by David Martin member of the Northern California/Lake Tahoe chapter As a child of the 70’s, some of my happiest summer vacations were spent at Clearlake and Lake Berryessa in California with our 1959 Wizard Marlin Imperial when I learned to water ski at 6 years of age. I always loved going boating, but our…
by David Kanally member of the Southwest chapter From time to time, the Wooden Boat Association of North Texas (WBA) is honored to receive a donated boat that deserves to be nurtured back to health. When Scott Reichardt offered us his 1948 Hafer Phantom 75, we jumped at the chance. The poor little runabout had…
by Gary & Darlene Millpointer members of the Glacier Lakes chapter Purchased in 2013 from Delavan Lake Boat Shed as a project boat. It was a 1st for me in a boat restoration, as cars were my past experience. Project work started with a fully sandblasted trailer and all bung supports replaced with new steel…
by Tom-Hanford member of the Finger Lakes chapter The Lord Jeff is a 22’1928 Chris-Craft Cadet,hull #1491. The boat was purchased by my grandfather,Saxe Hanford and his sister,Josephine Hanford Arnot. It was named based on the nickname of Amherst College,the Lord Jeffs,after Major General Jeffery Amherst,British commander in the French and Indian War.At the time…
by Dave and Amy Drew members of the Water Wonderland chapter Our venture into the world of classic boating may be different than most. We had never owned a boat, we have never lived on the water, and in fact we always looked at owning a boat similarly to owning a swimming pool. We would…
by Myndy Woodruff member of the Lake Champlain chapter My wife Kate was chatting with a nurse in Montpelier, Vermont and disclosed our old boat habit. Everybody has an old boat story. It just so happened that this nurse had an old Penn Yan Boat and motor that had been hanging for decades in her…
by Roger Norberg member of the Bob Speltz Land-O-Lakes chapter I grew up with the privilege of spending summers on a small lake in Northern Wisconsin. My first boat was given to me for my 9th birthday, a 14-foot aluminum Smoker Craft with a new 1966 9.5 Evinrude. In those days’ parents thought nothing of…
by Gerald Petersen member of the Blackhawk chapter My 1912 Morris canoe was built for my father, Waldemar Petersen, when he was a youth living in Dundee, Illinois. My grandfather was a family physician living very near the Rock River in downtown Dundee. He had a large lot with a barn for his horses which…
by Brad Rhine member of the Adirondack chapter While growing up spending summers on Lake Placid, learning how to care for and drive a boat became a rite of passage, with the size and horsepower being age appropriate. For this reason, when our three kids became of age to pass their boater safety course, I…
by Jim Russell member of the Chautauqua Lake Twin Tier chapter My wife and I became first time boat owners April of 2017 after a longtime fascination with classic wooden boats. Our local paper had a listing for a 1956 Chris-Craft, Mahogany Sportsman Runabout completely restored with trailer. I called the seller and after he…
by Valerie Stabenow member of the Glacier Lakes chapter I grew up around wood boats on Lauderdale Lakes in southern Wisconsin in the ‘60s. Boy, those were the boats to have, but unfortunately, that was not possible for my family. Fast forward to 2006, living on a lake north of Madison, WI, when my non-boating…
by David Berett member of the Pacific Northwest chapter My 1941 Chris-Craft started its life as a 22’ Utility. I found it sitting outside on a forested bluff overlooking Puget Sound in La Conner, WA in 1980. The original wood top had been cut off with a chainsaw and was laying over the engine box,…