By Jena Carr
Wooden boats will dock in Geelong for the long weekend for the biennial Wooden Boat Festival, a celebration of many years of sailing.
The festival takes place every two years and features many old-style boats displayed at the Royal Geelong Yacht Club from March 9 to 11, with events starting at 9am each day.
Event Chair Dr Paul Buchholz said the festival would feature many activities and entertainment for the public, with the Passage Race coming into Geelong on Saturday around 2pm.
“It’s basically a community minded effort we’re putting into this whole thing and it’s something out of the ordinary that the yacht club does,” he said.
“It’s an age-old thing of getting these boats together and putting them in a situation where people can view them and see the beauty of these boats compared to the plastic boats of today.”
Dr Buchholz said he looked forward to seeing people enjoying the festival’s atmosphere and the many tall ships, couta boats, classic yachts, rowing and motor boats on display.
“We’ve got a couple of wooden boat builders that are showing of their wares and how they do things to these boats and how they make the woodwork exceptional,” he said.
“We also got a rope-making exercise and a knot maker, which are things from the past, a pirate hat display, and a rough and ready boat build.
“We’ve got teams on Saturday that will build some rough boats in about two hours, they’ll decorate them on Sunday and then on Monday they’ll paddle these boats in a competition.”
Visit woodenboatfestivalgeelong.com.au for more information about the Wooden Boat Festival’s activities and entertainment.
