Duke of Cornwall
My Boat - Duke of Cornwall owned by Peter Lucas
Describe your boat: It’s a 52ft Barnett Class Lifeboat, built in 1960 by Groves & Gutteridge, Isle of Wight. It was designed by James Barnett with the distinctive deck feature of a midship steering position, as well as twin engines, twin screws and shelter for the rescuers and rescued. These were advances introduced into lifeboat design under Barnett’s supervision. She cost £40,500 to build, was given the designation of ON-952 and arrived at Kilcobben Cove near The Lizard. The new station there was opened in 1961 by The Duke of Edinburgh who named the new boat ‘The Duke of Cornwall’.
Has she been involved in many rescues? Yes, during the 27 years she was in service, she was launched 124 times and saved 93 lives. She received a Letter of Commendation after she was launched at 0025 on 20 December 1981 to search for the Penlee lifeboat after all radio communications was lost. The search, in hurricane force12 winds, gusting 100 knots, continued until 1825. The Duke of Cornwall was so badly damaged she was out of service for 3 months.
When did you buy her? I bought her 10 years ago. I’d been looking to buy a motor boat and thought a lifeboat was a good choice as she’s beautifully built and has been well maintained all her life. Not the most accommodation but she was a good price for a big lump of boat. It took a while to get used to handling her - you have to be a bit brave and drive her quite hard. I restored her to look pretty much as she did when launched and converted the interior. She can sleep 6. The engines are original. They’re massive things and only rev about 900 revs/min. Great for towing.
Have you cruised her far? She’s been all the way to Gothenburg in Sweden (a round trip of 2,500 miles). We cruise at 7.5 knots (she’ll do 9 knots). She rolls around a bit - I find it OK but some find it unpleasant! We usually have 3-4 weeks away, often going off across the channel or down to the Scillies. I hope soon to cruise to Southern Ireland and I quite fancy taking it up the Thames as far as I can go and then perhaps down to Paris.
First Published October 2009 By The Dart