Received some sad news last night about Neil, he passed away late Wednesday. Neil was one of the original kiters starting out with his own brand Hold the Line Kites in Elwood Vic and then later moving to Perth where many people got to know him and his friendly obliging nature and fantastic sewing skills.
For some reason I had been thinking about him recently and last Saturday decided to dig out my Bob Dawson small D-Wing and Neil's expertly sewn 45m long tube tail, its always an emotional exercise especially when I launch and the first few moments of flying. Neil also made some amazing stunt kites prior to getting into kitesurfing, the most memorable were the West Coast Angel
Neil's partner Terry continued to support Neil after his stroke even though they had separated some years prior. Terry informed me that Neil did not want a funeral or memorial. Terry said she will scatter his ashes in Bali in due course.
Here's a link to his bio from the magazine called Kitelife published in 1998
kitelife.com/1998/07/07/issue-4-kitemaker-profile-neil-taylor/ 
