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JOE KELLY: OBITUARY

Joe Kelly, windsurfing pioneer, outdoors retailer, internet entrepreneur and global business consultant sadly passed away on October 1st.

A man of rare energy, creativity and generosity, Joe lived every chapter of his life to the fullest…from the windswept shores of Tiree to the cutting edge of the early internet age. His passions, friendships and ventures spanned continents, but his warmth, humour and quiet determination were constants wherever he went. 

He will be deeply missed by his family, friends and all who had the privilege of knowing and working with him.

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When Joe Kelly put his mind to something more often than not it happened. Whether it be forward or backwards loops on a windsurfer in huge waves, co-founding, developing and successfully selling a major internet company, mentoring people in business for free, renovating houses in Greece or classic cars in England and Scotland, Joe Kelly managed major projects and everyday minor successes with the quiet satisfaction of having reached that goal. And at their conclusion, perhaps a pint, before moving on to the next few things on his agenda.

Sadly, at their beautiful and historic new home near Dundee, where he, his wife Wiz and their son Alex had hoped to build their life together after moving from London this Spring, time ran out all too suddenly for Joe on the 1st October.

His plans for the magnificent house, the restoration of a classic ‘barn find’ 1972 Aston Martin, spending more time in and on the water as well as with his family and friends in Scotland, were all scuppered by cancer.

Joe grew up in Bathgate, West Lothian and was always fiercely proud of his roots. Bright and capable at school, he attended Bathgate Academy, but his real passions were fixing – and driving – cars, along with watersports and skiing. With his lifelong friend Gordon Ritchie, he became an accomplished canoeist, first learning at Linlithgow Outdoor Centre encouraged by schoolteacher Harry Lochrie. It was there that George Thomson introduced the pair to canoeing and dinghy sailing, quickly recognising Joe’s natural talent and application. “We had many adventures in the early 1970s on river kayaking trips and kayak surfing around the coasts. Joe was very talented in all the activities we enjoyed together,” recalls George Thomson, who remembers pulling Joe from the River Awe by his buoyancy aid after he became trapped against a barrage and broke his canoe in two. As manager of the Scottish Surf Kayak Team, George was proud to guide Joe to win the British Junior Surf Kayak Championship title on Wales’  Gower peninsula. Joe and Gordan Ritchie went on to share countless canoeing trips and other adventures together. It was also Gordon who helped introduce Joe to windsurfing on an early Sea Panther board he had bought – and he acknowledges – he struggled to master.

George Thomson introduced Joe to his good friend, the late Clive Freshwater, a legendary, uncompromising task master who started and – with his family- built Loch Insh Watersports Centre by Aviemore.  Joe thrived there, teaching watersports in the summer and skiing on Cairngorm in the winter. On his first day Joe recalls being shown to a shed where Clive told him he would be living. “You will have to make your bed.” Clive told Joe as they approached. Joe was not concerned, his dad and mum had instilled a similar self-reliance and discipline in their son. And even when the door was opened to reveal several planks of wood, a hammer and nails to construct his bed from Joe did not miss a beat. He was proud to attend the 50th anniversary celebrations for the centre.

Joe recognised the business potential in windsurfing which was booming in the 1980s and which he had become expert in. In Andy Groom he found a like-minded friend and business partner and the duo opened the first 7th Wave windsurfing shop on Old Dumbarton Road, Glasgow. Their total immersion in the nascent windsurfing community, welcoming customers of all abilities with equal enthusiasm, from offering pragmatic advice to beginner families to sharing the exotic dreams and surf expeditions of their expert, committed clientele they gave it everything.  Their enthusiasm was boundless. They supported up and coming riders, ran dozens of events locally on Loch Lomond and at Troon and Largs. 7th Wave became well known in Scotland and the duo built a lifelong reputation in the windsurf and surf community in the UK.

Joe was one of the earliest pioneers of windsurfing on the Hebridean island of Tiree. In 1985 he was on one of the first windsurfing expeditions to Tiree, research having revealed it to have high average windspeeds, hours of sunshine, waters warmed by the Gulf Stream, and surf beaches facing each point of the compass rose. 7th Wave were instrumental in popularising and running the globally renowned wave sailing championship The Tiree Wave Classic at different key stages across a distinguished event history which stretches this year to 41 years. Joe was an exceptional competitor and a seemingly fearless windsurfer who enjoyed successes in waves and on race and speed boards. He competed at events around Britain although his time on the water was often limited by the need to run the retail business in Glasgow.

On an evening drive to Macrihanish, his car topped with many windsurfers on the roof rack and jammed to the gunwales with like-minded pals, Joe was moving (very) swiftly down the twisty Kintyre road. Let’s just say he was ‘unaware’ of the car following him, or trying to chase him. After many miles the blue light came on. “What’s the hurry?” was the obvious question to which Joe politely replied, “We are heading to windsurf at Macrihanish and would like to get there before the pub closes.” “Well, the pub closes at the end of October so you’ll be OK. However, I have never seen anyone driving as well in all my years….. but please, ease it off a bit.”

