The show offers opportunities to learn about the boating lifestyle including the new RS Aero dinghy. Photo / Supplied
The show offers opportunities to learn about the boating lifestyle including the new RS Aero dinghy. Photo / Supplied
The Hutchwilco New Zealand Boat Show takes Auckland to the water this weekend.
No question, Auckland hit the jackpot for recreational boating: two harbours, kilometres of coastline, beaches, islands, marine life. It's no wonder so many of us take to the water.
And, when the weather starts to turn a bit more wintry, Aucklanders turn to the Boat Show -- and have done for more than half a century. The first Auckland boat show was held at Easter 1956. It's had several guises since then, but continues to display and promote everything to do with water sports, whatever floats - or powers - your boat.
Mike Rose, spokesman for what is now known as the Hutchwilco New Zealand Boat Show, says as times have changed, so has the show. A concerted effort has been made to make the show more than just a (big) boys' day out - 16-year-olds and under have free entry, kids can splash around in a heated pool and try snorkelling and kayaking at the Youthtown Aqua Fun Zone, and displays are geared towards the whole family having fun on the water.
"In the 60s and 70s the show would be on for 10 or 11 days at a time, and there was very little else to do. The first time retail was allowed on a Sunday in New Zealand was at the show," Rose says.
"People have less leisure time these days, and now it would be a big deal for a guy to just disappear for half a day to go to the show and miss out on family time. So now we have the Aquafun zone, competitions and other things for kids. Hopefully they can get enthused about the boating lifestyle so that when they grow up, they'll come back to get a boat themselves and bring their kids along."
The types of watercraft on display have also changed, from wooden runabouts to fibreglass and now alloy, and with the addition of newfangled inventions such as stand-up paddleboards, pedal-propelled fishing kayaks and composite racing dinghies.
The Boating Guy
'Boating guy' Bruce Duncan will host seminars at the Boat Show. Photo / Supplied
Offering advice to newbie boaties at the show and those looking to get more out of their time on the water will be Bruce Duncan, aka "The Boating Guy". Duncan has just hooked up on a decent-sized snapper when Weekend calls, but he doesn't miss a beat. He manages to land the fish, admire it -- presumably kill it -- and get his line back in the water with barely a pause in the interview.
"My life has been spent almost entirely on the water, from fishing in 10-foot dinghies right up to 70-foot game fishing boats, as well as a lot of yacht racing and deliveries, and powerboat racing," he says. "I've also spent a lot of that time trying to get people to go out there and enjoy boating."
Duncan is keen to share his wealth of knowledge and experience with all-comers, but especially people who want to get out into boating but don't know where to start. He will also give seminars on two of the biggest questions new fishers have: where do I go to catch fish, and what do I do with them afterwards?
Duncan is particularly keen on getting kids into boating and fishing.
"If you ask a kid about the first ball they had they won't remember, but they will never forget their first fish.
"Getting out on the water is good for so many skills, but also for gaining an appreciation of Mother Nature. It's the greatest way to get kids away from their smartphones and iPads."
There'll also be trout fishing experts from Fish and Game Rotorua promoting the world-class trout fishing on offer in the region. Kids are fascinated by the live trout aquarium and the officers are keen to show family-friendly ways to get started, including offering a fishing starter packs for only $5.
Sail-power
Hutchwilco New Zealand Boat Show. Photo / Supplied
Keen sailors will be interested to see the new RS Aero at the show, a new single-handed dinghy which looks set to challenge the hegemony of the Laser. The Aero is built from carbon fibre, weighs 36kg, and can be sailed by skippers from 55-95kg, using one of three different-size rigs. Launched at last year's London Boat Show, more than 750 Aeros have been sold so far, mostly in Europe.
Three-time sailing Olympian Dan Slater of The Water Shed says the British-built Aero is designed to appeal to those who want to sail a one-design class but don't want to compete with professionals in the Laser class.
"The Aero is not just a youth class - it's targeted at club racing, and it will eventually be an international class, so it can hold world championships.
"It's a pretty neat package that caters for people who want to have some fun racing but don't want to spend the whole time being beaten by full-time sailors. It's like what the Laser used to be."
The Aero has similar dimensions to the Laser, but is a fraction of the weight and offers better performance downwind, Slater says.
The Water Shed will also have easy-to-sail Hobie catamarans and pedal-powered fishing kayaks on display at the show.
Enter the Taniwha
The Taniwha is a wet sub. Photo / Supplied
One of the biggest advancements in kayak design in recent years has been the introduction of boats that are pedalled, not paddled, leaving your hands free for fishing. Drawing on similar technology, a team of bright sparks at the University of Auckland have been working on the southern hemisphere's first human-powered racing submarine. The 3-metre long sub will be on display at the Dive NZ magazine stand in Hall One, with the team standing by to answer questions.
Project leader Iain Anderson, of the university's Bioengineering Institute's Biomimetics Lab, says that rather than being driven by a propeller, Taniwha has moveable fins like a fish, top and bottom, and a tail for steering. "In a way it resembles a leatherjacket," he says.
Taniwha is a wet sub, so the interior is not sealed or pressurised, and the driver wears scuba gear. It can "swim" at around 3.5 metres per second (around 7 knots).
The Taniwha team are gearing up for their second International Submarine Race, in Maryland, United States, in June. At the sub's maiden outing, in the UK last year, it was named "best performing non-propeller-driven sub".
"We had a lot of fun, did a lot of crashing," says Anderson. "We had a bit of trouble controlling it, but we've learned from that experience and we have applied those lessons when preparing for this next race."
