Champion veteran takes to home waters again

ONE of Tasmania’s most famous racing yachts, the 21-foot restricted class boat Tassie Too (affectionately referred to as “TT”), will once again grace the waters of Hobart’s River Derwent this afternoon.

It will be the first sail on the Derwent in more than a decade for the 90-year old recordwinning Forster Cup veteran.

The boat and her crew are scheduled to leave her berth at the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania about 11am.

The beautiful Huon and King Billy pine vessel will have a lively sail along the Battery Point shoreline where, back in 1927, the “TT” was built.

“TT” was designed and skippered by the late W. P. “Skipper” Batt, along with Alfred Blore and John Tarleton, and built by Charlie Lucas and “Chips” Gronfors.

Descendants of the designer, builders, early skippers and crew will sail the boat today, with Kenn Batt and Greg Muir sharing the helming.

Today’s occasion is due to the untiring efforts of the notfor-profit Friends of Tassie Too (FOTT) association, aided by a number of businesses and individuals in returning the vessel to Tasmania, and undertaking essential maintenance.

Tassie Too was a standout at the national competition for 21-footers, the Forster Cup, winning the prestigious interstate contest a record 10 times between 1928 and 1952.

Built without caulked seams, the edges of the planks on “TT” were bruised and then tightly fitted to the next. When launched, the water expanded the bruised seams and sealed the joints, thus creating a much smoother surface than the regular caulked seams of the other 21-footers. This, combined with the underwater shape of “TT”, gave superior boat speed as well as greater upwind sailing abilities.

Batt won the Forster Cup six times between 1925 and 1938, the last at the age of 57. His brother Harry later skippered Tassie Too, winning the cup four times while his son Neall was victorious twice.