Lee Ulyat came to the BBA following a career in the Parachute Regiment and time in Close Protection and went on to become a shipwright with a leading UK boatyard.
Lee Ulyat served in the Paras for 12 years as a Bombardier in the 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery, followed by eight years’ close protection work in countries such as Afghanistan for clients including the Saudi Royal Family.
One day, in Kabul, he saw a rare carvel Seabird Half Rater, the oldest class 1 still sailing, and thought how fantastic it would be to own one.
Little did he know that he would become the first person to build a half rater on the BBA’s 40-week course.
He explained: “Seeing that boat got me thinking about what skill I would like to learn which would take me through the rest of my life. I had promised my partner Vicky that I wouldn’t work in close protection once we had a family, and I could see that time approaching fast. I started to think that boatbuilding could give me whole lot of skills for the future.
“I looked at the courses available to me around the UK and spoke to Yvonne at the BBA. When I told her my plan to build a half rater, I found out that no one had attempted this on the 40-week course before. But I said that if they were willing to give me the chance, I would complete it. No matter how many hours it took.”
He continued: “Woodworking was pretty alien to me before the course, but I had been an engineer, and I was creative and loved solving problems with fabrication.
“Once in Lyme I found I really enjoyed the challenge and creating again – and what a place to be doing it!
“Mike and Matt, our tutors put all of us at complete ease. We had a very eclectic mix of people on the course: retirees, young people, an ex-RAF girl – and I still keep in touch with quite a few of them.
“Needless to say, my build did require all those extra hours! But I had a great team working with me and the feeling of seeing her float in the harbour on launch day was unbelievable!
“After leaving the course I went back into teaching close protection for a while as I considered my next move, then I saw an ad from a boatyard in Preston asking for shipwrights.
“That was Douglas Marine. I went up and saw they had a good mix of wooden and steel boats, which really appealed to me because of what I had learned on the course and also my background in engineering and fabrication. When I told them where I had been they said the BBA course was very well regarded, and when I said what I had built they said: “If you can build that in that short amount of time, we will take you on now – and they offered me a job there and then.
“The Foreman had just left, and they asked me to take over. I was a new boatbuilder and to be totally honest, I was probably well out of my depth, but I think having been in the military gave me the confidence to put myself out there and I saw the opportunity and went for it. On day two of the job, I was named the new Foreman.”
Lee ran the boatyard for five years, working on a broad range of projects from steel hulled launches and traditional fishing boats to the occasional GRP new build, as well as repairs on boats from 12ft to 45ft.
“My skills from the BBA meant I could confidently tackle jobs like cabinetry work – while my engineering background meant that if a welder let us down, I could also replate a steel hull.”
When Covid hit Lee left boatbuilding to look after his children whilst his wife worked.
He said: “On the large estate where I live, there were a lot of people who needed my woodworking skills, and that kept me busy.
“I believe that if you can build a boat, you can build practically anything. You just need have the attitude and courage to give it a go.”
He also went back into close protection for a brief period, guarding none other than Ant & Dec during the series of I’m a Celebrity set in a Welsh castle.
“I’ve done many private boat restorations, and I’ve built small dinghies. I still have my amazing boat, of which there are only around 108 in the world.
“I’ve also talked to half a dozen ex-service people about the BBA since then and hope I’ve answered any questions and alleviated any fears they might have about taking the course.
“For me it was a great choice which I believe will continue to work for me until I retire – and beyond.”
