From the 1960s, Pat Walsh worked at Tough's as a boat builder. He was also a key part of the civil engineering side of the Tough’s business, and established his own civil engineering and towage company on the river. In the 1980s he was part of the team who built one of Tough’s last boats, a 150 foot yacht called Brave Goose, for Sir Donald Gosling. Two young brothers, Chris and Jono Shankster worked at Tough’s at that time and worked on Brave Goose. The yacht was launched in April 1986, and was brought downstream under Richmond Bridge, where it was famously caught by the tide. By the 1990s the boatyard was in decline, with Bob Tough eventually retiring in 2006, and the yard has recently been redeveloped into offices and apartments.
Building Brave Goose II at Tough's Boatyard
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