All was ship-shape for the first event for the newly formed Warrnambool St Ayles Skiff Club.

Club secretary Patrick Groot said the small wooden boat expo drew a large crowd. 

“While it’s difficult to know numbers, I think at least 500 people came,” he said.

“We had over 20 wooden boats on display, ranging from the large Annie Baxter to the smaller single-person canoes.”

Mr Groot said two wooden rowing boats were showcased.

“The feature of the day was the presence of two St Ayles Skiffs,” he said.

“Robert Ayliffe brought one over from Goolwa in South Australia and Jim Barr brought the other from the Welsh Church in Melbourne. We had these as the centrepiece of the exhibit.”

The club has a focus on encouraging people to get involved in rowing as a way of improving their health.

“The Warrnambool club had this expo to launch ourselves as a group,” Mr Groot said.

“We have two skiff kits in storage at Flagstaff Hill and the next important phase of our project is to build them. 

“It’s about encouraging people to become more physically active and reduce their risk of stroke.”

Among the people checking out the boat expo was a group of refugees. 

“A contingent of Iranian refugees came from Adelaide,” Mr Groot said.

“After the expo they had a barbecue out at the Wangoom Hall. They are planning to build a skiff as well.”

The group recruited 11 new enthusiasts at the expo and now has 33 members.