THE TIDE IS TURNING

Here they are... the winners of our 2022 Classic Boat Awards, as voted for by thousands. As always, every entry lists the boat’s designer and builder, and we are always happy to paint this holy duo in the lustrous varnish of praise. But, as I say every year, and make no apology for doing so again, you could argue that the most important person is missing from that list; and that is the owner. That’s deliberate: some owners don’t like to be named. And while the achievement of the task belongs to the designer and builder, let’s also not forget the electrician, the plumber, the rigger, the painter, the varnisher, sometimes the interior designer, the sailmaker, the blockmaker, the cleat caster, the measurer, the engineer, the systems guy, the tank makers, the epoxy manufacturer, the sawyer, the tool-maker, the old hand who teaches the way of the saw, the apprentice who cracks the jokes at lunchtime. A wise man said that if you want to grow an apple, you have first to create a universe. Well, this universe is created by those mad enough to own a classic boat, and I thank them all for it.