A RACING yacht built on the Gareloch more than 90 years ago is almost ready to relaunch after 35 years out of the water.

Dione, built in 1924, has been painstakingly restored by a team of hard-working volunteers and members of the local sailing community.

After her relaunch on Friday, Dione will rejoin the fleet of 16 Gareloch One Designs (GODs) sailing and racing in the annual Gareloch championships on July 22 and 23.

Peter Proctor, convener of the Gareloch Association, said the organisation had acquired the yacht in 2014 with a view to restoring her.

He said: "She was in bits, but under cover, so basically sound. We didn’t know how we would get her back together and sailing, we just knew we should try."

Retired Royal Navy engineer Bill McLaren stepped forward and volunteered to lead the work. Then Bill's cousin, Tim Henderson, also stepped up to help.

Both men were former Gareloch owners and were keen to see Dione restored.

Mr Proctor, said: "Between them they put in most of the 1500 hours involved, but the local sailing community also made a massive contribution – labour, technical expertise, parts and equipment.”

The Gareloch design dates back to 1923, when the Gareloch Yacht Club, which had been formed after the First World War, decided they needed a yacht suitable for racing.

They asked McGruers, a yacht-building yard based at Clynder on the west shore of the loch, to design and build ten boats which they could race on the loch.

Those yachts were delivered in spring 1924 and allocated by ballot to their owners, before being painted in the many colours which are still a feature of the class.

And word of the Garelochs' attractiveness quickly spread: the Royal Forth Yacht Club took a liking to the design when the yachts were under constructio,n and had five built in the summer of 1924, branded 'Royal Forth One' designs.

A sixteenth and final Gareloch was built in 1928 for a Clyde owner.

Over the next decade some of the Clyde Garelochs migrated to the Forth and Aldeburgh in Suffolk.

In the mid 1950s John Henderson, Tim's uncle, set out to bring all the Garelochs back home to the waters where they first raced, and all the boats raced together for the first time in 1957.

All the Gareloch One Design yachts are 24 feet long and are made from elm, oak, mahogany and pitch pine, with a cast-iron keel.

The mahogany used in Dione's rebuild was salvaged from the old ticket counter at Helensburgh Central railway station when the station was rebuilt in the late 1950s, and is thought to have originally come from Honduras.

A key challenge in the restoration involved replacement of 68 of the boat's 114 frames, with local naval architect Ian Nicholson lending his expertise to ensure the job was completed successfully.

Mr Proctor said: "I think these 93 year old Garelochs are unique as a class of classic yachts. All the Garelochs ever built are still here and sailing where they were built.

"It is fantastic that Dione will be rejoining the racing at the annual championships on July 22. Her return is a great credit to the members of the Association, the local sailing community, but especially to Bill and Tim who made it possible.”

Dione will be formally relaunched at Rhu Marina on Friday, July 21 at 6pm.