Harold Kidd

In December 1898 a major yachting event was held in Auckland, the first with any true international content. The North Shore Native Regatta and Carnival was held alongside the Auckland Industrial and Mining Exhibition which showcased our very respectable technology in those areas.

In an international context, perhaps the most extraordinary feature of the Auckland-built raters I have described so far in this series, and those to be built in the next decade, is that the majority of those built in timber still exist, and many in original racing fettle.

However, by 1895 the 5-raters were attracting even more attention than their smaller stablemates. Where the 2½-raters had become handy 35 to 36ft harbour racers with spartan cruising accommodation, the 5-raters were larger yachts, 10 feet longer, and capable of racing in First Class competition as well as cruising coastwise in some comfort.

New Zealand was by no mea...

Over two hundred years ag...