You got a great boat… or maybe just a great deal, and you’ve trailered it to your garage. Now what? If you live in Florida, and are a member of the ACBS Sunnyland Chapter, you attend the Adult SCAMPY Program and enjoy hands-on learning while restoring a Chris-Craft Rocket. SCAMPY stands for Sunnyland Chapter Apprentice…
By Tom Flood, Michigan & Sunnyland Chapters John Hacker’s primary interest was in designing and building wooden boats. John was born in 1877 in Detroit, Michigan. He spent his boyhood days in Detroit, where he roamed the many boat yards in his spare time analyzing the design of the wooden craft of that era. His…
By Jeff Funk Three years ago the non-profit Sunnyland Chapter Adult Mentoring Program for Youth (SCAMPY) began a new program for adults. After more than ten years mentoring young adults in the fine art of boat building, it was time to expand and incorporate more ‘senior’ members into the restoration world of saving our beloved…
Charter Date: September 28, 1985 The Sunnyland Chapter of ACBS, based in Florida, hosts one of the largest and most well-attended boat shows in the history of ACBS, the Sunnyland Antique Boat Festival. Newer members to Sunnyland may ask, “How did we get here and where did we come from?” In the mid-1950s, in an…
By Shannon Knight, Sunnyland Chapter Meet Crush, a 1977 Glastron CVX-16 Deluxe, complete with its original Mercury 115 engine, affectionately known as the “Tower of Power.” Glastrons are famous for their sleek design and vibrant paint jobs, and Crush is no exception. These boats even made appearances in James Bond films, like “Live and Let…
By Seth Vore, ACBS Community Engagement Manager and Ad/Sponsor Sales The unofficial start to boating season kicked off March 21st-24th in Tavares, Florida with some excellent pre-events, a chapter roundtable and international board meeting, followed by the popular Sunnyland Boat Festival. Personally, this was my first time attending the show and the first time ACBS…
By James Moores, Sunnyland Chapter Patience is a prototype for the M27, influenced by the timeless style, grace and beauty of pre-war design and the many great boat builders of a bygone era. Reading an old yachting magazine from the 1930s, I came across an article by John Wells, a boat designer from that time,…
WELCOME TO THE 43RD ANNUAL SUNNYLAND ANTIQUE AND CLASSIC BOAT FESTIVAL March 21-24, 2024 in Tavares, Florida Dear Fellow Boaters: It’s time to start thinking about the Sunnyland Antique and Classic Boat Festival and getting your boats ready for the first show of the 2024 Boating Season! Sunnyland offers a beautiful and varied collection…
Note: Charles Mistele passed away in early March 2020. A few weeks before his passing, Charles mailed a handwritten story to the ACBS office, and this story was first published in memory of Charles and his life long commitment as the caretaker of Miss America IX. Now, we have recently learned of Diane Mistele’s passing…
From Headquarters While attending the Sunnyland show we all learned of the passing of Arthur Dean Guy. Dean, as his friends knew him, was very active in the two ACBS chapters, Sunnyland and Blue Ridge, he called home for over 30 years. He also served on the ACBS International Board and led the organization as…
Michael and Tanya Grace, Sunnyland Chapter We were very excited to meet ACBS Sunnyland members Michael and Tanya Grace at the Sunnyland Boat Festival last week where they displayed three fantastic canoes from their collection. Two of the three were not just antiques, but historic canoes at well over 100 years old. The canoes’ builders,…
From Headquarters The Sunnyland Chapter has rolled out the sunshine for the Antique Boat Festival in Tavares, Florida this week. The South Bound cruise enjoyed beautiful weather and only minor mishaps, like running out of fuel, that required tow-ins. The ACBS International Board held the Chapter Round Table and Board Meeting on Thursday and appreciated…