Classic Australian Wooden Power Boats
Reader's Boats
Torea
Torea,
which has some sort of aboriginal "Dreamtime" meaning, was ordered from the Lewis Brothers by an accountant
in Unley, Adelaide, in the early sixties. I am told the original owner used the
boat in the riverland for recreational use and it was never raced. I am not sure
where it was used, nor the original owner's name. It still is baffling why the
original owner would order a raceboat for recreational use. The owner had the
boat until work commitments forced him to sell. It was advertised in the
Adelaide Advertiser for sale in 1970.
The next owner would keep the boat for 14
years. When purchased, the boat was re-varnished and re-stained. It was used
extensively around the Point Turton area of the York Peninsula, South Australia,
and occasionally at Barmera in the riverland with many people skiing behind the
boat over the years, which due to the
torque
of the early 313 Chrysler V8, could easily pull 5 skiers. A regular group of
people used the boat, until interests changed and the owner decided to sell.
Torea only ever raced once at Stansbury, South Australia and won a local
trophy. The boat was always kept in immaculate condition. Every time it was used
the engine was flushed with rainwater and the hull washed down. When not used, a
sprinkler was placed up the front of the boat to keep the planks swelled. The
only problem that the owner ever had with the boat was a thrust bearing in the
engine which needed replacement.
The boat was sold in the early eighties to a
local who, after using the boat a few times, removed the deck for some reason. I
am told the deck, front windscreen, deck fittings and original wings were taken
to a rubbish dump.
Torea
lay in pieces for years until a local offered the owner $400 for the boat with a
view to just buying the boat for the engine. The sale was done and the original engine
was transferred into another clinker boat. Torea remained in a shed at
Warooka.
The hull was spotted in the early nineties lying in the shed and
although purchased with a view to restoration, other commitments got in the way. Torea sat for
another 15 years in a shed, until the owner decided to sell.
The original trailer had seen better days, and
Torea was carefully hoisted onto a truck for the careful trip home.
Torea has not seen water in over 20 years.
The hull itself is in excellent condition, with no broken ribs or planks, and is
entirely original down to the hull stain.
The boat's new owner,
Bob Carter, will restore her back
to original. In terms of hardware, aside from the original windscreen
fittings, and front deck fittings the boat is complete. Many original photos of
the boat are available, which will be reproduced.
If anyone has any information regarding the boat,
please contact
Bob.