A SCRATCH-BUILD BOAT Competition involves teams of 4 to 6 people building small wooden dinghies from scratch, decorating them and then two members of the team paddling them over a short course to determine seaworthiness

cut

stitch & glue

click on images for larger versions decorate

race

These competitions have been a major feature of most Wooden Boat Shows throughout Australia for many years. The Woooden Boat Association of North Queensland has run them every year at the North Queensland Wooden Boat Show in Townsville since its inception in 1995. One of those events was run in conjunction with the "Opening of the Strand" celebrations in 1999. We also ran a special event last year (2001) in Pioneer Park, on the Ross River, in conjunction with the "Year of the Volunteer" celebrations.

Recent advances have allowed this to be a one day event. Traditionally the boats were built on the first day of a Show and the glue left to harden overnight before decorating and racing the next day. Now, fast-curing glue and fast-drying paints allow the boats to be built in the morning, decorated after lunch and "raced" later that same afternoon. Indeed, at the "Year of the volunteer" event, the teams did not arrive until 11 am and were on the water by 4.30 pm with some of the best decorated boats we have seen.

These competitions have great public appeal and have recieved good media coverage.

In our experience, even the most un-motivated teams very quickly get into the competitive spirit. The skills required are minimal and are easily learned at the time. These include marking out the plywood sheets, cutting with a hand saw, drilling holes with a battery-powered drill, stitching the wooden components together with nylon fishing line, waterproofing the joins with epoxy glue and strengthening them with fibre-glass tape.

Some contestants may benefit considerably from this training in itself. To ensure a good "race", supervisory personnel try to ensure contestants produce boats which will at least float at the start!

Artiistic skills come to the fore in decorating the boats using bright acrylic paints. Contestants continue to amaze us with the range of themes they devise, be they personal, contemporary or classical.

Three prizes can be awarded - first built, best decorated and winner of the "race"