BELK’S MODELS: A MINIATURE PASSION

Across Down

Besides his career as a reticulation design draughtsman and his voluntary work with the TY&PBC, Belk’s other major interest is model boats. He first started racing model Marblehead yachts in the early 1970s with Tauranga Model Marine & Engineers Club.

The Marblehead is a development class, 50-inches long and with an 800-square-inch sail area, but when it became too expensive to remain competitive, he took up model powerboat racing.

Over the years he’s built and raced many different models, mostly 1/8th scale unlimited hydroplanes. These are all based on scale models of real race boats and, once built and registered, no one else can build another to the same design. For example, Belk’s built and raced scale versions of local New Zealand hydroplanes such as Graham Zander’s Presto and Selwyn Coker’s TP2.

In the early days he used Glowie engines

– a 10.5cc two-stroke running on methanol, sometimes with a little added nitro for more welly, but these days he uses two-strokes running on standard petrol.

Costs are the main reason for the change – Glowies cost $700 to $800 and can burn up $40 worth of fuel in an afternoon’s racing, whereas the two-stroke costs are $350 and $8 respectively. Stock engines produce around 3.5hp but can be hotted-up to crank out 6.5hp at 18,000rpm.

These model race boats aren’t toys: a stock engine can push the vessel to 100kph, and up to

INSET Belk’s model Selway Fisher steamboat is a credit to its builder.

LEFT Model roundnose T1 hydroplane for stock 25cc engines 120kph is on tap if the engine’s tweaked. As the only controls are the throttle and rudder, careful balancing of the boat is essential – or they lift off and crash.

“That’s the tricky bit. You’ve got to watch the winds, they [the boats] give the signs – they start to nod. And if you ignore that they take off and they can go very high.”

Belk’s also an enthusiastic fan of traction and steam engines and two years ago started building a model steam-boat. Starting with the plans for a Selway Fisher 8.5m launch (which he scaled down to 1.4m), he’s built everything by hand apart from the engine and boiler.

The model’s hull is built from 3mm spruce – glassed both sides with 100-gram GRP and strengthened with carbon ribs. Miniature Steam in Australia supplied the engine and boiler. The boiler is heated with camping gas and runs at 45psi with a safety valve set to pop at 60psi.

The engine has a 19mm x 19mm bore and stroke, side valves and is double-action, turning over at 150/200 rpm. It’s no toy – it produces enough horsepower to power a 2m dinghy. The model has four controls: rudder, regulator, forward/reverse and, most importantly, the whistle.

The model’s an absolute credit to its builder.

LEFT A scale model of Selwyn Coker’s GP2.

to step up. “And 30 years later I’m still looking after her. As they say, a volunteer is a person who never understood the original question.”

Besides skippering and maintaining Harry Highet, Belk’s been running TY&PBC’S centreboard fleet racing. This means running races for P Class, Optimist, Starling, Laser and Zephyr fleets every weekend during summer and bi-weekly during winter. Along with partner Bill Whitiskie who’s worked with him for years, Belk’s also out there on Wednesday nights overseeing multihull and keeler racing.

For those who don’t know Tauranga Harbour, its numerous channels, sandbars and strong tides make for tricky yacht racing and the race officer requires a broad skill set. After carefully considering the weather, he’ll take angles, distances, tides and channels into account when setting the courses.

“I try to set a course with good angles, to provide the kids with the best sailing environment in which to learn. I like to think when they race elsewhere, they’ve really developed their sailing skills.”

One key attribute of a good race officer is knowing when to continue racing and when to pull the pin. Belk communicates his thinking to all competitors at the start of the season; less than 20 knots of breeze no issue; 20 to 25 depends on tides and sea state; once over 25 knots steady then racing’s off. His reasoning is that in winds over 25 knots it’s just a battle for survival.

He backs himself with his calls. “I’m a volunteer and I’m not getting paid, but I’m always fully aware that if 7. At right angles to centre line of vessel (7) 8. Go _____ – change to opposite tack (5) 10. Vertical edge of square sail or aft edge of triangular sail (5)

11. _____ dinghy – built with edges of hull planks overlapping each other (aka lapstrake) (7)

12. Marine and coastal birds of cormorant family (5)

14. Surname of late NZ sailor in photo (5) 15. _____ seas – tall and short waves caused by current being in opposite direction to wind (5)

16. Walked through shallow sea by shore (5) 19. Hung limply like sails on day without wind (7)

21. Small bay or arm of sea on coastline (5) 23. _____ knot – used for tying fish hook (5)

24. Relating to open sea (7) 1. Makes boat hull seams watertight (6)

2. False keel on boat used for protection in event of grounding (4)

3. Is swept by currents and tides onto shore (6,2) 4. Crossbar of anchor (5)

5. ____ dolphin – small critically endangered NZ sea creature (4)

6. Waterfront area where ships are built, fitted out or repaired (8)

9. “Ship-rigged” vessel carries _____ or more masts with square sails (5)

13. Sea _____ – marine polyps with ring of tentacles around mouth (8)

14. Nautical knots forming non-slipping loops at ends of ropes (8)

15. Vessel has port and starboard ones (5)

17. Discover presence of underwater object using sonar, eg (6) 18. Foolish person who ignores safety precautions on boat (5) 20. Another word for boat spar (4)

22. Shipping ____ – regular route for vessels (4)

there’s a serious incident it’s my responsibility. Once I’ve made a decision, I stick to it. Of course you get the unhappy campers, but I have to consider those in the low/middle part of the fleet.”

Thankfully Yachting New Zealand (YNZ) has developed a simplified race management programme, but like much else in life it’s the grey areas that cause the issues. Belk’s guided by over-riding principles of fairness and honesty. “You have to be consistent and fair. And if you make a mistake, own up to it and if that means a restart, then do it.”

Besides the weather, his other major occupational hazard is parents. Most are great but some can get too wound up. Beside a thick skin, Belk has a system for troublesome parents: “If people aren’t happy, then they’ve got the job.”

While he really enjoys working with the TY&PBC centreboard fleet, he finds the added responsibility of Nationals too intensive. “I don’t enjoy that sort of pressure.”

Over the years his biggest enjoyment has come from seeing green fleet youngsters progress into world class internationals. While many TY&PBC youngsters have gone onto greater things, four that really stand out are Peter Burling, Sam and Molly Meech, and Jason Saunders.

“It was a real buzz to see Pete turn up with the America’s Cup and let me handle it. He’s such an unassuming bloke and always happy to answer questions.”

Belk’s unstinting voluntary contributions have won him recognition; a TY&PBC life membership in 2000; a YNZ Service Award in 2010; and a Sport Bay of Plenty Service Award for Yachting in 2019. “They all came out of left field, I wasn’t expecting any of it.”

And after 30 years of running races and maintaining the Harry Highet are there any thoughts of retirement?

“Nah, I’ll keep doing it while I’m enjoying IT.”BNZ

Photos courtesy Warren Belk & John Macfarlane.