Michelle Tait grew up sailing at Bucklands Beach Yacht Club, and progressed through the traditional New Zealand sailing pathway of Optimist, P-Class and Starling dinghies, 29er and C420 teams sailing and an avid member of the Royal New Zealand Youth Training Programme.
In 2012 when the end of high school was fast approaching, Michelle had decided she didn’t want to go to University and that a career in sailing was what she strived for – while enjoying sailing with her parents, Michelle was introduced to Doyle Sails Auckland’s director Chris McMaster. It was McMaster who gave her a school holiday job during her final year, before progressing to a full time employee in the canvas and upholstery department, where Michelle was successful in completing her Canvas Fabrication Apprenticeship.
Spending many weekends and summer holidays cruising on her parents yacht, Michelle stepped into keelboat racing in Auckland, in particular as a bow person on 40-50fters which was a perfect balance with her role with Doyle Sails. But seeing a few more opportunities overseas, Michelle made the decision to move to Sydney, Australia. The move expanded both her personal sailing and professional sailmaking career extensively.
During her time in Sydney, Michelle gained further experience building Race, Grand Prix and Cruising sails before moving back to Auckland to establish herself as department manager of Doyle Sails One Design.
Michelle’s outstanding commitment to detail was recognised further when the opportunity was presented to join a rotational team of sailmakers representing Doyle Sails with SailGP. Michelle was able to connect valuable information between the SailGP and Doyle Sails teams, leaning into her knowledge and experience and running point on the SailGP project throughout their manufacture in New Zealand.
Part of the travelling sailmaker role involves set up and commissioning of the new sails along with on-going maintenance and repairs to any damage that is caused on the water. The next sailmaking adventure for Michelle will be SailGP in Dubai this November when the Doyle-powered F50 fleet kick off Season 5, in some of the most exnihilating stadium racing.
ABOUT DOYLE SAILS // Doyle Sails strives to deliver success through high-performance, high-quality, custom sails that continue to redefine the boundaries of sailmaking technology and innovation; whilst connecting sailors to inspire, support and encourage sailing.
Our obsession with sailing takes us to every corner of the world and onboard every yacht. We become part of teams, share in the adventures of friends and families, sharing our knowledge and experience with those with the same passion. Sailing is in our DNA, and we are the custodians of a legacy that has been supporting sailors for four decades and counting.