Waterman skiff restoredWaterman skiff restored

The relative skill and personal dedication of three Moreton Bay boat builders Rhys Jeffries, Brian Hutchison and John Wasson have combined to meticulously restore a 106-year-old Waterman skiff.
This yesteryear style mullet fishing boat, as her crude timber carved building plate revealed, was originally hand crafted by A. Blanch at Belmont on the shoreline of Lake Macquarie over a century ago.
It was difficult to appreciate the graceful lines of this historical vessel when it was delivered in a serious state of deterioration to the Boat Building Team at Skills Tech Australia’s Eagle Farm Training Centre.
Principal restorer Rhys Jeffries naturally took some time, even making the comment that the hulk should have been dumped before he decided to begin a dedicated six year labour of love.
“There were some personal doubts but the graceful lines of this historical skiff suggested she needed a new lease of life,” Mr Jeffries said.
After being personally involved with endless hours of re-shaping then copper nail and roving her planks to a new cedar timber stern, the skiff, sporting a glossy finish of International Marine Paint, made a splash during a special relaunching ceremony at Cabbage Tree Creek (Shorncliffe).
This was a proud moment for Rhys Jeffries, Brian Hutchison, and John Wasson who manned the oars when the grand old skiff became a feature attraction at the Queensland Cruising Yacht Club Vintage yacht and Gaffers regatta on Sandgate’s Bramble Bay on the June holiday weekend.
Progressively the project has taken the transformation from being a wreck to now becoming a visual example of the meticulous boatbuilding skills of her principal restorer Rhys Jeffries.
“It is difficult to sum up the number of hours, but looking at what we started with to now see the end result – the time factor is immaterial. This lovely old generation timber skiff now thankfully has the WOW factor,” Jeffries said.

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Southport sailors dominate

A critical on course start in the final race proved to be the separation between the defending champion Klaus Lorenz and his major rival Kyle O’Connell in the 2011 Queensland Optimist championship at Mooloolaba.
The championship struggle billed as a highlight to the 2011 multi-class Sail Mooloolaba regatta proved to be a nip’n’tuck arm-wrestle between the champion Whitsunday Sailing Club’s Klaus Lorenz and the Southport Yacht Club’s challenger Kyle O’Connell.
Unfortunately a split second error when Klaus Lorenz was judged by race officials to be over the line at the start of the final race ultimately proved to be the title deciding factor.
The pressure was on Lorenz to keep the bow of his Optimist ahead of O’Connell when he sailed onto the course for the final.
He had faced similar tactical challenges before during his Optimist racing career which had seen him develop from a battling club sailor to become one of the best in the Nation.
But unfortunately his challenge to retire from the class as the Queensland champion fell apart with the spilt second error which resulted in a maximum 36 point penalty while O’Connell steered Mischief to a final race win, his third for the series, to become the 2011 Optimist Queensland champion.
His winning margin of six points compiled from finishing all eight races in the top eight while Klaus Lorenz won the Silver medal by three points from O’Connell’s Southport Yacht Club training partner Charlie Wyatt in Slam.

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Kennedys keep it in the family

Sunshine Coast sailors were among the big winners at Sail Mooloolaba’s week­long festival of sailing in June.
In minimal wind on Sunday, Buddina’s Kennedy family stole the show in the Laser Radial class with Mitch, the under‑19 national champion, taking first place ahead of his sister Madi, who represented Australia at last year’s Youth Olympics, and father Mark.
Later, Mitchell Kennedy steered his talented young crew of James Scott, 15, from Sunshine Coast Grammar, and sisters Jacinta, 14, and Elyse Ainsworth, 12, from St Andrews to victory over Matthew Flinders Anglican Col­lege in the final in front of The Wharf Tavern.
The Flinders team, skippered by Kennedy’s younger sister Madison (the current Australian Laser 4.7 women’s champion), included one of the sport’s most exciting new­comers, 11‑year‑old Max Quirk, and Andrew Meligonis, 13, and Lachlan Young, 15.
Spectators at The Wharf were treated to ma­noeuvres at point‑blank range as the siblings jostled for supremacy over each other and the skilful Noosa Yacht and Row­ing Club team led by current Aus­tralian SB3 women’s representa­tive Ali Blundell.
Each sailor on the Noosa boat, including Ali and Harry Robilliard, both 17, Natasha Steiger, 14, and Connor Williams, 12, is an in­structor in the Noosa club’s Youth­sail program.

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Solo Challenge

Ever since Scott Cavanough stepped out of sailing his small snub-nose Sabot on Waterloo Bay he had a career vision to race and cruise on the World’s more demanding ocean voyages.
When he was not sleeping in his warm and dry bedroom in the bayside suburb of Wynnum he was braving the cold elements steering maxi yachts including the replica of the 1937 America’s Cup winner Ranger on a trans-Atlantic voyage to compete in J Class sailing regattas.
The 29-year-old has completed more transatlantic crossings than most other Australian master mariners but he feels his personal logbook will not be complete until he contests the gruelling mini Transat.
This race over 4,500nm from La Rochelle (France) to San Salvador (Brazil) has been dominated by either American or French  sailors in the past and Scott Cavanough remains determined to become the first Australian to win the classic test of solo racing at the helm of his baby 6.5m yacht Skippy.
Scott Cavanough.He is presently in France preparing his New Zealand designed and Brisbane built challenger for a series of qualifying races in the cold and stormy climate of the North Sea.
During the next few months Skippy which carries the Boxing Kangaroo emblem on her battle flag will continue to contest major events in England and France to be fully prepared for the mini Trans Atlantic starting in September.
Skippy has been nominated to contest a major qualifying race on the North Sea next month where Scott Cavanough will share the helming skills with solo globe sailor Jessica Watson.
Jessica who will be in England to fulfil a promise to contest the Around The Isle of Wight race and the international Cowes Week with her friend Mike Perham has plans in place to compete in a future mini Transatlantic solo race.
“What I did going around the world was more like cruising … this is a full on race and I’m excited about it,” she said.