An oarsome milestone
AGROUP of Hobart rowing enthusiasts who are part of an unofficial club with no officebearers and no set rules created a sort of unofficial record last weekend — by meeting for a Saturday morning row on the Derwent for the 100th time.
The actual number of recreational rowers that have been meeting almost weekly since November 2014 has varied but they all share a passion for all that goes with a leisurely row in company come rain, hail or shine.
Most of the “unofficial club’’ members are owners of Derwent Skiffs or Derwent Raiders designed by one of Tasmania’s major boatbuilding success stories — Hobart-based Allan Witt designs. But the club welcomes anyone with a kayak or canoe with a yen for a row in company to join in.
The group meets on a small beach at Marieville Esplanade, Sandy Bay, at 9am and set off for a coffee shop destination that can vary from upriver under the bridge, across the river to the Eastern Shore or down towards Sandy Bay all depending on the weather.
Allan Witt, principal of Witt Designs said every so often the group decided to vary things a bit by setting off from New Norfolk to row to Bridgewater or to the Huon River.
“The organisation is delightfully loose with no membership issues or costs and are kept in touch via a weekly email with a weather forecast and photo of the previous week’s row,’’ he said.
The Derwent Skiffs and Derwent Raiders are lightweight boats designed by Allan Witt with sliding seats and set up like racing sculls but with an emphasis on safety and stability. For example, a key difference is that if a rower lets go of his or her oar, the boat remains stable.
Mr Witt said most had been built by owners from kits and most were wooden although a composite glass/foam/glass design was now available which could be built more quickly and fitted out with wooden deck and cockpit.
He said a round bilge Derwent Raider mould had been produced and a Derwent Skiff would soon be available. For more information contact Mr Witt on 0408 331 510. THE cyclone in Queensland last month caused havoc for thousands of people, not least to the owners of hundreds of boats lost or damaged in the winds and surging seas.
Operators of Australia’s largest provider of recreational boat insurance are still in the throes of assessing and settling claims arising from Cyclone Debbie’s passage and already have some pertinent advice for boat owner to help mitigate loss and damage in the face of extreme weather events.
Happily Tasmania is not affected by cyclones but it does face extreme weather.
“In terms of the number of boats damaged, claims lodged and the sheer devastation on the ground, Cyclone Debbie was the largest catastrophic weather event I’ve seen,” said Club Marine national claims technical manager Phil Johnson.
Mr Johnson has been with Club Marine for more than 38 years and in that time has seen plenty of major weather events affect the company’s members.
He headed a team of seven Club Marine catastrophic event specialists, which responded to Cyclone Debbie.
Airlie Beach and Hamilton Island were the hardest hit areas in terms of damage to Club Marine members’ craft and also marine infrastructure, including marinas, berths and moorings. The tremendously destructive 260km/h winds ripped boats from their berths, tore marina arms from their mountings and threw large boats onto the rocks as waves surged over marina protection walls.
Mr Johnson said much of the damage was the result of vessels colliding with each other and marina structures, while the high wind speeds also caused extreme exterior damage likened to “ultra highpowered sand-blasting”, according to one assessor.
He said Club Marine had monitored the progress of Debbie as the cyclone gathered strength off the Queensland coast and before it had even descended the company had issued alert notices to members in the likely affected areas via SMS and email.
And it is in relation to the early alerts advice that boat owners everywhere can gain hints.
According to Dave Hughes, Club Marine’s national assessing manager, while many boat owners went to great lengths to protect their vessels, some could have avoided damage by taking more effective preventative measures.
“We saw a lot of examples where owners could have been more proactive in their preparations,” he said.
“Simple things like stowing sails, removing clears, covers and canopies and stowing tenders could have prevented a lot of damage. And given the amount of notice we had with Debbie, owners in some areas could have relocated their vessels to safer locations.” A HOBART maritime club that makes a point of encompassing all types of boats within its membership will celebrate its 50th anniversary early next month.
The Geilston Bay Boat Club will celebrate the anniversary on May 14 with a cruise/sail for a fleet of club boats in the morning and a formal naming of the clubhouse after the club’s founder Len Edwards in the afternoon.
Mr Edwards was the club’s president and commodore for its first eight years.
The Geilston Bay Boat Club not only welcomes as members the owners of any watergoing vessels, it also has a name for welcoming visiting boats for many of its activities.
Much of the club’s activities centre around regular sailing days and summer twilight races as well as cruising events. ALL those Riviera luxury craft owners in Tasmania _ and the number is growing _ will share satisfaction in the company’s success in the 2017 Asia Boating Awards announced this month.
Riviera was the only Australian company to gain one of the top 26 awards winning the best sportscruiser over 13.7m with its 4800 Sport Yacht.
This announcement, on the eve of the Singapore Boat Show, was made at an awards ceremony run by Asia-Pacific Boating and China Boating magazines in Singapore.