18/02/2026
The Victorian & Australian Sharpie Sailing Associations would like to acknowledge the passing of Nicholas Major,
Sailing and Sharpies were a huge part of Nick's life, first joining the national Sharpie community at the 2013/14 Mounts Bay Nationals. He looked forward to meeting up with friends at each carnival, and time on the water was always an important outlet for him.
Those who had the pleasure of knowing Nick, knew that he had a knack for thinking outside the box and bringing creative solutions to problems others might not even be thinking about. Including his outing in the last two national titles, trialling a double diamond spreader rig. On and off the water, his intelligence led him to approach life in a uniquely Nick way.
Nick left his mark on the Victorian fleet and across the Sharpie class as a whole. He was incredibly influential and convincing when he wanted, and often chose to use that influence to encourage others to enjoy the Sharpies' social side. He was always too clever and insistent for most to come up with any reason not to enjoy a drink with him, and was able to level the playing field to ensure sailors across the fleet were dealing with a similar handicap in the next day's racing.
This definitely came through on State's night, while never a contestant himself, he was always right in the pit as a passionate self-designated coach and incredibly vocal leader of the cheer squad to his friends in the Victorian team.
On top of this, Nick was an incredibly switched-on and driven sailor, capable of bringing some great competition to the fleet. This was shown by his most recent outing at the Port Lincoln Nationals, with two top 15 finishes off limited training in an incredibly competitive fleet of 67, coming in at 23rd overall.
Friends will remember Nick for his unique and sometimes twisted sense of humour, infectious laugh, capacity for deep reflection and insight, strong passion and love for those he held close, and most importantly, leading us astray when we needed it.
The Sharpie family would like to pay our respects to Nick's wife Helen and daughter Joni and broader friends and family.
Vale Nick,
Rest easy mate
- Max Nichols, Victorian State President
