Out of storage: Princess Royal Sailing Club receives six dinghies restored by the Albany Maritime Foundation

The arrival of six Mirror dinghies, which had been refurbished by the Albany Maritime Foundation after spending more than a decade in storage, was celebrated at the Princess Royal Sailing Club on Saturday.

The boats were last used when the club hosted the Mirror World Championships in 2011 and will provide a stepping stone between the club’s optimists, used by beginners, and the International Laser Class Association crafts sailed by those with more expertise.

Club commodore Rachel Hodgson said the boats would be a real boost to the club.

“The issue with the optimists and the ILCAs is they are both single-handed, whereas the Mirrors are ideal for families,” she said.

“Siblings can go out together, or a parent with a child.

“It means it’s not just about learning to sail, but the skipper can help teach the next level of skills to the less advanced sailor.

“When they move on, the other sailor has learned enough to be the skipper and can pass that knowledge on in turn.”

The six club boats will join two private vessels, meaning they can race against each other as a class.

“A fleet of eight means we can race on a level playing field, and not have racing where people are in all sorts of different boats,” commodore Hodgson said.

“It gives us a real pathway for our sailors, and we are really grateful for the work the foundation have done.”

Foundation chair John Gaunt said the boats had been completely disassembled and then reassembled, with the hulls sanded back and repainted over the winter.

Each boat now sports a plaque bearing the names of the individuals who contributed to the work.

“It was like fitting the pieces together in a jigsaw puzzle,” he said.

“It was a most fantastic project that kept us old guys off the street.

“When the world championships were here you could not see the other side of the harbour for red sails.

“These boats had been sitting in a shed since then, so it has been thrilling to have been a part of bringing them back to life.”