Category Archives: Spirit of Tradition

Lake Rotoiti Wooden Boat Parade Update

Posted on by
11

Lake Rotoiti Wooden Boat Parade Update

photos ex Chris Miller

As I mentioned in Mondays post I traveled to Lake Rotoiti with Chris Miller, Chris is a very talented pro photographer & on this trip packed a lens that was longer than my arm. This enabled him to get up close to the boats & shoot from a better angle (sun was a problem). He’s also a dab hand with photoshop so these photos are stunning.

Also today we have a link to the TV3 news coverage of the event http://www.3news.co.nz/nznews/vintage-vessels-invade-lake-rotoiti-2015020717#axzz3RGmeg9GX

 

 

 

 

 

2015 Lake Rotoiti Classic & Wooden Boat Parade – Photo Gallery

Posted on by
15

2015 Lake Rotoiti Classic & Wooden Boat Parade – Photo Gallery

Morning Woodys

Just back from the 2015 Classic & Wooden Boat Parade at Lake Rotoiti (Nth. Island). As always a brilliant weekend, well run & the boats just keep getting better – over 80 this year & I’m sure much to the enjoyment of the USA ww followers – lots of varnish & zoom zoom motors this year.

The weekend kicks off with a meet/great/BBQ lakeside on Friday night with the parade on Saturday morning. Post parade everyone heads off to bay where the festivities began – while there is lots of boat talk, its a great family day that includes the full family with kids & relations.

Highlights for me was I small launch named ‘Mako’ (#63 in the parade), has been on the lake a long time, I’ll do a ww post on her. And meeting ww contributors Paul & Nigel Drake.

I have not attempted to include every boat, this is all about giving you a taste of the weekend. I think I took a photo of most boats , so if your not here, email me & I’ll send you one. The location & the sun was not kind to photographers, so some photos are a little dark.

I traveled to the event with Chris Miller, who leaves me for dead in the photography stakes, so in the next few days I’ll do another post with some of Chris’s finer work.

Enjoy – as always click on any photo to enlarge.
Alan Houghton

ps ww passed 3/4’s of a million views in the weekend – 750,000 !!!!!!!

pps I have included a link below to a file that tells you a little bit about most of the boats in the parade.
2015 Lake Rotoiti Parade Entries as at 3-2-15



TV3 attended the parade & featured it on the 6pm News – star of the clip was CYA member Russell Ward & the steam boat Romany that he skippers. Post the 6.00pm news Russell had no shortage of helper dockside 🙂

Mahurangi Regatta Bonus Photos – Sailing Sunday

Posted on by
4

Mahurangi Regatta Bonus Photos – Sailing Sunday

A wee bit of a bonus today – CYA member Peter Mence, owner of the classic K-Class, Jeanne & the classic launch Linden (Eileen Patrica) sent me a usp stick with a collection of photos from the 2015 Mahurangi Regatta weekend.
The rag & stick brigade will enjoy the focus on sailing, but still plenty of launches there, including yours truely 🙂

Enjoy. Alan


2015 Lake Rotoiti Classic & Wooden Boat Parade – Get There

Posted on by
2

2015 Lake Rotoiti Classic & Wooden Boat Parade

One of the best wooden boating events in NZ is taking place this long weekend at Lake Rotoiti (Nth. Island). If you are anywhere around the central North Island on Saturday (7th) I would encourage you to make you way to Lake Rotoiti. I went last year & it was a hoot, I’ll be back again on Saturday, so if you miss it – it will be on ww early next week.

Event & viewing details here
http://www.woodenboatparade.co.nz/
http://www.eventfinder.co.nz/2015/classic-wooden-boat-parade/rotorua

Classic Yacht On-Line Magazine Jan/Feb 2015

Posted on by
4

Classic Yacht On-Line Magazine Jan/Feb 2015

Latest edition of the on-line USA magazine ‘Classic Yacht’ . Remember in the USA yacht = boat so there is lots of motor-boat related stories. Enjoy 🙂

click link to view   http://www.myvirtualpaper.com/doc/ClassicYacht/cym-janfeb2015/2015012001/#0

