Blake's death leaves Viaduct crowd in sombre mood

On Friday, they were shocked.

Yesterday, the grief among the crowds at the Viaduct Harbour had changed to something else: a realisation Sir Peter Blake was indeed gone and a determination to do something to remember him.

Despite the hundreds of people gathered in restaurants and cafes around the Viaduct, the mood was subdued. There was no music.

Jo Allen from Christchurch had made a special visit to the Team New Zealand headquarters.

"It was a huge shock ... it's an honour to have had him as part of New Zealand's history. This was always home for him and he didn't forget us.

"I would like to see something down here [a memorial]. This is where his dream initially started. I think a name change would be good too."

John Clapham of Howick said: "We tend to lack icons in this country ... Blake's a man of our times.

"Going the way he has done he will be more immortalised than if he quietly faded away in his nineties."

At the Team New Zealand headquarters in Auckland, hundreds of mourners came to pay their final respects, filing quietly past piles of slowly wilting wreaths, some draped with Sir Peter's lucky red socks.

Hillcrest resident Jim Ferguson said the violent nature of Sir Peter's death was a cruel blow for a person who had been working to promote conservation through his trips. "It wasn't a fitting end to his life, it was a waste.

"He just made a wrong move."

Sixteen-year-old Emily Buddicom of Remuera said it was only after reading about Sir Peter's death that she realised "what we are going to miss".

"I think it would be nice to name something around here after him and to carry on his efforts caring for the environment."

Graeme Webb, from Whangamata, thought the measure of Sir Peter Blake was the Viaduct Harbour itself.

Like the Latin obituary for the famous - if you require a monument, look about you - Mr Webb pointed to the Viaduct.

"It's a marvellous asset. It's our front door."

His wife, Lynne Webb, had come to the Viaduct to "sit and contemplate". Her thoughts were with Sir Peter's family as they prepare for his funeral in Emsworth, Britain, where he and his wife, Lady Pippa, made their home.

"He will always be a son of New Zealand regardless of where his resting place is."

Many spoke of the subdued atmosphere at the Viaduct, the hub of activity for the America's Cup, which Sir Peter helped to bring to NZ after Black Magic's victory in 1995 off San Diego.

Maureen Grimes of Oratia said; "We usually hear music. It's not the same party atmosphere."

She wanted to see a prominent part of the waterfront named after Sir Peter.

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