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Peter at work at the America's Cup. See more photos below

Thinking about our high school years is making me very sentimental --- looking at those yearbook pictures it is astounding to see how young and hopeful we all appeared. In many ways, those were the best of times --- the world was so much less complicated.

A short bio follows. Since my wife, Roxanne, says I'm the only person that she knows who can spend a hour describing an orange, I've tried to keep it to corn kernel size.

After graduating from RHS, I went off to Tufts University (Biology / Chemistry major) and at the end of my freshman year I was accepted into the neurophysiology honors program with a National Science Foundation research grant. Ultimately, that led me to Tufts Medical School by which time I had already decided on neurosurgery as my profession. I spent my summers doing research in neurophysiology (undergraduate) and, eventually, neurology (as a medical student) in the Boston area and became very interested in sailing small boats (110s, 210s, and occasionally International One Designs) on weekends in Marblehead. I was fortunate to be around for Nefertiti's attempt at securing the challenger position for the America's Cup in 1962 and I suppose that is when the yacht racing bug bit me.

Following medical school, I was accepted into an academic surgical internship at the University of Minnesota Medical Center of which three months were spent on a neurosurgical rotation. The next year I stayed on and completed a year of general surgical residency with another three month neurosurgical rotation. In those days, Viet Nam, all of us (doctors) had to serve two years of active duty in the military so, being a "sailor" at heart, I opted for the Navy and was assigned as surgeon aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Hornet after completing "knife and fork" school at the Naval Amphibious Warfare Center in Coronado California. Then off to Westpac for my year of sea duty and to became a member of the Gulf of Tonkin Yacht Club as we called it. My second year of active duty was spent at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Long Beach, California where Hornet was home ported and undergoing refitting in dry dock.

Subsequent to my discharge from active duty, I began my five year academic neurosurgical residency in New Haven at Yale. In 1974 I started my practice in Springfield, Massachusetts at the Baystate Medical Center with a clinical teaching affiliation at the Tufts New England Medical Center.

After nineteen years in practice and too many "indiscretions" involving fast cars, motorcycles, and helicopters resulting in several rather severe physical traumas (very few of my original parts remain), I retired in 1993. Roxanne and I moved to Cape Town, South Africa where we had acquired some property overlooking Table Bay, Table Mountain and Robben Island, and where we had built our African home.

INTERESTS:

Photography:
Aerial and yachting photography --- it started as a hobby. When photographing the requisite African flora and fauna became boring, I had an opportunity thanks to my carrier experience to do some aerial (jet to jet) photography via a contact with the U.S. Naval attaché in South Africa. I started photographing for the South African Navy and shot the local yacht races for their Sailing Magazine.

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When my images began to be "picked up" internationally, I decided to attend the Louis Vuitton Cup Challenge / America's Cup in Auckland, New Zealand in 1999 and again in 2002. In 2004, the Managing Director of the Mediterranean Shipping Company (S.A.) who was organizing a South African Challenge for the 2007 America's Cup, offered me an appointment to Team Shosholoza as the official photographer. We have raced in South Africa, Marseilles France, Malmo Sweden, Trapani Sicily, and Valencia Spain. The boat is now based permanently in Valencia.

I've recently completed our 2007 Shosholoza and MSC calendars which I trust Saatchi & Saatchi have sent off to the printer already.

Sailing / Yachting:
I never could get too enthusiastic about cruising. I guess I have a racing type personality. Photographing from the air or fast chase boats maintains the excitement factor while allowing me to work around my physical limitations.

Shooting:
While in Minnesota I was introduced to competitive shooting --- handgun , skeet and trap and I did a bit of deer hunting. When I was in the Navy I had to opportunity to shoot matches with the Marines and the SEALs (free ammo in those days of big budgets). My intrepid spotter, Roxanne, and I target shoot twice a week when I'm not traveling overseas with Shosholoza.
I'm handloading for high power rifle and we're in the process of joining in on F-Class 1000 meter long range rifle shooting.

Hunting:
After a few years in practice without a day off I decided to use big game hunting as a vehicle to get away from my pager and I hunted in Alaska, Newfoundland, the Artic Circle region of Canada, and eventually in Africa (Rhodesia / Zimbabwe, Zambia). I don't hunt anymore, walking is no longer my forte thanks to those physical limitations and the numerous surgeries alluded to above.

Racing:
I raced formula Fords in the Skip Barber Series for a couple of years as well. Roxanne and I are avid Formula One devotees (Ferrari).

Family:
My wife, Roxanne and I have been married for twenty years (second time for both of us). We have a son on Nantucket, a son in San Diego, and a daughter in Scottsdale --- all single and career oriented so no grandchildren yet. I imagine that once they begin to "nest" we will be relocating back to the States --- probably the Seattle area. We need to see water outside of our windows in the morning
and mountains on the horizon.

October 2006