TELL TALES
The Wooden Boatbuilders Trade Association stand
SOUTHAMPTON BOAT SHOW
Classic display Britain’s biggest boat show, which took place in September on the Southampton waterfront, was blessed with late-summer sun, and only a few showers. For lovers
The new Duchy 35 from Cockwells, designed by Andrew Wolstenholme, with the Duchy 21 picnic launch, based on an old Cornish harbour launch, alongside
of beauty and tradition, the main attraction was the Wooden Boatbuilders Trade Association (WBTA) stand, where annually boatbuilders of small hand-built craft congregate to show their wares – and it seemed this year that the stand, while more compact than in some previous years, was particularly busy with new boats. The WBTA stand is more than just a celebration of wood and craftsmanship though – it is a reminder of a different take on the whole business of sailing – a take that has a lot to do with relaxed, easy fun on the water. Among the seasoned builders at the show, a newcomer was Simon Hawksley, a former oil industry employee who followed a dream and enrolled at the Boat Building Academy in Dorset, producing a stunning Donzi speedboat. More on the boat in a future issue of CB. Meanwhile, in the marina were Rustler with its popular 37, Henley Sales and Charter with an electric river dayboat, Cornish Crabbers with boats from 19-26ft, Swallow Yachts with a BayRaider 20 and BayCruiser 23, Saffier with a handful of its similarly-sized and very sleek new Duchy 35 from Cockwells, a pocket-sized semidisplacement superyacht designed with Andrew Wolstenholme and finished to the highest standard. Lastly, Spirit Yachts gave a fascinating presentation on its forthcoming 111ft wooden sloop – more to come on this too.
Clockwise from top left: Orcadian boatbuilder Ian Richardson’s newest boat, looking great with a nearly all-paint finish; this open Thames launch, built in 1915, was restored by Michael Dennett, who marks 60 years of boatbuilding this year; a few sleek SoT weekend-sized yachts from Dutch builder Saffier were on show; Bembridge man Ben Coombes spent a decade in apprenticeship with his grandfather learning to build small boats, and is pictured with a Bembridge Scow (granddad built 200!), built of ash timbers, IoW oak, and planking of mahogany and Canadian spruce: £9,000 inc rig. Left: the appearance below decks on the Spirit 111 is space age, with swooping, converging curves
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CLASSIC BOAT NOVEMBER 2017
PHOTOGRAPHS BY STEFFAN MEYRIC HUGHES
yachts and Tofinou with its popular 8. A highlight was the