In 1991 Joe and his photographer wife Avril welcomed their son, Sean, into the world. Avril says of Joe “he was always a magnet! People were drawn to his warm, caring and fun-loving nature. He was very inclusive. His return to Scotland brought all of us back together. He was the catalyst that did this whatever country he was in.”

It was a natural development to expand the shop operation into skiing and snowboarding, moving to premises in Charing Cross Mansions. They shook up the established snowsports retail market in Glasgow and the West of Scotland. But successive poor winters and the economic crash took its toll.

His business partner and friend of over 40 years Andy Groom says “We have lost a true legend, a natural snow & water sportsman, enterprising, innovative, generous, always there to help, never fazed, party animal, a true friend “

Joe returned to teaching and worked in Greece at Club Vassiliki. Joe was a patient and talented instructor, his communication and understanding of the dynamics of the sports made him stand out, as did his dance moves of many an evening in Vassiliki, indeed everywhere.

One of Britain’s pro windsurfers, coach and instructor Peter Hart says, “Every time we met, and this is the hallmark of a good friend and a top bloke, is that we picked up immediately where we left off. No awkward small talk just immediate connection, hilarious reminiscing and a lot of wisdom (from him not me obvs). Beneath the banter a rare intelligence and his wonderful kindness always shone through.”

Tommy Armstrong, surf entrepreneur, designer and musician recalls Joe taking time out to visit his son who was in rehab in San Francisco, “Joe navigated all the rules and got to see our son, Paul in Delancey Street, San Francisco, during his rehab there. It was a testament to Joe’s kindness and determination; he got to visit our son. It was a truly awful time in our family, and Joe’s perseverance with the good people of Delancey Street enabled him to see Paul and check in on his progress… This went against all of Delancey Street’s rules and regulations. As all who knew Joe can testify, when he was on your side, he was there for you on your side in any and every way.”

After Vassiliki he spent time in Glasgow and then Joe & second wife Wiz, settled in Oxford where along with Wiz’s brother Jonathan Patterson, they started FDD. From the early days in the Glasgow shop Joe had taken an interest in computer technology, developing and refining stock control systems and computing and the internet was a natural starting point for the next phase of his business life.

Ever the entrepreneur Joe had an instinct for spotting opportunity long before others saw the wave forming. It was in 1996 Full Diesel Design (FDD) was started, soon riding the very crest of the emerging dot com boom. Joe and Wiz and FDD moved to London. The company offered everything from domain registration to full e-commerce solutions for clients such as Siemens, Kodak and The Telegraph. His energy and vision helped shape the early days of the internet in the UK when so much of what we now take for granted was still being imagined by the likes of Joe!

In 2001 FDD was acquired by Netscalibur, a major competitor backed by Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs. Joe, ever gracious and forward looking, was quoted at the time as saying: “We were impressed by Netscalibur’s combination of scalability and entrepreneurial spirit. We feel the company has an innovative business model and management with talent and vision.” Those who knew him often smiled at that line because it described Joe perfectly. After a short sabbatical Joe returned to the IT industry in 2003 with enthusiasm launching the UK’s first pay-as-you-go broadband provider, Lixxus, with friend James Kershaw. Determined to challenge the dominance of traditional telecom operators Lixxus quickly made its mark as a true disruptor, competing with the likes of BT and Cable & Wireless. One of his proudest achievements came from powering hundreds of Swisscom public WiFi hotspots across the UK at a time when such connections were rare and novel.

In 2004 Joe and Wiz welcomed son Alex into the world. Joe’s ventures often reflected his boundless curiosity and his ability to bring people together. Through his extensive network of friends Lixxus became involved in the inaugural GP Masters series – a motorsport event that reunited Formula 1 legends such as Emerson Fittipaldi, Niki Lauda and Nelson Piquet, giving fans a taste of racing’s golden era once more.
His entrepreneurial ethos was at the heart of a business career which flourished in diverse areas operating as COO,  CEO, CTO, Sales Director of many start-ups and growing companies in Cloud Computing, ISP, XaaS, tech consulting and Telecoms working around the world in Europe, Bhutan, South Africa, Buenos Aires, Dubai and the USA. Alongside all this he also ran a ski lodge in Kicking Horse, Canada for two years with Kershaw.

His windsurfing and skiing exploits became somewhat more challenging when he broke his back in four places during COVID, doing a big windsurfing loop. But he never let it stop him, though some would say he learned his limits. Along the way Joe was a pilot and achieved a childhood dream flying a Spitfire, he wrote a book on World War 1, he was an accomplished big boat sailor as crew and skipper, racing on the West Coast of Scotland and beyond. He touched the life of so many people, his broad infectious smile, immeasurable kindness, humility and sense of humour always to the fore, but he achieved so much in his all too short time with us. 

Wiz said “I met Joe through windsurfing but he later taught me to sail, ski, snowboard, surf, waterski and wakeboard. He took my whole life in a totally different direction which involved over thirty years of risks, laughs, love and beautiful people.”

Joe will be truly missed by us all, but no doubt more so by his loving close family Wiz, Alex, Avril, Sean, Joe Senior & his sister Sue.