manager | Conquistador Sailing LTD
“Olly is one of the rare breeds of Skipper who can teach, maintain, race, inspire and motivate. He demonstrated all of these skills and more when he Skippered a 70 ft racing yacht around the world in the Clipper 2013-14 Race. Not only did he have a solid and well maintained yacht, one of the best in the entire fleet, he also created an united and happy team, whilst showing great tenacity and skill to lead them to an overall podium position. I have known Olly for many years both personally and professionally. He is a true gent and one of the Skippers that I respect the most – so much so that I trusted him with my own yacht across the North Atlantic – need I say more…”
"Having been trained by Olly, as well as racing, sailing and maintaining boats with him over the last 8 years I can honestly recommend him as the best skipper, instructor or engineer you could wish for and an absolute pro. What Olly doesn’t know about yachts and yachting isn’t worth knowing, and his judgement and expertise is second to none.
What really makes Olly stand out though is his warmth and sense of fun. Whether sailing across oceans, racing around the Med or running corporate days he manages to keep a smile on people’s faces whilst keeping people safe. I have trusted Olly with my life and I’d trust him with my boat."
— John Milsom | 13-14 Clipper Crew Member | Dragonfly Owner
“Olly has skippered our expedition yachts for many years. He is the ultimate professional, with a calm demeanour and good sense of humour which makes him an excellent instructor and immediately puts people at ease. He has always shown superb judgement and seamanship in the most challenging of conditions. He offers a top level of customer care, understands the needs of the individuals on board and we have always been impressed by the feedback he receives. We would highly recommend him to any sailors or boat owners looking for coaching, support or advice.
“Olly is one of the very few people that I trust with my yachts. He is professional and methodical in his work. He has helped me on various delivery trips in the past and more recently, he arranged for a road delivery of a 35’ classic for me from Oban to Dartmouth. Olly organised the whole thing from her mooring in Scotland, to lift onto road transport with rig down. On arrival in Dartmouth everything was neat and tidy, with every bit of rigging labelled. I would have no hesitation in dealing with Olly in the future and wish him well in his new marine venture”.
— Crispin Blyth | Tilly 3 Morgan | Giles Classic
Oliver is an exceptional skipper with huge experience and a superb way with customers. He is professional, calm and friendly and is one of our absolute 'go-to' skippers when he is available.
“Savvy Navvy is a one stop shop Navigation App making navigation smarter and safer. Olly from OCMarine is currently a consultant and ambassador for Savvy Navvy. He regularly provides nautical expertise ranging from cartography to boat handling. He has been working with the Savvy Navvy team since its inception and we regularly call on him for advice as we develop our product. We are very happy with the service OCMarine provides and would recommend them to potential clients. On a more personal note, I tried to beat Olly during the Clipper Round the World yacht race, but he proved to be too fast ;-)”