Beau Geste

Owner / Skipper: Karl C. Kwok

Karl has been racing cruisers since 1975. The current BEAU GESTE is his 11th boat under the same name. He is the only Chinese skipper to date to have won the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race (1977) on handicap. He is also the current holder of China Sea Race course record (under 48 hours in 2000) and Macau to Sanya, Hainan Race course record (under 24 hours in 1999). He has raced extensively in Asia, North America, The Caribbean, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Among his many victories, he has come first in class in the Block Island Race Week (Rhode Island, 1994), NYYC Sesquicentennial Regatta (Newport, 1994), the Big Boat Series (San Francisco, 1996), Squadron Cup (Auckland, 1998), King's Cup Race (Phuket, 2000), the Transpacific Yacht Race (Honolulu, 2003), Line 7 North Island Race (Auckland, 2004), Puerto Vallarta Race (Mexico, 2005), Sydney to Southport Race (Queensland, 2007), Skandia Dockland Invitational (Melbourne. 2008), and Geelong Race (Victoria, 2008).

The current BEAU GESTE has won Line Honours in class in the 2009 Rolex Fastnet Race, Line Honours and course record for the 2009 Transatlantic Maxi Yacht Cup, Line Honours, 1st in Class and 1st Overall in the RORC Caribbean 600 (2010), Line Honours in Annapolis to Bermuda Race (2010), Line Honours in Port Huron to Mackinac Race (2010) and Line Honours and 1st in Class in Chicago to Mackinac Race and 1st on Corrected Time in the Combined Port Huron to Mackinac and Chicago to Mackinac Races.

Karl has been working closely since 1995 with Gavin Brady (an Olympian - Star Class / Sydney 2000 Games, veteran of 4 America's Cup Campaign and 2 Volvo Round the World Race). Gavin has helmed all the boats skippered and owned by Karl. In addition, Karl's team of professional sailors he assembles are all very reputable in the sport.

Karl is the President of Hong Kong Sailing Federation, and a Vice President of Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China. He is also a member of Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, Royal Ocean Racing Club and Transpacific Yacht Club.

Gavin Brady

Nationality: NZL
Date of birth: 01.11.1973
Place of birth: Timaru, New Zealand

Gavin Brady literally grew up on the sea. His father was a commercial fisherman and the family lived on a yacht, which would follow his father's trawler from port to port. Like many New Zealand kids, Gavin had a P-Class dinghy (a tiny 2m single-handed sailboat), but unlike most others he did most of his sailing offshore. "When we were moving the yacht along the coast, we would tow the P-Class. Often, I would go for a sail when we were 50 miles offshore." As a youngster he made headlines and earned a certificate from the Prime Minister by sailing his P-Class dinghy more than 30km across the notoriously stormy Cooke Strait, which separates New Zealand's North and South Islands. It is a feat that has never been repeated. His introduction to competitive sailing came when the family moved from Timaru in the South Island, to Auckland. In 1990, he joined the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron's Youth Programme, coached by Harold Bennett, now one of the America's Cup Race Officers. Brady competed in a number of international youth match racing regattas.

His big break came in 1992 during a stint in Hong Kong with sailmaker Neil Pryde. There, he met industrialist Karl Kwok, who backed Brady in his early match racing career, which was distinguished by winning the Congressional Cup on his first attempt in 1996 and defending it the following year. Under Kwok's racing banner, Brady has skippered a number of Beau Geste keelboats with success at major international regattas.

Brady made his America's Cup debut with Chris Dickson's 1995 Tag Heuer campaign where he served in the afterguard and as tactician in the Louis Vuitton Cup semi-finals.

Boat Statistics