by Dr. Iain Corness

Stefan Ryser is ‘different’. Tall and thin, a “mini” handlebar moustache, an ear ring, and long hair in a pony tail with a Sauber F1 cap perched on top of it all; he is a man who retired in his mid 30’s, so he must be doing something right.
Stefan is Swiss, born in Zurich, the banking capital of Switzerland. His father was a successful architect, and Stefan is the youngest of three children. He attended school in Zurich, and by his own admission was just a midfielder in the academic stakes. However, unlike so many others who have been featured in this column, he knew what he wanted to be by the time he was 12 years old. He wanted to be a chef. “I used to help mother in the kitchen when I was young. I liked the thought of the different possibilities you can have in cooking - the foods, the cultures, everything.”
After secondary school he went to catering college and three years later emerged as a qualified chef, to immediately move from Switzerland to Norway. He stayed there, land based, for a short interval then joined a cruise line, the Royal Viking. This was to give him his first taste of the mystic orient, aged 21 years, at a time when the less adventurous are only just getting the key of the door!
During the next three years he cruised all over the world, but he resigned, despite the attractions of the job. “I stopped, because if you don’t stop, you never stop. It’s a sickness! You can see the whole world as a young guy. It doesn’t cost you anything.”
His next port of call for his “dry land” experiences was the Philippines. He spent the first twelve months touring and then did what most chefs do - he set up a restaurant/bar. The reasons looked right at the time. It looked to be an easy life and the language was no problem. The timing was a problem however, as the country was in the changeover between the Marcos and Aquino administrations. Life was becoming dangerous, and it was no more fun, so he pulled up his hook and returned to Switzerland.
He worked there for twelve months, but this, he found, was not the right move either. “It was horrible. It was not possible for me to fit into the framework (of life in organized Switzerland) any more.”
His next port of call was directly to Pattaya. He knew of the resort city from the days on the cruise liner and even had a few friends here. That was 1989. He opened a cocktail bar, which he ran for three years and then helped set up the kitchen of the Mama Restaurant in Soi Diamond. After that, it was into his own restaurant on Second Road, “The Barrel” which he had for the next four years, but after selling it in 1996 he decided to retire. “Retirement is a very dangerous job,” says Stefan, “Do you know anyone who has survived it?” was his light-hearted throwaway line.
Since that time, he has set up the Formula 1 Sauber Fan Club in Pattaya. He has helped his friend set up the Pit Stop Restaurant, initially in Soi Post office, but now in the Day-Night precinct, where we actually carried out the interview, surrounded by Sauber photographs. He plays golf. He has supervised the building of his house - and plays the stock market!
In response to my questions about the stock market, Stefan says, “I’m doing OK,” but does not admit to much more. He spreads his investments widely from Futures trading, volatile stocks and Blue Chip. He has always had an interest in the market movements but it is only in the last three years that this has become a major part in his life, spending four to five hours a day on stock watch.
Returning to the F1 involvement, Stefan’s father, as well as being a bit of an individualist, was also a motor racing enthusiast, and would take young Stefan with him to watch race meetings. As a youngster, Stefan did have some motor racing aspirations, but these were transitory and not the all consuming passion that it has to be for those who actually compete; however, the interest has always been there. The Sauber Fan Club Pattaya now has 183 members, and Stefan has made the acquaintance of team owner, Peter Sauber, himself. Part of the reason that “Pattaya” is in the title is Stefan’s wish to show the world that, “There are some good things in Pattaya too.” The other reason for the Swiss team Sauber promotion is his nationalistic pride. Even though he could no longer “fit” in Switzerland, “I still love the country - I don’t want to live there the whole year, but it’s still a beautiful country.”
In his personal life, he has been married to a Thai lady for the past twelve years and owns several dogs, including a Swiss farmer dog (no surprise)!
His advice to anyone is to go out and see the world - and be happy. “When the sun comes up, it’s another beautiful day. Even when you’re having a bad day on the golf course, there’s orchids and birds - that’s also important.”
Stefan remains somewhat of an enigma. He is definitely an individual, just his demeanour will show that, and it is apparently inherited. “My father liked to break out too - and his father! I was always different from my friends, even at school. Even here, I don’t fit in, but I can associate with everybody - probably because I don’t fit in!”
Stefan Ryser is an interesting man, with a very deep and thoughtful nature. A man whose main theme is “Have Fun” and he certainly seems to know how to do that. There’s probably a lesson in there for us all.

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Updated by Chinnaporn Sangwanlek, assisted by Boonsiri Suansuk.
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