Digby Taylor

Digby Fergusson Taylor MBE (24 October 1941 – 18 April 2017) was a New Zealand sailor who skippered yachts in both the 1981–82 and 1985–86 Whitbread Round the World Races.

Taylor built and skippered the 51-foot sloop Outward Bound, designed by Laurie Davidson, which competed in the 1981–82 Whitbread Round the World Race.^[1][2] In that race, Outward Bound won the trophy for best small yacht, and finished fifth overall.^[3]

In 1982, Taylor sailed in the Whangarei to Nouméa yacht race, winning handicap honours.^[3]

Taylor was awarded the Blue Water Medal for outstanding seamanship by the Royal Akarana Yacht Club in 1982.^[4] In the 1983 New Year Honours, he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire, for services to ocean yacht racing.^[5]

For the 1985–86 Whitbread, Taylor built and skippered the 80-foot, Bruce Farr-designed, maxi yacht, NZI Enterprise (originally called Enterprise New Zealand). After finishing fourth and second on the first two legs, NZI Enterprise lost her mast 380 nautical miles south-east of the Chatham Islands, and had to withdraw from the race.^[1] Taylor later skippered the renamed Castaway Enterprise in the 1986 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race.^[6]

Taylor skippered the 52-foot Castaway Fiji in the inaugural two-handed Melbourne to Osaka yacht race in 1987, with crewman Colin Akhurst. Taylor and Akhurst were both thrown overboard when their yacht hit a submerged object, lost her keel and overturned. Akhurst drowned, but Taylor was rescued 18 hours later, 750 nautical miles north-east of Sydney.^[7][8]

Taylor died in Rotorua on 18 April 2017.^[9]