Eight bells for Australian designer Iain Oughtred
Renowned boat builder and designer Iain Oughtred died last week aged 84.
Iain grew up in Sydney sailing, building and designing fast dinghies from an early age. He spent six years racing boats like the National Gwen 12, designed by Charlie Cunningham. He ended up drawing the official plans for the Association.
John Fairfax from Australian Classic Dinghy Network wrote; ‘Iain was a champion sailor in a number of dinghy classes and Australian Champion twice in the Gwen 12 class with CLEMENTINE and MARY JANE in the early 1960’s before deciding in later life to move to Scotland to explore his roots there. He became one of the greatest designers of traditional sailing dinghies and his plans were so beautifully drawn that they were considered works of art in their own right.’
Iain Oughtred sailing his Gwen 12 CLEMENTINE C1960’s
In 1989, Iain moved to Scotland. He arrived originally to race 10 Sq M Canoes, but never left, living in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Findhorn. He continued to build more prototypes of his designs, and developed a series of double-enders. which he sailed in the many raids (small boat cruises in company). Iain moved to Isle of Skye in 2001 and continued designing, building and sailing.
The Oughtred Boats catalogue is worth exploring. The vessels he designed and drew were of Scottish and Norwegian working boat descent and well known for being beautifully proportioned. His popular boats include the Caledonia Yawl, Ness Yawl, Grebe, Tammie Norrie, Shearwater, Arctic Tern and the Acorn skiff. Several were on the beach at the Inverloch Classic Dinghy Regatta a few weeks ago. Iain’s boats will be sailing again at the Geelong Wooden Boat Festival in March including a 17ft Dory skiff with its wee balanced lug sail. The little red Tammie Norrie below is FIVE BELLS. Michael Golding has done many miles with her around Port Phillip and the Gippsland Lakes. Here Michael sails with Tricia O’Brien who is normally skippering her Couta boat LUCY C31.
FIVE BELLS at Inverloch in 2018
Iain on helm
Iain was best known for his St Ayles Skiff, which was the result of a Scottish Fisheries Museum design brief in 2008. He was to create a boat for four oars and a cox, buildable from a kit prepared to Iain’s drawings by Alec Jordan of Jordan Boats.
The St Ayles has spawned a worldwide community of amateur boatbuilders and rowers. Here in Williamstown a group of local women, the WillySkiffies, ordered a kit in 2017. With guidance from Ferdi and Wendy Darley, they learnt boatbuilding and sea-woman-ship skills along the way. This is exactly what Iain had in mind for his lapstrake ply technique. THURSDAY was launched in November 2019 with much fanfare and a Scottish Pipe Band. She’s doing a raid on the Gippsland Lakes this weekend. The Skiffies are rowing the 110km from Sale to the Paynesville Classic Boat Rally.
all ‘C’ words. Community, Civility, Collaboration and ‘F’ is for Fun.
The Scottish Coastal Rowing group wrote,
‘All of us who row in St Ayles Skiffs owe a quietly spoken Australian boat designer a big debt of gratitude. He introduced thousands of people to the pleasures of building traditional boat designs in clinker construction, but the St Ayles is his most successful design with 400 built so far. For the last 23 years Iain has lived in Isle of Skye, north west Scotland. Many of us have met him at St Ayles Skiff World Championships, Portsoy Traditional Boat Festival and Toberonochy Small Boat Muster. He was a good shanty singer and fond of poetry as well as a fine draftsman and a superb boatbuilder. His philosophical stance was aligned with the Quakers. Perhaps unexpectedly he was also fond of fast planing dinghies, the wooden Mosquito aircraft and classic cars. In the evening of 21 February 2024, in Broadford, Skye, he slipped away on his last voyage. Rest in peace Iain, we will miss you.’
Author Nic Compton, who wrote the book, Iain Oughtred a life in wooden boats. ‘Back in the 1980s, Iain pioneered the concept of building traditional boats in epoxy-ply construction. His designs combine sweet lines with a meticulous attention to detail and a delightful drawing style. He achieved a lasting legacy, but always remained modest about his achievements.
His sister Liz paid tribute:
