30 years of Quick & Dirty, by AWBF Co-Founder, Ian Johnston

From the beginning (1994) the Quick and Dirty has been the wonderful finale to the whole Festival. For the first 20 years, I had the job of organising and promoting this event (as well as being the Constitution dockmaster, organiser of parent-child boat building, building the marina etc).  The first few Q&D events were for 2 adults, supplied materials included plywood, timber, canvas and a flexible adhesive. All the materials were supplied by several generous commercial supporters.
 
One of the entrants at the first event featured ’The 2 Tenors’, dressed in top hat and tails (and lifejacket), they sang their way around the course, and even though their boat sank beneath them, they continued paddling, the only part of the boat still visible was the sail. After a few years, I was asked if a team of 3 students could compete against the adults - yes, and they won!  After that, we changed to make it a challenging, joyful event for the kids we have now.
 
The most recent Q&D, organised by Iefke and Matt, was the best event ever held anywhere. Congratulations and thank you to all the kids, parents, teachers and volunteers. And thank you to Tasmanian Shipwrights & Co. for their support and sponsorship of the event.
 
Expressions of interest for the next Quick & Dirty will open in mid-2026. Subscribe to Enews here for updates!