Young sailors tame Lion | Hawkes Bay News | Local News in Hawkes Bay

By the end of the year, Katy Wylam hopes to recruit up to 80 people who, despite their disabilities, will have a chance like everyone else to experience sailing in Hawke Bay.

And this weekend that goal came a step closer when the well-known yacht Lion New Zealand visited Napier on a special fundraising day for Ms Wylam's Sailability Hawke's Bay.

The organisation, a trust formed a year ago, aims to provide boats and sailing equipment for people with disabilities to enjoy recreational and competitive sailing.

On Friday, Lion New Zealand sailed into town and, on Sunday, it was open to the public, with the gold coin entry fee donated to Sailability Hawke's Bay.

Ms Wylam said the fundraiser would help the organisation pay for lifejackets and other equipment needed to put sailors on the water.

It would also go towards two new boats, arriving from Auckland in a couple of weeks, which will belong to Sailability Hawke's Bay for its sailors to use.

The trust had in the past borrowed boats from Sailability Wellington but owning its own vessels will give its sailors more opportunities.

"But what we need now is a rescue [and training] boat, which is essential for safety and coaching," Ms Wylam said. "We're looking at one the same as the [Napier] sailing club has, about 4.7m long.

"We're still looking for a sponsor and I've approached a local business and made applications [to funding trusts]."Ms Wylam became chairwoman of the trust and for the organisation with her partner, Mark Kenah, in 2009.

"I've worked with disabled kids for five years and been a sailor for over 10 years, so this is a way of bringing the two together, making sailing accessible to all people," she said.

Some of the sailors involved with the organisation were people aged from 7 to 50 years.

"All have some form of disability, from mild intellectual ... right through to sailors with severe physical disabilities," Ms Wylam said.

She said the Sailability Hawke's Bay initiative had been well supported by people at the Napier Sailing Club, who were keen to see more people sailing as well.

Ms Wylam said her plan was to have 20 people who could race regularly, 20 others who were "occasional" sailors and about 40 more who would have the opportunity to experience being on the water.

"By the end of the year, I'm hoping to have 80 people on the list. We've got four sailors going to Taupo with us for a regular regatta in March - it's the first year disabled sailors will be included."

Groups from Disability Auckland, Disability Wellington and Disability Rotorua will also attend the Taupo event.