CHRIS HALFKNIGHT remembers Andy Weller, who died last month.

I first met Andy when I moved from London to Worthing in 1985. I'd started sailing Toppers and Lasers at what was then Worthing Yacht Club, and we became very close friends.Andy was always a very good sailor, we often sailed in Salcombe where his in-laws lived and he showed me all about tides and currents. At that time at Worthing Yacht Club we had a very strong Laser fleet of 40 boats and we could take on any club around and often beat them.

I sometimes wore a weight jacket to keep up with Andy, who always had that edge on me upwind and sometimes I got him downwind.. We both progressed to Dart catamarans and Andy became very involved in the Dart scene, and we had great times at Dart Opens and Dart Nationals - going to meetings and generally having a ball. He really was a very jovial chap, always wanting to do better, to be the front of the fleet and always making little adjustments to his boat here and there. His favourite thing at any do, was whenever there were three cheers, he would end up with a loud oggy oggy oggy!

Andy took the helm after me as Commodore in 1991, and took the club through its refurbishment, with the new galley and bar. His goal was always to put the fun back into racing, and loved team racing, putting the slowest and fastest boat together. But for his own sailing goals he remained very competitive - a racer, not a cruiser. He'd recently got onto a computer game with Volvo Challenge - a computerised sailing match with boats going round the world. It's a virtual game where you have to work out tides, charts etc. There were about 20,000 in the race. Andy wasn't best pleased when he lost about 5000 places in the Doldrums!

Andy taught his youngest son Jack all he knew and he was the apple of his eye. Andy was also really enthusiastic about a scheme for youngsters. It's such a shame he won't be around to see me, Richard John and John Cooper start our new sailing School. But I know he would approve! Worthing Sailing Club has lost a true sportsman so I know wherever he is now, he's out to win!