THE JOHN SPENCER STORY
– CHAMPION OF THE AMATEUR BOAT BUILDER
A COLLABORATION BETWEEN PETER TAIT AND THE TINA RAWA TRUST
IT’S PERFECTLY appropriate that the book about John Spencer, New Zealand’s yacht design genius of light plywood boats in the days we all built our own boats, is a slim volume. Also entirely appropriate that it’s a real yachtie’s no-nonsense book, containing the images that really matter – detailed line drawings, profiles, sections, scantlings and sail plans. Just like John himself would have said: “See for yerself, mate.”
If laconic on the extraordinary racing record of his boats, again it’s in the showing of it that matters – like the legendary photo of winning the Trans-Pacific racing, crossing the line under a full comfortable in the Bass Strait in the Sydney-Hobart Race in 60-knots of breeze.
