Youngsters repair old yachts

A Rangitīkei school principal has got an enriching return on the six old yachts he paid $100 for; leadership skills and a joy of sailing that are proving priceless for his pupils.

South Mākirikiri School near Marton bought the second-hand optimist yachts at the start of the year, which the children soon restored and learned to sail in at nearby Dudding Lake.

But the trailer the school used to transport the yachts and another trailer were stolen from the school on Saturday night.

The yachts had been a huge hit with the children, who spent last term getting them ready to sail.

Principal Greg Allan bought the yachts, which were missing sails and had a few holes, online for $100.

Senior children were divided into groups of four to restore the yachts, then learned how to sail them, including tying knots.

Allan said they had been passing the skills onto the younger pupils, so were learning about both sailing and leadership.

Pupils Sam Thomas, 12, and Morgan Rayner, 12, were in one of the groups who had restored a yacht, doing water blasting, fixing fibreglass and timber, and painting.

Morgan said they first thought the yachts were unfixable and Sam said it was a real challenge, but they were both happy with the boat they restored.

They picked up how to sail quickly and both said they were experts now, having done a few hours of sailing each time they went to the lake.

Sam said it was cool to teach younger pupils and be able to pass the boats down once they finished school.

‘‘You get to work as a team to make it happen,’’ he said. ‘‘If you don’t work as a team it’s going to take a long time.’’

Allan said the children had enjoyed the experience and had taken to sailing well.

The first time they went to the lake he had a boat to pick up any children who got into difficulty, and the weed in the lake sometimes made it hard for the children as it caught the yachts’ centre boards.

The real sour point of the venture has been the theft of the trailer the school used to transport the yachts.

It was stolen, along with another trailer, from the school on Saturday night. Fortunately the children had unloaded the yachts, so they weren’t on the trailer when it was stolen.

Allan said the theft was disappointing, and they would need to find a new trailer.

On a brighter note the school has been gaining sponsorship for yacht parts, and one of the children’s tasks is painting sponsors’ names on the boats.

WARWICK SMITH/STUFF SAM THOMAS South Mākirikiri School pupils Sam Thomas, left, and Morgan Rayner say they are sailing experts now after learning to sail their optimist yacht at Dudding Lake. South Mākirikiri School pupil Morgan Rayner out on the water on Dudding Lake.

WARWICK SMITH/STUFF South Mākirikiri School principal Greg Allan helps pupil Fono Bason assemble the rigging on one of the yachts.

WARWICK SMITH/STUFF South Mākirikiri School pupils sailing on Dudding Lake with the optimist yachts they restored.