David Catto

It is with great sadness that I must tell you that on Sunday 12th April, we have lost one of our most enthusiastic and generous Laser Sailors.

David Catto’s home Club was Hunts Sailing Club, but I came to know David as a top Masters sailor who competed at all of our Masters events, often on the podium at the prize giving.

David was most generous with his time and as an IT professional with his own firm, he got stuck into modernising the UKLA systems, and was involved in much of the change you will have seen recently. His generosity extended to him sponsoring Masters Training - I still have the Merger IT logo on my boom.

As Masters Representative on the UKLA David led the most significant part of our Class, with his clear thinking, 'anything is possible' attitude he took us all with him as he laid out his vision of what the UKLA Masters sailing could become.

David had organised the UKLA stand at the RYA Dinghy Show held just before ‘lock down’ and as ever bought a new level of IT prowess to our set up, making it a very successful event for the class.

I will never forget a fantastic meal I enjoyed with David and Jennie half way through a very breezy Masters Worlds in Dun laoghaire in 2018. We had all been battered by another 30 knot day out in the bay and I for one was pretty done in, but David was as full of energy and ideas as ever, as he enthused on how we could make Laser sailing bigger, more inclusive and more fun than ever.

A shocking loss to the Laser fleet, our thoughts are with Jennie and David's family at this tragic time

Rob Cage
UKLA Chair

If you wish to send a message to Jennie please do so via email to Jon Emmett