The man behind the popularity of Cornish Gig racing has died.

Ralph Bird, master boat builder who built 29 racing gigs for Cornish clubs and restored many others, lived with his wife Marie at Carnon Mine, Devoran.

He had been suffering from ill health for some time.

But he leaves behind a legacy for hundreds of people of all ages throughout Cornwall and across the Tamar who now enjoy gig racing. It has been Cornwall’s fastest growing sport and would never have been what it has become today without him.

Only last month gig rowers from all over Cornwall rowed to his cottage overlooking the river at Devoran and stood, oars raised in tribute to the man they admired.

Few people in Cornwall, not least those with a love of all things maritime, have not heard of Mr Bird. Most of them have met him during his time spent building and talking about pilot gigs. His talks at local gig clubs, the National Maritime Museum, on board numerous pleasure boats and elsewhere, have been heard by thousands over the years.

His craftsmanship has been heralded by hundreds of people, both in this country and abroad and his skill of building traditional wooden gigs much admired by others involved in the same profession.

One of the gigs he built in the 1980s was the Royal, in its day was considered to be one of the best gigs around. Truro Gig Club based at Loe Beach, won five County Championships and one World Championship with it.

The Royal is still a familiar site in the Carrick Roads, and also competes in sailing races being one of the few remaining gigs that can use a sailing rig.

In 1991 Mr Bird built a gig for his own village of Devoran. It was called the Fear Not named after an earlier historic Devoran gig. Others for other clubs followed.

All modern racing gigs are based on the Treffry, built in 1838 by Williams Peters in St Mawes and still owned and raced by the Newquay Rowing Club.

Gig rower Anne Oliver said: "The first time I met Ralph Bird was when Helen Pascoe (nee Dunstan), Ted Pentecost, Nigel Pascoe, and a couple of original Falmouth Gig Club members, including myself (there were only a half dozen or so of us in those days), helped with a tree trunk (Cornish elm) that came from Helen's Dad's farm - it was left to be steeped in the creek outside Ralph's house for the start of Falmouth's new pilot gig.

"My memory of Ralphs workshop on that and numerous visits to see how work was going, was of a jam-packed 40 ft long (ish) shed filled with all sorts of boat building implements you could possibly imagine- a veritable boat builders store.

"From that tree trunk, Fury was produced and Ralph's mum named it on Custom House Quay, so starting the successful role of Falmouth Gig Club.

"He was a well respected man and will be sorely missed for all his hard work within the gig world."

For a full story see tomorrow's Packet.

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