A historic gaff cutter that won the Fastnet Race in 1927 and was saved from the scrapyard in 2017 is gradually being restored to its former glory — but needs support to keep the project going.

Tally Ho was built by Stow & Son in Shoreham-by-Sea in 1909 and launched in 1910. It went on to win the Fastnet Race for Lord Stalbridge, Hugh Grosvenor, in 1927.

The boat was designed by Albert Strange and some years ago it was saved by the Albert Strange Association in the Pacific North West of the United States but after a decade of trying and failing to find someone to take on the project, Tally Ho was destined to be destroyed.

Leo Sampson Goolden, a boatbuilder and sailor from Bristol, stepped in at the 11th hour and bought the boat for £1 in May 2017 — even relocating to rural Washington state to embark on the project.

“Although Tally Ho spent a lot of her life on the Hamble and on the Solent, she was originally built in Shoreham,” Leo said of his motivations.

Acknowledging that Tally Ho — which currently resides in Port Townshend, northwest of Seattle — is a well-known and important historic vessel, Leo admitted it was overwhelming to see the amount of work to do.

But as previously reported on Afloat.ie, ever since he has been charting the story of the boat and its restoration on the Sampson Boat Co channel on YouTube, helping to fund parts and the work needed.

And public support via donations, purchasing parts from the rebuild ‘wish list’ or becoming a patron of the project could help see it to fruition and get closer to achieving Leo’s dream of sailing the vessel back to the UK — and competing in the Fastnet Race once more.