An inspirational journey of resilience, response, care and recovery while looking to the future……. By Steve Dewire, Blue Ridge Chapter It has been a sincere privilege to follow the recovery process for Lake Lure and Chimney Rock after the overwhelming destruction from Helene on September 27th of 2024. This is the fifth update article for…
September 15–21, 2025 was the Antique and Classic Boat Society’s (ACBS) Vintage Boat Week in Clayton, NY. The theme for the event was “Celebrating 50 years in 2025!” For those who could not make it to Clayton, ACBS requested their chapter plan a local boating activity for September 20th. As we knew most of our…
As told by a skeptical dockhand with a soft spot for strange truths, Rocky Mountain Classics member, John Stiller When a Rocky Mountain Classics ACBS member bought a mannequin at a thrift store, they didn’t have a very good story about where she came from. So The chapter has been having fun taking turns to…
North Carolina Coastal & Piedmont Chapter Submitted by Judy Hills, Newsletter Editor The weather forecast leading up to the chapter’s show scheduled for Chocowinity, NC, on Saturday, September 27th, was ugly. Participants were calling, asking if we were going to call the show off. We decided to proceed—after all, boats are made to get wet. …
By David Kanally, Southwest Chapter It was the spring of 1969. Without knowing he was about to start a forty-four-year saga, my dad got the itch to buy a boat. The weather would soon be warm enough and school would be out. Chautauqua Lake, just ninety miles away, would again beckon our family and closest…
ACBS is proud to support the future of boat building and restoration with scholarships at six accredited boat building and restorations schools. The fall semester is just getting underway and Marine Trades Institute is just one school excited to welcome their new cohort of students. The Marine Trades Institute (MTI) is thrilled to announce the…
An unusual outboard motor has found its way home after being submerged for over seventy years in a northern Wisconsin lake. The motor, a shallow water design Caille, was owned by resort owner and fishing guide Harry Jones, who used it to search the creeks for minnows, and for shallow-water fishing on Pickerel Lake near…
The Inland Empire ACBS wrapped up the 2025 boating season with a classic: the annual fall run up the St. Joe River from Harrison, Idaho, to St. Maries. For a while, it looked like the trip might not even happen—Harrison woke up to an Air Quality Index of 165 thanks to Montana forest fires. But…
Wuzz a Fuzz, Tom Flood’s 31-foot Custom Runabout By Dave and Connie Willis, Water Wonderland Chapter Sunk in a canal off Lake St. Clair. Ice had chewed through the hull. Not the best start for a classic boating story! Tom Flood rescued this 31-foot Hacker police boat and trucked it to his workshop in Florida…
Are you looking for more great photos from the recent 2025 ACBS Vintage Boat Week? Here are more of the boats and folks that participated! If you aren’t already a member of ACBS, join now and receive the ACBS Rudder magazine. The fall issue is dedicated to the 2025 Vintage Boat Week!
By David Irvine, Water Wonderland / Michigan Chapter, ACBS The 47th Annual Les Cheneaux Islands Antique Wooden Boat Show was held on Saturday, August 9, 2025. The event is held in Hessel, Michigan, just 35 minutes northeast of the Mackinac Bridge, and has been hosted by the Les Cheneaux Historical Association. Proceeds help to fund…
By Larry Tarves, Smith Mountain Lake Chapter Let me introduce you to the Queen Mother of all runabouts. It has ten cockpits, seating for 125 passengers and three engines under the deck; must be a runabout! The Flying Saucer operated out of the docks of Chris’ Seafood Restaurant on the bay front in Ocean City,…