Messing about in boats a passion for 81-year-old

John Weller has spent time this week at the Boat Show, where historic photos are a feature. Photo / Chris Gorman

John Weller has not missed an Auckland Boat Show for 51 years.

The 81-year-old was this week at the show, which is marking its 60th year at Auckland's ASB Showgrounds.

He said boating and water had been his life and even his family had "had to belong to boating, to belong to me", he joked.

Mr Weller has owned about six different types of boats over the years, but after selling his last water-ski boat 10 years ago, decided to try something different.

"It was a bit sad that I had no boats in the water ... so I went and bought myself a jet ski."

After having "great fun" with it, he traded it in and bought an old fishing boat six years ago.

This year's show features a nostalgic trip for enthusiasts, with a photographic journey back in time thanks to images stored in the Herald's archives.

The show's marketing manager, Mike Rose, said vessels had come a long way since the 1950s, through to the introduction of fibreglass in the 1960s and aluminium in the 1980s.

He said 60 per cent of the boats today would be aluminium as opposed to fibreglass.

Mr Rose said the most expensive on display at the show this week were those by Meridian, with one fetching $796,000.