There is a recurring comment I hear constantly and thats “I just don’t use my boat enough”. Over the last few years the opportunities for classic launch owners to get out and about on the water and share the fun, friendship and fraternity that comes with owning a classic wooden boat have declined.

A group of passionate woodys have decided to address this situation and today I can advise that we have put together 4 classic launch events prior to the end the year – these events will be under the handle of – Woody Classics Weekend.

One of my eye openers when setting up the waitematawoodys website was the high % of woody owners that are not Classic Yacht Association members e.g. only 16% of the vessels featured on WW are on the CYA boat register. So in the interests of being all-inclusive, participation in the Woody Classics Weekend events is open to anyone and everyone, you don’t even have to own a boat – only one condition – you must have a passion for wooden boats.

The events will include a Riverhead Pub cruise, a waterfront (with private jetty access) picnic and a beachside BBQ on Waiheke Island. Details to be confirmed but put the first two dates below into your diary. I can confirm today that the first Woody Classics Weekend is a Spring Cruise to the Riverhead Hotel on Sunday 8th September. More details closer to the event.

• September – 8th

• October – 20th

• November – date tba

• December – date tba

So people, this is a call out for your support and attendance at these events – if we are going to continue to attract people to the wooden boating movement, owning a woody has to be appealing to both individual owners and their families. In the long run – successful, fun events helps all of us i.e. more people equals more demand for classic wooden boats > equals better resale values 🙂

Next step – RSVP for the September Riverhead Pub Woody Classics Weekend to Barbara Cooke – link below

All we need is your name, boat name and if you know it, approximate numbers attending.

Yours truely – Alan Houghton (Raindance), Barbara & David Cooke (Trinidad), Jason Prew (My Girl), Nathan Herbert (Pacific) and Sue & Mark Edmonds (Monterey)

 dbcooke@outlook.co.nz