2015 Mahurangi Regatta Weekend – 70+ Photos

Posted on by
8

2015 Mahurangi Regatta Weekend – 70+ Photo Parade

The photos tell the story of the weekend – perfect weather, stunning boats & nice people having a great time. Todays post is just a slice of the 3 days of classic wooden boating. I have 100’s of photos that will filter thru into ww over time. Not all are ‘picture perfect’ – its hard to helm the boat (solo) & take photos in a very congested waterway.
As always you’ll see a mix of motor-boats & yachts because even though some people seem blind to the world of classic launches – the weekend is in fact the biggest collection of classic wooden boats afloat in one place in NZ. Remember people – its all about wooden boats 🙂
Saturday nights prize giving & dance ashore at Scotts Landing was one of those evenings out of the bag – a perfect sunset to cap the day off, the panoramic photo above was sent to me by Mark Lever (owner of the very smart 1926, B.J.L. Juke designed launch – Nereides) & portrays the scene perfectly.
I counted 30+ classic CYA launches around the bays – I’m sure there were more, just didn’t see them all. The launches had a wee parade around the bays on the Saturday to fly the flag for the CYA launch fleet. There was a ‘names in the hat’ draw at the prize giving & one of our newest members – Bill Mitchinson owner of MV Gay Dawn, who traveled up from Tauranga for the weekend, won the ‘Motor Launch Log Trophy’. Now all we need is for last years winner (a non CYA member) to play the game & return the trophy 😦
The trip north for me had one big objective – to see Pauline & Harold Kidd’s just re-launched classic launch – Romance II afloat. Harold & boat builder Marco Scuderi have rebuilt R2’s dog-house & tram-top to pretty dam close to the day in 1919 she slipped down the Bailey & Lowe ramp. In my eyes her lines & proportions are spot-on. There is a photo of her in todays post but I will feature her in more detail on ww tomorrow.
Winners Are Grinners – the CYA boats, skippers & crew cleaned up all the major sailing races at the regatta – photos from the prize giving at the end of the post.
Enjoy & remember you can enlarge any photo by clicking on it 😉
Romance II
Weena
Wenna
Tuna
John Dory
John Dory and Ferro
Gay Dawn
Manapouri
Una
Duetto
Kiwitea
Orari II
Orari II
Tiromoana
Strathalan and Allergy
Mahanui
Mahanui
Kailua
Darleen
Tawera and Darleen
Lillian
CYA Launch Parade
CYA Launch Parade
Karros II
Korama (Thetis)
Shuh-Shuh-Gah
?
Lady Adelaide
Akarana
Raiona
Allergy
Kayla Rose
Zeltic
Ballerina
Kairanga
Matanui
Raindance
John Dory
Rainbow
Ngatira and Breeze
Ngatira
How you win – its all in the detail
Tawera and Peg
Scot
Thelma
Frances
Jessie Logan and ?
Jessie Logan
Frances
Frances
Rainbird
Breeze
Wairiki
Tawera (L) Thelma (R)

 

This is what makes the regatta racing so special – where else do you get sailing like this?

Yes, there were life jackets on-board for everyone

Saturday Night Prize Giving & Dance

 

Grinners Are Winners

Hamish Ross – Rainbow
Steve Horsley – Ngatira
Mike Mahoney – Tawera
Chad Thompson – Prize

Auckland Anniversary Day Regatta

Posted on by
1

Auckland Anniversary Day Regatta

photo ex Heather & John Lidgard

Today is the 175th Auckland Anniversary Day Regatta, for a young country like NZ that is a significant milestone. Out on the water today will be boats of all sizes & ages, from radio controlled pond yachts to the giants of the classic fleet – the A-Class keelers. Now even if you are boat-less today, I encourage you to head down to the harbour & grab a good vantage point.

For classic wooden boat lovers – the key times are:
10.00am for the Tug Boat Race. New inner harbour course this year with the start off Princess Wharf
12.00pm for the A-Class classic fleet start, again off Princes Wharf

Full details on today’s events here  http://www.regatta.org.nz/the spectators

Today’s photo from 1946 shows spectators cramming every vantage point they can at Westhaven. The large concrete building looks a ‘little’ more impressive today as the home of the RNZYS. The large launch on the right was Claude Atherton’s Manuwai.

If you do get out, take the camera & send me some photos 🙂

It would be amiss of me if I did not mention some of the people behind today’s regatta – I’ll upset somebody by saying this (but that’s ok) but without the support & effort of this core group of people from the classic boating movement the regatta just would not happen – (in no order) – Bruce Tantrum, John Street, Baden Pascoe, Joyce Talbot, Eric Mahoney & others I’m sure.

Mahurangi Weekend 2015

Posted on by
8

If you are even remotely interested in classic wooden boats – Mahurangi is where you want to be this coming long weekend 23>26th Jan.

Details below.

 

The Rescue of Tiarri – Ken’s Big Road Trip – 4 SALE > RIP

Posted on by
32

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The Rescue of Tiarri – Ken’s Big Road Trip – 4 Sale

photos ex Ken Ricketts

There have been numerous stories on ww around the demise  – grounding, sinking, recovery, abandonment & discovery of Tiarri. The discovery via trademe of her on a farm in a very sorry state sparked an SOS shout out on ww for an angel to wave their wand & find a good bastard out there prepared to take the rebuild project on. Well it worked & Garth Broadhead stepped up to the mark – today’s post records the start of the journey. There will be more & you’ll see it here 🙂

 26/01/2015 – A water blasting cleans her up & uncovers a few ‘blemishes’

UPDATE 03-09-2016

ww has had advice that is 4sale ‘as-is-where-is’ – all offers will be seriously considered.
Enquiries should be directed to the Marina Manager   enquiries@mahurangimarinas.co.nz

11-05-2019 UPDATE – Sadly Tiarri’s final ‘voyage’ was as a fire brigade training drill and the black scorched earth is all that remains 🙂 (photo ex Russell Ward)

IMG_1219

13-05-2019 Input and photos* / video* from Ken Ricketts –  Sadly in the end no one stepped forward to save Tiarri so the hard stand owners gifted her to the Warkworth Volunteer Fire Service for use as a fire fighting exercise.
I would just like to say a  huge thank you to you Alan and all the other woodys, who have written of her, inspected her, & tried to help to save her, in the various ways we all have, & put her back together, albeit in vain in the end. 
We all tried, & we could do no more than that, but to you Alan, most of all, if you had not published her plight, we would never even have been able to try. Thank you very much, I will be forever grateful. Ken R
(*Images & video, courtesy of the Warkworth Volunteer Fire Service)

Own a Seabird 3.2m Dinghy?

Posted on by
43

Own a Seabird 3.2m Dinghy & Want Some Pocket Money?

Screen Shot 2015-01-15 at 10.29.44 PM

WW have been approached on behalf of a film company that need one of the above for a film shot on Monday (venue = Auckland). They will be a rental fee. If you own one or know someone that does – email me direct at waitematawoodys@gmail.com

17/01/2015 – Building Seabirds at Whangateau Traditional Boatyard (photo ex Pam Cundy)