Since 2000, those who love the fine lines of classic yachts, motorboats and dinghies head for the Nelson Lakes National in early March for the annual Antique and Classic Boat Show.

Organised by Pete Rainey and Glenn Common, they share a love of all things about classic boats. For their day job, the two founders operate Rockquest Promotions, their Nelson-based event promotion company. They first met while working as high school teachers in Christchurch. In 1988 they entered some bands from their school into a performance competition that a local radio station was putting on. They saw the kids really responding to the opportunity to play contemporary music. In 1990 the competition went nationwide, and has been a national success since then.

Glenn and Pete were honoured with the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2013, and the Taite Music Independent Spirit award in 2021. They continue to lead the team that now runs this New Zealand institution.

In 2000 they set the foundations for what has become a national institution in the classic boat scene with the first Anitique and Classic Boat Show at St Arnaud. After more than 20 years, the format of boat displays on the land in the morning and races on the lake in the afternoon is well bedded in.

“The action is on the foreshore of Lake Rotoiti at Kerr Bay, framed by the twin St Arnaud and Spencer Ranges – it has be regarded as one of the most stunning settings for a show of this kind anywhere in world,” Pete says. “That, and the classic beauty of old wooden clinkers, steamers and classy speed boats makes this show really something special.”

“From early morning on both days of the weekend you can wander around the boats on land, chat with the owners, view displays with stories of restoration and rebuild and then watch the races on the lake in the afternoon,” he says. “We have a lot of fun, from the slightly chaotic sail-past to the Seagull dinghy race with its Le Mans start, nearly always with a couple of motors that won’t start, and we’ve had a surprise entry from a cheeky boatie with two Seagulls mounted on his dinghy.”

Another attraction is the Nelson Lakes Classic Boat Museum in St Arnaud village. Several of the display boats will be at the lakeside on show, but those that are too big to move will stay in the museum. This includes the cutter Resolution gifted to museum by the Outward Bound Trust.

“It’s a 32ft kauri replica of Captain Cook’s cutters that was built in 1976 for the Outward Bound fleet,” Rainey says. “It’s a spectacular vessel for its scale and its workmanship – our plan is to have it restored, surveyed and available for community groups to use.”

The NZ Antique and Classic Boatshow continues to grow in the number and quality of craft presented, as well as the number of people coming to view the boats and the action. Judging will take place on Saturday, ahead of an evening awards ceremony at the Alpine Lodge. At stake is the Jens Hansen Trophy, awarded for good looks, craftsmanship and the boat’s history.