While all sailors say the passion for the high seas lasts for life, most make do with telling their nautical adventures to the grandchildren by the time they reach 90.
Former Italian Navy admiral Ugo Foschini, on the other hand, is showing no signs of drawing a close to his glorious seafaring career despite recently starting his 10th decade.
The world's oldest competitive skipper takes to the waves at least once a week and already has a packed schedule of races planned for 2007 - when he will be 91 - including Trieste's Barcolana regatta on the Adriatic.
Foschini moves around the deck with the agility of a man half his age and the years have not diminished his seafaring skills in the slightest.
This was clear two months ago when he beat off far younger competition to claim victory at the Velalonga regatta in Naples.
The World War II veteran says the reason he continues to set sail week-after-week is to "transmit his passion for the sea and sailing to younger generations".
In 2003 the Italian Navy named Foschini a "Yachting Commodore" as a tribute to his work with youngsters hoping to follow in his distinguished footsteps.
Foschini's career is full of outstanding achievements. In 1964 he skippered the legendary Corsaro II tall ship to victory in the Lisbon-Bermuda race, arriving a whole day ahead of his closest rival.
"I had a great team who were highly motivated and worked well together, which is what you need to take on that sort of challenge," Foschini said.
Four years later he was in command of the Amerigo Vespucci, the Italian Navy's world famous 26-sail school ship, which he took for a trip up the River Thames in London. "The British press said that skipper is either crazy or a great sailor," he recalled.
"We had a nice wind to work with so I ruled out the idea of using the engines and got them to set the sails, although I left the lower ones down so we could see ahead. "Naturally, I realized the manoeuvre was coming off well and saw the crowds on the banks, so I got the lads to hang up the biggest Italian flag we had aboard".
As well as winning competitions for the Italian Navy, Foschini also saw active service in World War II.
He was an officer on several ships that sank in battle and was decorated many times for bravery.
He said diet and exercise are the secrets to his evergreen lust for life and the sea.
"I have always been careful about what I eat and I have played sport since I was a child," he explained.
"Even now I do three quarters of an hour of exercise every morning".
