Captain Mayon Hight
Qualifications
-100TON MASTERS NEAR COASTAL WITH SAILING ENDORSEMENT
-NAUI Dive Instructor
-CURRENT STCW & BRITISH RED CROSS CPR/FIRST AID TRAINING
-INTERMEDIATE SAUCIER GRADUATE FROM ASHBURTON COOKERY SCHOOL
-MECHANICAL ENGINEER GRADUATE WITH GOOD UNDERSTANDING OF HOW TO TROUBLESHOOTMECHANI- CAL AND ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS
-FCC MARINE RADIO OPERATORS PERMIT
-APCA DRUG CONSORTIUM -LICENSED PRIVATE PILOT
-PROFICIENT INSTRUCTOR OF MOST ACTION SPORTS INCLUDING SURF- ING, SCUBA, SUP, WINDSURFING, MOUNTAIN BIKING, PARAGLIDING, ETC.
Mayon was born in Maryland on the east coast of the USA with sailing blood passed down from his grandfather and mother. With access to a small sailboat as a kid he has many memorable “learning” experiences as a young adventurous water man in the making. He then went on to finish his childhood on the Big island of Hawaii where he truly fell in love with the ocean. After completing a bachelors degree in mechanical engineering he switched gears back to the ocean and sailed from Maryland down to the Caribbean where he started his career as a boat captain. With the sails up and underway, Mayon exudes the kind of contagious enthusiasm that will have everyone aboard excited. His calm, collected nature and willingness to share his thoughts, techniques, and plans, bring an inclusive and confident feel to the boat. You are sure to feel empowered to learn, explore, and relax while in the comfort of this kind, relaxed, true sailor.
First Mate Elizabeth Brok
Qualifications
-ASHBURTON COOKERY SCHOOL GRADUATE: DEVON, UK
-YOGA ALLIANCE CERTIFIED YOGA INSTRUCTOR (RYT 200)
- SPECIALIZING IN VINYASSA FLOW & SUP YOGA
-PADI OPENWATER DIVER -DANCE/FITNESS INSTRUCTOR
-7 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN THE EVENT & MEETING PLANNING INDUSTRY
-SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER -FOOD & SAFETY LEVEL 2
-CURRENT BRITISH RED CROSS CPR/FIRST AID TRAINING
-MASTER ORGANIZER -ENTERTAINER EXTRAORDINAIRE
From a young age, Elizabeth always new she was going to be a dancer. After years of hard work and dedication, she realized her dream at the age of seventeen and began dancing with the Radio City Rockettes. Over the next eight years, she kicked her way as a Rockette throughout the entirety of the US, and joined music video & television productions with the likes of Pitbull and Beyoncé. After her performing career, Elizabeth transitioned to the event planning industry, where she got to show off her natural knack for organizing and creativity. With the “mainland experience” out of her system, it was time she moved to the islands. First up -Maui! Here she worked on day charter boats where she met the love of her life, Captain Mayon. For the past three years, Elizabeth has been the chef, first mate, hostess, and ringmaster of fun for all ages. She receives rave reviews for her culinary delights, cocktails of the day & entertainment tours, all while ensuring Captain Mayon has a reliable deck hand to guarantee a safe passage. But don’t think that her strengths end there. Elizabeth exudes a tranquility to the guests that is based on her lifelong practice of yoga and meditation, allowing everyone the opportunity to absorb the soothing nature of the sea. You can’t go wrong with Elizabeth- from her attention to detail, to her carefully crafted cocktails, the sunsets will be all the sweeter knowing you are in her care.
Mayon and Elizabeth fell in love on the beaches of Maui, Hawaii as two young, adventurous, ocean lovers. Lucky enough for them both, their fist encounter was as unknown roommates who happened to move in under the same roof of a mutual friend. At first sight they knew that keeping the social norm of “don’t date your roommate” was out of the question!
Their kindred spirits attracted them together from the very first night they met, where an impromptu sunset sailing trip on Mayon’s Hobie 18’ took them well into the night. After their “love at first sight”, the duo went on countless more Maui adventures before moving aboard a Cosmos 49’ catamaran in Thailand. After sailing that boat to Sri Lanka they solidified their joint dream of running their own charter boat and started their career together as captain and hostess. Mayon and Elizabeth’s togetherness is the solid core on which their charters are built, putting their guests at ease no matter the challenge. They are passionate for the trip they deliver, cultivating a feeling of adventure and well being, that is sure to last far beyond your time in their care.
Chef Therese Gorsich
Therese taught herself to cook as a child growing up on the tiny island of Molokai in Hawaii. “I remember borrowing stacks of cookbooks from the library, and reading them cover to cover. I think cooking was my first experience of traveling- it was a way to explore”.
She attended the culinary arts program at the University of Hawaii Maui Campus, where she trained in classical French technique with an emphasis on Pacific Rim Cuisine.
After having lived in several countries working at wilderness lodges and resorts she took that love of travel and cooking and moved into the maritime industry, spending several years cheffing on a charter yacht in the inside passage of Alaska before moving to warmer waters.
As a chef, Therese’s approach to cooking is to emphasize fresh seasonal ingredients and to prepare pretty much everything from scratch. “I would describe my food as unfussy but elevated, and healthy but decadent”. She particularly loves baking bread and desserts; having trained under a pastry chef in New Zealand and then worked as a pastry chef at a fly fishing lodge in Idaho.
When she’s not in the galley, Therese loves spending time on the water; snorkeling, kayaking, standup paddle boarding (she has yet to learn to dive), and long distance hiking/ backpacking. She has hiked the Pacific Crest and Appalachian trails, and has hiked the length of New Zealand and Portugal.