Royal thanks for yacht repairs

Princess Anne wanted to visit New Zealand to personally thank the people who made the yacht shipshape again. Picture / Richard Robinson

Auckland's marine industry received a right royal thank you for its work restoring the historic yacht Gipsy Moth IV when Princess Anne flew into the country yesterday.

Queen Elizabeth II's only daughter made a brief visit to the Emirates Team New Zealand shed where repairs to the classic 53ft timber ketch were carried out following its grounding in a French Polynesia atoll on April 28.

The boat was salvaged and shipped to Westhaven, where a team of boat builders rebuilt the starboard side, repairing the rudder, keel, electrics and electronics - all in less than four weeks.

The yacht made maritime history in 1966-67 when Sir Francis Chichester achieved the fastest solo circumnavigation in the small vessel, sailing from Plymouth to Sydney and back via Cape Horn in just 274 days.

The record rebuilding means the yacht can be present at celebrations in Australia this week of Sir Francis' Sydney stopover 40 years ago. Crew and yacht will be received at a gala dinner attended by Princess Anne, who is patron of the educational and environmental trust sailing Gipsy Moth around the world.

But first, the Princess wanted to visit New Zealand to personally thank the people who made the yacht shipshape again.

She made no speeches nor grand entrances yesterday, preferring to keep things "low key" as one media minder noted.

Amid the flash of cameras, the Princess mixed and mingled, talking to the antipodeans of netball and keel boxes.

Bob Wilson, project manager of the Gipsy Moth restoration, said the Princess was very friendly. She asked him about the project, particularly about the team's handle on a traditional method of boat building.

"I just really told her I was that old, I knew how to handle it."

A royal visit was furthest from their minds when they embarked on the project, he said.

"I think having the Princess come down here and thank us is unbelievable, to be honest. It's something that mostly only happens once in a lifetime."

Jamie Bruce, one of the boat builders, said it was an honour to meet with royalty, but that still paled in comparison to working on a boat "made out of six plies of mahogany.

"But it is nice to see someone down here, from up there, you know, royalty, queen of the flag and all."

Princess Anne also visited the Auckland International Seafarers Centre. The Princess, who is also the group's president, helped the society celebrate its 100th anniversary.

The Princess Royal is here to attend the two-day closing sessions of the 2006 Emerging Pacific Leaders Dialogue starting tomorrow.

The conference, attended by delegates from New Zealand, Australia and 18 other Pacific nations, began in Brisbane on June 28 for three days followed by study tours to 10 different Pacific locations.

Governor-General Dame Silvia Cartwright hosted a reception at Government House, Auckland, last night for Princess Anne and conference delegates. While in Auckland Princess Anne will also take part in events with organisations in which she has a personal interest, such as Save the Children, Mission to Seamen and Riding for the Disabled.

The Princess flies to Sydney on Wednesday.