The couple bought an old Sea Nymph trailer boat in 2014 to take them fishing and diving, selling it when Isabell took up a marketing position in Tauranga with Balex Marine, whose innovative boat loading system was quickly gaining traction.
Then in 2016, they bought a Surtees 610 (later replaced by a Surtees 700 GF and the 800GF they still own) and Isabell accepted a marketing position with Surtees Boats in 2018, a position which later expanded to also include boat sales.
It was selling boats that became the catalyst for creating Wild Chix. Specifically, backing a boat trailer in the yard at Surtees. Despite years of boating, she realised she’d never backed a trailer before. Sascha always did that.
She learned quickly of course, but not from her partner, instead enlisting her colleagues on the yard for instruction.
“I knew better than to ask Sascha. That would never have worked! He’s just not patient enough and always knows best – a typical man! I think guys try, but when translating for women it is never the same. It’s like we talk different languages,” explained Isabell.
It set her to thinking. She realised that, while she’d enjoyed lots of boating, fishing and diving – as well as hunting, another outdoor passion shared with Sascha – it was pretty much Sascha doing all the ‘doing’.
“Although we owned the boat together, it was very much Sascha’s baby,” she explained. “When we went boating, he backed the trailer, launched and retrieved the boat, fuelled it, checked over the safety equipment, made sure the trailer was safe and more. He chose the destination, planned the route, drove the boat and operated the VHF, sonar and GPS. He did pretty much everything on board. My duties were often restricted to organising clothing and refreshments for the day, stowing things onboard, holding the line at the dock and perhaps keeping a lookout while at sea!”
“And even when he praised me for being the best fisher in the boat, it was Sascha who rigged the rod and baited my hooks.”
It was much the same story when they went hunting. Sascha planned their expeditions, oversaw safety procedures, dictated tactics and directed the hunt. It was almost always the men in the party who decided on which animals to target and who got to take the shot, Isabell recalls. And if what she was experiencing was typical, she wondered how many other women were experiencing similar treatment.
Well… quite a few, as she came to realise while talking to customers for Surtees Boats. When couples were involved, many of the women reported that boating was their partner’s thing – that they were mostly just along for the ride. She also met women who’d enjoyed outdoor pursuits with their partners and kids but lacked the confidence to tackle them now they were alone.
Isabell observed that, while in many instances the woman contributed half the money (or more) towards a boat’s purchase, when choosing it her wishes were barely considered and afterwards she often had no idea how to operate it.
Women need empowerment to fully appreciate outdoor pursuits, Isabell decided – something she achieved for herself through a programme of participation and learning that overcame her initial lack of confidence. She is now a supremely independent and accomplished boater, scuba diver, angler and hunter.
As a member of Tauranga Sport Fishing Club (TSFC), her ideas coalesced when they suggested she organise a seminar on the basics of boating for women, leveraging her by now considerable expertise and her hands-on experience with customers at Surtees Boats. She also reached out to Coastguard Tauranga for support.
The premise of her first seminar – which soon snowballed in to a series of seminars around New Zealand – was that boating for women should be far more than just organising lunch and the kids.
Held at TSFC clubrooms on January 17, 2024, the first seminar included trip planning, pre-departure checks, choosing and donning PFDs, operating the vessel’s navigation lights, bilge pumps, VHF radio and other safety equipment, along with basic boat operation such as starting and shutting off the engine, and more.
It was a huge success, spawning invitations from other clubs and organisations for similar educational courses.
Building on the success of her boating seminars, Isabell thought to offer similar courses to women wanting to get involved in hunting. In 2021 she’d become the Secretary of the NZ Deerstalkers Association (NZDSA).
Understanding that many women did not want to learn from their husbands or partners, she began taking small groups of women into the bush to learn basic hunting skills like trip planning, packing, bush navigation and stalking animals. As with the boating seminars, uptake was phenomenal.
“I’m careful to ensure we are completely non-judgemental at all of our events so that the ladies can be themselves, ask whatever questions they like and learn at their own pace,” says Isabell.
But between boating seminars, women’s bushcraft courses and a demanding full-time job at Surtees Boats, Isabell soon found herself stretched very thin. She needed help. Enter Shanel Honoré, who together with Head Chick Isabell and hunting support Sarah Cotching, NZDSA Secretary prior to Isabell taking over, are Wild Chix, a name chosen to reflect their shared love of wild New Zealand.
A Coastguard supporter, Shanel is a licenced skipper who works for Maritime New Zealand. Having overcome her own self-doubt to embrace boating, Shanel’s personal story, says Isabell, resonates with many of the women attending Wild Chix’s seminars and scheduled events.
Wild Chix is going from strength to strength with more Basic Boating for Women seminars scheduled throughout this year. Wild Chix is also offering basic fishing and fish filleting courses, along with three-day Introduction to Hunting and six-week Basic Hunting courses (see schedule).
The entry fee for one of Wild Chix’s two-hour Basic Boating seminarsis $75 per person, which includes a welcome drink and a goodie bag.
A portion of the proceeds from these events is donated to Coastguard.
Book today and see the latest schedule at http://www.wildchix.co.nz
Wild Chix Seminars:
Boating Basics for Women:
18th July, Whakatane
24th July, Gisborne
6th August, Bowentown
8th August, Hamilton
14th August, Auckland
Napier end of July – date TBC
Northland – date TBC
Basic Fishing for Women
24th of July, Tauranga
Introduction to Hunting
11-13 October, Kaimanawa Forest Park
29 November – 1st December, Kaimanawa Forest Park
Filetting for Ladies
14th August, Tauranga
Basic Hunting 6-week course
From 20th of August, Tauranga
