DAWN WIND OF KIRRIBILLI's lovey stern shape

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Dawn Wind of Kirribilli

Vessel numberHV000762

Builder Les & Barry Steel

Designer Len Randell

Date1965

DimensionsVessel Dimensions: 10.3 m × 1.76 m (33.79 ft × 5.77 ft)

DescriptionThe boat was designed as a 33ft fast cruiser by Len Randell. He was the primary yacht designer and naval architect in WA for many years, and this is an excellent example of his design output. It is a classic long keel yacht with strong construction, a seaworthy hull shape and elegant overhangs. The boat builders Les and Barry Steel were brothers and this is one of about 17 or so craft they built. They had built other classic yachts including SIMBA, an example of the slightly bigger Lion Class design from the UK, and the Sydney to Hobart yacht race winners RANI, RIVAL and STRUEN MARIE. This presented an opportunity to build a similar classic c and especially one designed by an Australian naval architect.

DAWN WIND was launched on Lake Macquarie N.S.W in October 1965. The first owners are understood to be Milas & Marjorie Sutton and they won a number of races on the lake in the early 1970’s.
On the 11th of November 1976 the boat was sold to JF & JM Bottomley. The boat was entered into the registry of small ships at the Sydney Customs House Register immediately upon purchasing the boat. The Bottonley's carried on racing DAWN WIND extensively on Sydney harbour during their ownership and amongst their wins was coming first in the RSYS Extras race in 1978.

The Bottomleys sold the boat on the 26th of February 1985 to a Mr J.R. Devers who registered the boat with the Customs Department in Brisbane. It appears that his ownership of the vessel was short lived and that he sold the boat within a year to the Kelman family.

James Kelman later decided to sail the boat to England, arriving in the early part of the 2000’s sailing the boat the western route via the Suez Canal to the Mediterranean and eventually the United Kingdom. Here he registered the boat in London on the British Registry of Ships. The current owner purchased the boat from Mr Kelman in October 2007. It remains in regular use sailing in the UK and is a rare example of an Australian designed and built yacht located in the UK.

In 2024, its designer Len was honoured with an Order of Australia in recognition of his services to Sailing and Naval Architecture.

SignificanceDAWN WIND OF KIRRIBILLI is a wooden yacht built in NSW in 1965. It is an example of a yacht designed by WA naval architect Len Randell and show how he captured the classic 1950s elegant yacht styling and seaworthy proportions. It is also a rare example of his designs built out side of WA. It was built by Les and Barry Steel on Lake Macquarie NSW, who were the principal boat builders on the lake. It is a significant example of the designers and builders work, with a long history of sailing in Australia before undertaking a long passage to the UK where it now resides.