We chat to Paul Woodward at the Moody Owners Association, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary.
AAS: Congratulations on your 40th anniversary; can you tell us how the Moody Owners Association first came about?
PW: In the spring of 1985, a small group of half a dozen Moody yacht owners got together in Swanwick with the idea of sailing together and sharing their experiences. The boats, in production since the early 1970s, were getting very popular then and by year end we had 185 members across the UK as well as in Germany, the Mediterranean and USA.
AAS: The Association has around 2,000 members worldwide. Are all the international branches separate or do they work together?
PW: We operate as a single organisation worldwide. In the UK, our branches are often social with on and off water events. That is a bit harder for our larger international regions but there are annual get-togethers in the Med as well as the France Atlantique et Manche region. A little over one-third of MOA members’ yachts are now located outside the UK.
AAS: What are the benefits of Moody Owners Association membership?
PW: We have actually just been surveying our members to find out what they value most so that we can plan properly for the next 40 years. Different people, of course, appreciate different things. Some love the social side of the branch activities, others our magazine Compass and some the discounts from suppliers and marinas. But, the advice and expertise available in the online forums on our website are probably the thing that members value the most. You can get great and reliable technical advice which is particularly important as older boats change hands and new owners are trying to work out what goes where.
AAS: Are there any more centenary events coming up this year?
PW: As well as our 40th anniversary AGM which took place at the end of March in Portsmouth, a number of our branches are planning special activities to celebrate the ‘birthday’ on the water and off. We are also working to attract the younger sailors who are finding some of the older Moody yachts a great way to start sailing with their own boat.
AAS: What do you love about Moody yachts and which model do you own?
PW: My boat, Cabo Espartel, is a 2002 built Moody 42 and she is currently in Venice. I am the third owner and she has spent all of her life in the Med. They are lovely boats, strong and fun to sail and a comfortable place to spend time onboard. I think most Moody owners will agree that, if conditions deteriorate, their nerve is likely to fail long before the boat starts to complain. The fact that a Moody 28 was the smallest yacht to complete last year’s Round the Island Race in pretty extreme conditions is real testimony to what well-built and tough boats they are.
AAS: The Moody Owners Association is 40-years-old, but when were Moody boats first built and do you know which is the oldest one in the Association?
PW: Although the Moody family boatyard on the Hamble dated back to the early 19th century, production yachts were first built in collaboration with Marine Projects in Plymouth (now Princess Yachts) in 1972. We have been tracking the oldest boats being sailed by our members and it seems that two of them pre-date that and were produced in 1970.
AAS: Do you have a favourite sailing destination?
PW: I have been really fortunate to sail in many places around the world. The Ang Thong National Park in Thailand, just west of Koh Samui, takes some beating.
AAS: If you could have dinner with any two people, dead or alive, who would you choose and why?
PW: Amelia Earhart, to find out just what did happen, and Francis Chichester whose voyages inspired so many of us growing up in the ‘60s to start sailing.
Further info: moodyowners.org
