A saunter through the ships of yore

KNYSNA NEWS - The Knysna Antique & Classic Boatshow this Saturday, 6 October will feature over 20 vessels of all descriptions on the lawn in front of the Turbine Hotel, and another seven on the jetty in front of Tapas restaurant.

"My favourite of these will be Perseverance, a working steamboat from the Wilderness area," organiser Cameron Searle told KPH earlier this week. ''After missing last year's show, she's now fully operational and will be puffing up and down the Thesen Harbour channel come Saturday.''

As usual, there will aso be new boats to see and buy.

A bevy of beauties
According to Jock McConnachie, this year's show will include two beautifully built and restored powerboats namely the Thesen Industries-built Viking model Il Silencio and her sister boat the 1940s "backseat-driven" Raven. Also on show will be the majestic Thames skiff Victoria as well as two graceful gaff-rigged sailboats – Anthena, built in Knysna by the Lucky Bean Company in the mid-1980s; and the Gael, a Dascombe-designed yacht of elegant proportions, both of which have often graced the Knysna estuary with their presence. Another prospective showstopper will be a spectacular dragon boat, built for the SA Champs Canoe Polo held at the Knysna Quays in March as a fun tug-of-war event.

It's all in the knots
Upstairs at Sirocco, in the Project Bar, there will be a Persian carpet display with a presentation by Taahir Mall at 12:00 entitled "Antique and classic carpets" that is likely to be informative as well as entertaining. Persian carpets and classic boats have more in common than first meets the eye. Both require a good knowledge of knots for one thing.

The dragon boat is the creation of Jacek Orzechowski.

Later, at 15:00 also in the Project Bar, Dr Louw Claassens will present on the work of the Knysna Basin Project team, the NPO that will be receiving funds raised by the boat show this year. Entry is free, but generous sponsors and exhibitors have made this donation possible.

Indalo will display a colourful range of baggies and waterproof sail bags and Funky Clothing will offer an eye-watering range of sport and leisure gear.

For the first time, boat show keyrings will be on offer with matching logos and the nearby Burger Exchange will offer a "Boatshow Burger" with an extra discount to keyring holders. The show starts at 10:00 and will close at 16:00 for the much anticipated All Black return rugby match live on screen in Tapas or the Turbine bar.

Perserverance, a working steamboat from the Wilderness area. After missing last year's show, she's now fully operational and will be puffing up and down the Thesen Harbour channel come Saturday.