Billy Hand built by Rod Sterling in his suburban backyard in Bellerive under mentorship from battery point shipwright, Bill Foster, over a period of 10 years from 2000 to 2010. Billy is named after Rod’s father who was a tally man at Bellerive in his youth for a shipping company that transported produce across the river. The boat was launched at Bellerive and when the mast was stepped Rod placed a gold sovereign given to him by his father under the mast.
The boat has appeared before in the Wooden Boat Festival while in Rods ownership.
Billy is a Gaff Rig Couta Boat built from traditional plans of Victorian couta boats supplied by Tim Phillips of Sorrento .