Famous sailing legend Bertie Reed was born on January 19, 1943 in Port Elizabeth.
He was the first South African, and one of only a few yachtsmen in the world, to complete three single-handed circumnavigations of the globe.
His toughness in adverse conditions at sea earned him the nickname ‘Biltong’.
He will be remembered for his heroic rescue of fellow South African yachtsman John Martin during the 1990/91 BOC Challenge when Martin’s yacht sank after hitting a submerged iceberg in the Southern Ocean.
For this Reed was awarded the Wolraad Woltemade Decoration – South Africa’s highest civilian award for bravery at that time.
He also received a presidential citation and was listed in the Civic Honours Book of the City of Cape Town.
Reed started sailing when he joined the South African Navy in 1961.
He achieved world fame in the inaugural BOC Challenge single-handed race around the world in 1982/83 when he finished second and first on handicap in his 14-year-old yacht that was, at the time, considered old and obsolete.
In his lifetime he sailed about 170,000 nautical miles competitively, of which over 100 000 nautical miles were done solo.
Bertie Reed died on December 18, 2006.
