Lady Pat History

The Lady Pat

Amongst Auckland’s best known amateur yacht builders are the Willetts family, For over a long period both father and sons have designed and built many fine Yachts. The sons, familiarly known to hundreds of yachtsmen as Trot and Farmer Willetts, commenced building small yachts when quite young men; Today in Lady Pat we can see a fine example of a much bigger vessel which was Constructed by Farmer in 1949.

She comes from the board of Mr. B. S. Woollacott while her sail plan and Interior layout were designed by Mr. Willetts. Lady Pat measures 30.2 feet overall, 26.6 feet on the waterline, 8.7feet beam, and 4.10 feet draught of water. Construction consisted of single skin planking of treated Oregon pine 1in. in thickness; decking of seven-eighths inch kauri pine, canvas covered; keel, stem, Horn timbers and deadwood of kauri pine; steam- bent mangeao timbers 1 ¾ in. x 1in. at 6in. centres. On her keel outside she carries 3 tons of lead ballast, and approximately 12 cwt. Of iron trimming ballast inside; displacement is 7 tons. On a 43-foot mast stepped on deck in a tabernacle, Lady Pat carries a lofty Bermudian sloop rig, with double headsails for cruising, and large lower and small flying jib for light weather. Total area of working sails is 663 square feet, and with large light weather jib about 720 square feet. There is no auxiliary power plant.

Below decks Lady Pat is comfortably fitted out with accommodation for 6 adults. She has 6.2 feet of headroom under the doghouse, and 5.10 feet under the main cabin top beams. The interior of the main cabin is lined with Australian hardboard finished in a flat enamel of a pastel shade. Her galley is installed with a bottle-gas stove. Mr. Willetts says: “The yacht was built by me in the backyard at Orakei, Taking about 20 months as a spare-time job.” “Lady Pat has a very good racing record for a heavy yacht of her type. In the year 1952 she was placed 14 times out of 18 starts, and the same year won the Frater Memorial for general handicap, and the points prize for the 4th Division yachts of the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron. She was also placed several times in the Balokovic Cup 100-mile ocean race controlled by the Royal Akarana Yacht Club.” Lady Pat is a very interesting vessel. The use of Oregon pine in her planking is unusual for this country, but treated as it was, and providing it is carefully looked after, there seems no reason why it should not stand the test of time. The stepping of her mast in a tabernacle is also unusual, although quite common in England, where yachts having to navigate inland rivers or waterways are always fitted with mast tabernacles for dropping under causeways and bridges. Like all Woollacott boats, Lady Pat is “all boat”, with practically no loss in her ends, which makes for room and longer sailing lines. Designed to sail under either sloop or cutter rig, we see her here under a most workmanlike combination of sails consisting of narrow lofty mainsail, fine big Genoa jib, and a most useful looking little jib topsail which seems to be pulling its weight very well. It’s a pretty study of a pretty little vessel, and in the light breeze blowing, Lady Pat is slipping smartly through the water. Mr. Willetts informs me that he recently sold Lady Pat to Mr. A. Taylor, of Otahuhu. I don’t know how he could bear to part with her!