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Gordon Bain Cadet 2235
Prize Giving 1964
Seamans Record
 
Gordon Sailed on the following ships
SA Venture 3rd May 1965 to 12th May 1966
SA Shipper 6th October 1966 to 14th March 1967
MV Allamanda 16th March 1967 to 29th September 1967
SA Drakenstein 1st October to 26th November 1967
1965 to 1966 - Gordon's first Ship "South African Venture"
Gordon with Junior Engineer "Irish"
1966 South Afican Shipper
Growing Up in Pietermaritzburg
I was born in Durban on 16th June 1944, 10 days after D Day. We moved to Pietermaritzburg when I was about 3 years old as my father suffered from asthma and needed a drier climate. He was a Bus Driver with Durban Corporation and then PMB Corporation. Moved back to Durban briefly when my father was seriously ill with an ulcer. We stayed with my Nan in Cowie Road. This was my class 2 year. Moved back to PMB for standard one. Missed a lot of that year having contracted Diphtheria – spent 6 weeks in Isolation Hospital. We were then living in the suburb of “Manor” and spent many days playing cowboys etc. on the banks of the Umzimduzi River. Learnt to swim in it. Today you would probably die if you swam in it.

Started high school at “Harward Boys High”. Pretty rough school – the standard 7C’s were known to throw student teachers out the class room window. We were now living in West Street. Soccer, Cricket and Rugby took up most of my time. Played for 2nd Rugby and Cricket teams. Was selected for PMB under 16 soccer team to play against Durban at Kingsmead. Played rugby for school in the morning and club soccer in the afternoon. Learnt to smoke towards end of standard 8 (slow starter). First year standard 9 was spent bunking school and smoking in the back row of the bioscope on many afternoons. We wrote and signed our own sick notes. Results at end of year were a wake up call. Next 2 years went much better. At about 13 I had read a book “Acting 3rd Mate” which had some elementary information on navigation. This fascinated me and from then on I wanted to be a navigator. When I matriculated my parents could not afford the fees for “General Botha” so I worked for a year at NPA Audit office and saved up the R240 needed to attend. That’s how I got to “General Botha” in 1964.
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Gordon Bain Cadet 2235



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