Vee Ganjavian has floated four companies and raced in the World Championship Powerboat P1 series. GB meets a man with launching in his blood.
Vee Ganjavian has floated four companies and raced in the World Championship Powerboat P1 series. GB meets a man with launching in his blood.
‘My most expensive hobby, apart from marriage, is power boating,’ chuckles the now-divorced Vee Ganjavian. ‘In terms of transport, maintenance and accommodation, I spent £200,000 last year – but I have been able to get lots of sponsorship too. There’s a 40-foot billboard on the boat and 20 million people watch some of the events worldwide,’ he adds.
In 1992 Ganjavian founded computer company Microlink PC, which makes IT programs for people with disabilities – an idea which he formed following a diagnosis of dyslexia as an adult. ‘After my test, I was looking for computer equipment that would aid me. A lot of programs clashed, so I started writing patches to enable different software to work together. That’s when I decided to start my company.’
Ganjavian attributes his late diagnosis to his schooling. ‘I was very weak at things like English literature, but good at maths and physics so I was two years ahead of some kids in that respect, but two years behind with English literature.’
An emphasis on sport in his early years could well account for many of Ganjavian’s interests now. ‘I’m also a very keen skier and do a lot of extreme skiing, which involves taking helicopters up to the top of really steep mountains. I have had a few falls in the process – the worst injury I had was breaking an ankle, shoulder and skull all at the same time. But it didn’t put me off at all. I’ve been involved in adrenaline-generating sports for a long time.’
And when it comes to racing, he gets his kicks from other machines too: ‘I get the same sensation with motorbikes and cars – I just love how they make me feel. It must be something to do with the speed.’
Ganjavian’s hobbies have taken him to exotic and remote locations. Most recently he says he’s been power boating in Malta, Marseilles and Vigo (with each trip coming to around £10,000). He’s also skied and climbed in South Africa, the Middle East and Japan. The entrepreneur says his desire to seek out new destinations is due to having lived in many different places when growing up. ‘I was in Northern Iran until I was 11 or 12 and then moved to Switzerland. My father was a university lecturer and dragged us all over the world.’
But Ganjavian also has a keen love of nature, noting that his hobbies give him more than just a head rush. ‘I really love the scenery too – the places that I go to are always different and changing. It’s just magnificent to see those unspoilt parts of the world.’
So for someone interested in the state of the environment, does he feel a responsibility for polluting the earth with his hobbies? ‘I do what I can by running my engines on diesel rather than petrol. Of course, everyone has a social responsibility, but you have to draw a line somewhere. People say that racing cars and boats is bad for nature. But the thing is, it’s part of my nature to want to do those things.’
Vital statistics
Age: 47
Marital status: Divorced
Motto: Never, ever, give up
Favourite books: The Little Prince, The Alchemist
Favourite film: Love Actually
