Denman Marine Newsletter

Hi Denman Marine, and welcome to the latest Denman Marine newsletter.

In this month's newsletter we have:

• Te Rapunga at the 2025 Australian Wooden Boat Festival
• Class Globe 580 - 2025 MGR underway & 2029 registrations now open
• Denman Marine Built Chesapeake 17 For Sale
• Special - $150 OFF Sea Island Sport
• Build Updates

If there is anything you would like to see in our future newsletters, discuss, query or order, please contact us via the contact form on our website.

Head over to the Australian Wooden Boat Festival Youtube channel to watch a great short video on Te Rapunga, recently restored by Denman Marine.

"At the Australian Wooden Boat Festival 2025, Lani Morris reflects on an emotional reunion with Te Rapunga, the beautifully restored wooden boat originally owned by her father, George Dibbern.

Sitting aboard the vessel for the first time in decades, Lani shares memories of growing up on the water, the spirit of camaraderie and universal brotherhood that shaped her childhood, and the profound connection she feels to every familiar line of the boat.

Restored with extraordinary care and craftsmanship by Denman Marine, Te Rapunga carries both its rich history and a renewed future. This is a heartfelt story of heritage, sailing, and a boat destined to inspire generations to come."

Find more information about the restoration of Te Rapunga on our website and don't forget to check out the Te Rapunga Instagram for updates throughout the build.

At Denman Marine we specialise in custom wooden boat building, restoration and repair. Our purpose built facility on the D'Entrecasteaux Channel can accommodate boats from small dinghies to 50' ocean going yachts. We are happy to build in any timber construction method including; carvel, clinker, clinker plywood, stitch and glue, strip plank, and cold molded.

So if you are looking at having a vessel built, restored or repaired:

The 2025 Mini Globe Race is currently underway with leg four nearing completion and the final leg just over the horizon.

Keep an eye on the Mini Globe Race Facebook page for updates and head on over to the Live Tracker to see how they are doing. The final leg kicks off on the 26th.

You can also head over to the Class Globe 580 Youtube channel to see all the latest from the race.

MGR Leg 4 – Saint Helena Island to Recife – Week 4

The stage from Saint Helena Island to Recife always promised to be the easiest passage of the MGR. When John Guzzwell and TREKKA sailed this way, they had many days of light winds, just drifting along over a calm sea, helped by a favourable current, and numerous other voyagers have noted that this was a light-weather passage.

However, in 2026 the trade winds have been a little fresher at times, and the seas more boisterous, apart from a few delightful days mid-passage. Some skippers are also getting a little weary after sailing 24,000 miles across three oceans in a little over 12 months, and boat gear is getting tired as well.

Adam posted, “Is this the longest race in the world? I can’t think of any other sport where you would race more than once around the world.” Christian shared that sentiment.

It isn’t the longest yacht race in terms of NM sailed (the Clipper event, at 41,000 NM, takes that crown), but it certainly is the longest time-wise. And then there is that small issue of crossing the Atlantic twice. As Adam said, “LITTLE WREN is confused to be back in the Atlantic. She says she has already sailed across the Atlantic. We discussed it and agreed to carry on.”

There has been another intense tussle going on, between Eric on SUNBEAR and Keri on ORIGAMI, with the latter getting a nose ahead on 26 January, after Eric held him off for quite some time. Eric had earlier posted, “Great weather at the moment, dead run at 15 knots (of wind). I have Keri hot on my tail, and will make him work to get past me.”

He certainly did, with Keri posting, “You are certainly not making it easy, Eric! Do you never sleep???”

Despite putting up such a fierce resistance, Eric said that he was finding the heat tiresome. “Well, it’s so blooming hot inside, sunny today, 33° in the air. It’s quite overpowering outside. Really knocks you around. Can’t stay up there very long without getting worn out. So I’m inside, right on the centreline, between the bunks. I’ve got towels hanging up everywhere. I’ve got my sail and overalls hanging up in the ceiling, blocking the sun coming in. I’ve got a sail bag over my head.”

See here for the full post.

The McIntyre ClassGlobe 5.80 is a SIMPLE, AFFORDABLE, SAFE, Extreme weather ocean capable, easily handled, FUN to sail (and build) fully self-righting yacht.

Denman Marine is the Australian kit cutting agent for the Class Globe 5.80. We have already cut several kits and currently we can supply the below components, with more to follow:

• CNC cut plywood and solid timber components
• Stringer chine log kit
• Floor timbers including CNC cut MDF templates
• CNC cut MDF templates for poly-carbonate windows
• 3D CNC machined ballast plug

We can also supply quality West System epoxy resins and fillers at fantastic prices.

Get in touch with us today for more details and to discuss your Class Globe 5.80. For those who are serious about joining the Class Globe 5.80 family, the first step is to BUY the Plans and get your hull registration number.

$150 OFF Sea Island Sport

Grab $150 off the Sea Island sport Full or Wood parts only kits during February using the coupon code: 150OFFSIS

Checkout our Sea Island Sport kit for further details and to place your order today.

Denman Marine is Chesapeake Light Craft's Australian and New Zealand agent for their fantastic range of DIY kits. There is a huge selection of over sixty designs, including kayaks, canoes, rowing and sailing boats and even a teardrop camper. Be sure to head on over to our Chesapeake Light Craft page to grab a bargain on your next project. Below you can find a few recent examples of what our builders have been up to.

Contact Us

Please feel free to contact us at any time via our contact form to discuss your next boat or project.

Please note, any prices listed above are in Australian Dollars.

® Denman Marine 2024
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