How It Started In 1995, four wooden boat owners got together to form the North Coast Ohio (NCO) Chapter of the Antique and Classic Boat Society. Rich Baratha, Bob Otto, Les Demaline, and Jack Lynett met at the Holiday Inn in Montrose, Ohio and drew up the documents which permitted the new Chapter to chart…
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Baby Bootlegger celebrated her 100th birthday this year with a beautiful and informative photo montage created and narrated by Mark Mason and presented at the 2024 Vintage Boat Week. Here is a link to that presentation and narration posted to YouTube. From the history of Caleb Bragg, to Baby Bootlegger in her heyday, to her…
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And, now onto the midwest and the Mississippi Valley Chapter of ACBS…. The Mississippi Valley Chapter is small but mighty. Chartered in the 1980s, with most of its members centered around St. Louis, Missouri, the Chapter meets regularly in the four bay workshop of one of its members to tinker, restore, learn, and just enjoy…
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By Alan & Liz Wardsworth, Inland Empire Chapter If you have been following the saga of our 1963 Belmont, you probably won’t believe it ended up being a successful summer of boating! Belmont produced luxury runabouts from 1956 to 1966 before they converted to fiberglass flat bottom racers. Most Belmonts have Cadillac power but founder,…
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ACBS’s newest chapter is the Northern Europe Chapter. Chartered in May, 2023, the chapter fulfills an over decade long interest for antique boaters in Northern Europe, and particularly Sweden and Norway, to join ACBS as an official Northern European Chapter. In the winter of 2022/23, Torben Kasimzade approached ACBS from his home in Germany asking…
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The ACBS Oral History Project commemorating our club’s first 50 years is in full swing! Over 3,000 have called in to share their stories about what membership in this great community of antique & classic boaters means to them and how it has enhanced their love of boating. We’ve collected some great memories dating back…
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If you attended the 2024 Vintage Boat Week in Minnesota, you may have had the incredible opportunity to see the Raceboats, Baby Skipalong and Baby Bootlegger. Readers of ACBS Rudder are familiar with the stories of these two boats from the Raceboat History column written by Kevin Bamerick. Baby Skipalong was at one time known…
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On the heels of such an amazing boat show, this week we visit the history of the Bob Speltz Land O Lakes Chapter. Originally chartered in 1977 as the Land O Lakes Chapter, it was the fourth Chapter in the ACBS family. Here is the story… Chapter History and Name: A 1976 a boat…
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By Brad Sunderland, ACBS Member Elysian was the name applied to the transom of hull 1021 when it was built in 1959. Riva boats, an Italian boat company, built the finest in watercraft, striving for perfection even in the smallest of details. While building other styles, this model is called the Ariston. Ariston means “The…
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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…
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My greetings to everyone, The initial and continuing impact of Helene has been widespread across our Tri-State area. Power, cell phone and internet access are in different statuses depending on the location. The extended return of service reflects the level of damage and recovery. Our power companies and many crews from surrounding states are working…
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With a charter date of February 14, 1976, the Lake Hopatcong Chapter became ACBS’ first. Still thriving nearly 50 years later, ACBS salutes those who laid the foundation for this organization and those who continue to build on it’s legacy today. Here is the Lake Hopatcong Chapter’s story… A Brief Chapter History The Lake Hopatcong…
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